authors: Josh Maples and David Anderson
The USDA Livestock Slaughter 2025 Summary was released last week and showed U.S. red meat production declined about 2 percent in 2025 from 2024 levels. Beef production was the main driver of the overall decrease in red meat supplies at 3.6 percent below 2024. Pork production was 0.8 percent lower than in 2024, while lamb production was essentially flat. An observant reader will notice that lamb production is such a small portion of total red meat production that it does not readily show up on the attached chart of total red meat supplies.
Digging deeper into beef production and cattle slaughter highlights the impact of larger harvest weights on beef supply. Commercial cattle slaughter totaled 29.8 million head, down 6 percent from 2024. However, average live weights increased by 33 pounds. The rise in live weights provided some offset to the smaller number of cattle moving through processing plants in 2025. Average live weights have increased by 67 pounds since 2023.
The mix of steers, heifers, and cows as a proportion of total cattle slaughter shifted somewhat in 2025, although not in a way that would suggest herd expansion. Steers comprised 49.7 percent of total federally inspected cattle slaughter, up from 48.6 percent in 2024. That is not to say that more steers were slaughtered, but, as fewer cows were culled, steers made up a larger percentage of total cattle slaughter. Heifers made up 31.7 percent of cattle slaughter, down slightly from 32 percent the previous year. Cull cows represented 17 percent of total slaughter, down from 17.8 percent in 2024. Within the cull cow total, 53 percent were dairy cows, up from 49 percent in 2024.The April Cold Storage report from USDA provides a snapshot of meat supplies in freezers at the end of March. Total red meat in cold storage was down 2 percent from a year ago, with beef inventories declining 3 percent. Pork in cold storage was up 2 percent from last year, while poultry supplies were down 5 percent year over year. Within the poultry category, chicken inventories were down 3 percent, while turkey in cold storage was down 9 percent from last year.
Maples, Josh, and David Anderson. “Decline in 2025 Red Meat Production Driven by Beef.” Southern Ag Today 6(18.2). April 28, 2026. Permalink
