USDA awards contracts for RFID ear tags

https://drgnews.com/2020/08/19/usda-awards-contracts-for-rfid-ear-tags/

• The USDA recently awarded contracts to purchase up to eight million RFID ear tags.
• This contract allows USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service to purchase additional tags each year for up to five years.
• USDA’s Under Secretary for Marketing and Regulatory Programs Greg Ibach said that RFID tags will help the cattle industry quickly respond to potential disease events.
  • USDA believes RFID devices will provide states and the cattle and bison industries with the best opportunity to rapidly contain the spread of high economic impact diseases.
• Last spring, APHIS distributed more than 1.1 million RFID tags to 38 states since this last spring.

Trump losing support among farmers over handling of virus, survey says

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-08-19/trump-s-re-election-support-from-farmers-ebbs-on-virus-dtn-says

• According to a survey conducted by DTN Progressive Farmer, President Donald Trump is losing re-election support among farmers over his handling of the coronavirus outbreak.
• The survey polled 500 farmers. Survey data showed 71 percent of farmers plan to vote for Trump, down from 89 percent in April. Additional data showed 43 percent of farmers are satisfied with Trump’s response to the pandemic, down from 84 percent.
• When DTN conducted their survey four years ago, results showed Trump was poised to capture the rural vote over Hillary Clinton.
• A farmer-sentiment index ready of 47 for the current environment is the lowest in over 10 years.

Cattle prices surge to record in Australia as supply tightens

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-08-20/cattle-prices-surge-to-record-in-australia-as-supply-tightens

• Australia’s benchmark cattle price index has surged to a record level as slaughter rates plunged amid reduced processing capacity and tightening supplies.
  • Slaughter rates have slumped by 30 percent year-on-year in the week ending August 14^th, according to Meat & Livestock Australia.
  • MLA also reported that the Eastern Young Cattle Indicator increased to $7.76/kilogram ($5.57) on Wednesday.
• Australian cattle producers have been holding replacement females back to restock their herds amid optimism over solid rainfall in many parts of the country after many years of drought negatively impacted herd numbers.

Boxed beef prices

www.nationalbeefwire.com

• Choice boxed beef: $225.38 (+2.34)
• Select boxed beef: $206.31 (+0.66)