Beef continues to be the bright spot in agriculture in 2025 with record high prices for producers, but one analyst is reminding producers that it won’t last forever. DTN livestock market analyst ShayLe Stewart, on the “Future of the Cowherd” webinar, says life is good right now for cattle ranchers.

“When you get the opportunity to sell cattle this year, I hope that you jump up, you click your heels, and that you that you just bask in how good this market is, because you and I both know if we’re going to play this game for long, we will see an adverse time where prices are lower than this. Of course, it’s going to happen. And so you know what? Go ahead and take some time to put your face in the sunshine and just enjoy this.”

But with the reduced herd inventory, Stewart says packers’ margins are tighter this year than last.

“If you compare that to 2024 when our cow herd inventory was low in the previous cycle, they’re making less than what they were back then at this point in time. So what I’m here to tell you is that slaughter speeds will continue to lessen even more in the second half, as packers continue to manage their margin and try to safer themselves from having to see more red ink.”

Stewart notes that producers are literally beefing up their cattle to an average of 40 pounds per head more than in previous cycles, so she cautions them about what to plan for when the inevitable herd expansion begins.

“Not only will we have that additional per head perspective, but think about how much bigger today’s cattle will be so, it’ll be more like having I don’t I would have to do the math, but the realistic numbers is it would be far more because of the additional production that those cattle are going to bring to the marketplace, from sheer weight.”