GENERAL COMMENTS:
Thus far it's been a grim and uneventful Friday for the livestock complex as the contracts continue to scale lower and fundamental support simply isn't available in the marketplace. Bids of $233 live in Kansas and $351 dressed in Nebraska are currently on the table, but there is yet to be any new trade. December corn is up 8 1/2 cents per bushel and December soybean meal is up $0.50. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is down 117.03 points and NASDAQ is down 84.48 points.
ANALYST'S NOTE REGARDING TYSON FOOD'S ANNOUNCEMENT:
Tyson's announcement of their plant closures in Joslin, Illinois, and Eagle Mountain, Utah, along with their intent to sell the plant in Pasco, Washington, proves one, very clear thing: The cattle complex is changing, and this is by no means the same marketplace cattlemen had a year ago, five years ago or even back in 2015.
From an immediate perspective, Tyson's announcement helps clarify why the board has been alarmingly soft over the last two trading days, as news travels fast and keeping headline news such as this under wraps rarely happens. It also solidifies the likeliness that the fed cash cattle market will trade lower in the upcoming weeks, which could also affect feeder cattle prices.
From a long-term perspective, Tyson's announcement becomes a much more difficult topic to table as it's multifaceted. On one hand, one must understand the plants built in the 1960s are simply not as efficient as the plants entering the marketplace today, like the Sustainable Beef Plant in North Platte, Nebraska, (opened in May 2025) or like the Producer Owned Beef plant currently under construction in Amarillo, Texas. Given the historically low cow herd the U.S. sits with, it's no secret that ensuring a profit in the packing sector has been a difficult endeavor over the last two years and could remain challenging until domestic supplies increase. Secondly, from a grassroots perspective, this is eerie news to stomach as keeping enough shackle space open for however large the U.S. cow herd builds back to remains a pressing issue for cattlemen who are considering growing their herds.
Regardless of where you operate in the supply chain; whether you're a cow-calf operator in the grasslands of Montana, a stocker in Kansas, or a fellow packer -- this announcement grabs your attention and demands consequential thought. But there's one major theme that continues to live on and is embedded in the cattle complex of our day and age: The business is chock full of risk and is subject to nauseating headlines that can gravely derail the market's trajectory and stability.
LIVE CATTLE:
The live cattle complex is trading lower into Friday's noon hour as a lack of fundamental support, mixed with Thursday's announcement that Tyson Foods plans to close two beef plants and sell another, is weighing heavily on the market. August live cattle are down $5.32 at $220.90, October live cattle are down $3.90 at $216.15 and December live cattle are down $3.62 at $215.82. This week's fed cash cattle market has traded only a handful of cattle in the North, and there's yet to be any sizeable trade noted in the South. Packers are expected to participate less in this week's market given they purchased over 104,000 head last week. But some trade will still likely need to develop in the South before the week's over. Bids of $233 live are currently being offered in Kansas and bids of $351 dressed are on the table in Nebraska.
Boxed beef prices are lower: choice down $1.17 ($374.73) and select down $0.13 ($349.11) with a movement of 62 loads (46.77 loads of choice, 1.42 loads of select, 4.80 loads of trim and 9.25 loads of ground beef).
FEEDER CATTLE:
Again Friday, without enough support from the live cattle contracts, the feeder cattle complex is trading lower. August feeder cattle are down $3.77 at $339.05, September feeder cattle are down $5.60 at $331.60 and October feeder cattle are down $6.62 at $322.17. A lower close is expected for the complex as it's highly unlikely the futures turn higher ahead of Friday's close.
LEAN HOGS:
Although midday pork cutout values are higher, traders simply don't see one day's worth of mild support from consumers as enough to justify trading the contracts higher at this point in the week. October lean hogs are down $0.90 at $81.22, December lean hogs are down $0.87 at $72.22 and February lean hogs are down $0.77 at $75.47. The projected CME Lean Hog Index for 8/13/2026 is down $0.19 at $95.68, and the actual index for 8/12/2026 is down $0.02 at $95.87. Hog prices are lower on the Daily Direct Morning Hog report, down $4.25 with a weighted average price of $93.03, ranging from $90.00 to $94.50 on 445 head and a five-day rolling average of $96.63. Pork cutouts total 258.10 loads with 240.16 loads of pork cuts and 17.94 loads of trim. Pork cutout values: up $1.53, $100.45.
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