US Cattle Herd Continues to Shrink

 

All cattle and calves in the United States on July 1, 2025 totaled 94.2 million head, 1 percent below the 95.4 million head on July 1, 2023. 

 

All cows and heifers that have calved totaled 38.1 million head, 1 percent below the 38.4 million head on July 1, 2023. Beef cows, at 28.7 million head, are down 1 percent from two years ago. Milk cows, at 9.45 million head, are up 1 percent from 2023. 

 

All heifers 500 pounds and over on July 1, 2025 totaled 14.6 million head, 2 percent below the 14.9 million head on July 1, 2023. Beef replacement heifers, at 3.70 million head, are down 3 percent from two years earlier. Milk replacement heifers, at 3.50 million head, are unchanged from 2023. Other heifers, at 7.40 million head, are 3 percent below two years ago. 

 

Steers 500 pounds and over on July 1, 2025 totaled 13.8 million head, down 1 percent from July 1, 2023. 

 

Bulls 500 pounds and over on July 1, 2025 totaled 1.90 million head, unchanged from two years earlier. 

 

Calves under 500 pounds on July 1, 2025 totaled 25.8 million head, down 2 percent from 2023. 

 

Cattle and calves on feed for the slaughter market in the United States for all feedlots totaled 13.0 million head on July 1, 2025, down 1 percent from two years earlier. Cattle on feed in feedlots with capacity of 1,000 or more head accounted for 85.6 percent of the total cattle on feed on July 1, 2025, down slightly from two years ago. The total of calves under 500 pounds and other heifers and steers over 500 pounds (outside of feedlots), at 34.0 million head, is down 2 percent from the 34.7 million head on July 1, 2023. 

 

The 2025 calf crop in the United States is expected to be 33.1 million head, down 1 percent from last year. Calves born during the first half of 2025 are estimated at 24.3 million head, down 1 percent from the first half of 2024. An additional 8.80 million calves are expected to be born during the second half of 2025.