Record beef prices are minting fortunes for ranchers—but straining the American farmers who fatten their cattle

Beef prices have surged due to record high demand coupled with a severe shortage of cattle supply, which is the smallest since 1951. Cow-calf ranchers are benefiting significantly from these tight supplies by hiking feeder calf prices, while other sectors like feedlot farmers struggle with slimming margins and rising input costs. The low inventory is attributed to factors such as severe droughts and the spread of flesh-eating screwworms limiting imports.