(BN) U.S. Cattle Herd Shrinks to Smallest in 53 Years, USDA Says « Crossing the Rubicon

(BN) U.S. Cattle Herd Shrinks to Smallest in 53 Years, USDA Says « Crossing the Rubicon: "U.S. Cattle Herd Shrinks to Smallest in 53 Years, USDA Says
2011-01-28 20:00:00.959 GMT

By Elizabeth Campbell
Jan. 28 (Bloomberg) — The U.S. cattle herd shrank to
the smallest size in 53 years as of Jan. 1, as feed costs
climbed and beef producers slaughtered more animals to take
advantage of higher prices.
The herd, including beef and dairy animals, totaled
92.582 million head as the year began, down 1.4 percent
from a year earlier, the U.S. Department of Agriculture
said today in a semiannual report. That’s the smallest
since 1958, the USDA said."