Cattle Ranching Industry Profile

Companies in this industry are ranches and farms that raise cattle, including those intended for dairy herd replacements, and feedlots that fatten cattle in preparation for slaughter. Major companies include Cactus Feeders, Five Rivers Cattle Feeding, King Ranch, and Simplot (all based in the US), as well as ANZCO Foods (New Zealand), JBS (Brazil), and SuKarne (Mexico).

The global cattle population amounted to over 942 million head in 2023, including about 12.2 million tons of beef and veal produced in the US, according to Statista and the USDA. India, Brazil, the US, China, and the EU are the world's top cattle and beef producers, according to the 2023/2024 Beef Production report by the US Department of Agriculture (USDA). Rising global demand for meat will fuel growth in the cattle ranching industry.

The US cattle ranching industry includes about 750,000 farms with combined annual revenue of about $90 billion.

The industry doesn't include slaughter, processing, or packing operations. Meat processing is covered in the Meat Product Manufacturing profile.

COMPETITIVE LANDSCAPE

Demand is driven by food prices, population growth, and global trade policies. The profitability of individual operations depends on production?efficiency?and?anticipating market demand. Large operators have some advantages in volume purchasing and efficient use of labor and equipment. Small operators can compete successfully by producing special grades of beef cattle and by controlling costs carefully. The industry is concentrated: the top 5% of farms generate ...