Florida Cattle Ranchers Thriving While West Struggles With Drought.
Outlook for 2013 hopeful while West struggles with drought.
Published: Tuesday, February 12, 2013 at 11:57 p.m.
Last Modified: Tuesday, February 12, 2013 at 11:57 p.m.
TAMPA | While other segments of the U.S. cattle industry are struggling, the 2013 outlook for the cow-calf operations, the dominant segment in Florida, continues to run with the bulls.
"Calf prices were at record levels last year," said Kevin Good, senior analyst at CattleFax, told about 1,600 ranchers, feedlot owners and meat packing officials Friday at the 2013 Cattle Industry and National Cattlemen's Beef Association Trade Show in Tampa. "We expect that to continue."
CattleFax, based in Centennial, Colo., collects, analyzes and disseminates information on U.S. and global beef markets for its members representing all segments of the cattle industry from calf producers to meat-packing companies and retailers.
Two Polk County ranchers agreed with that positive outlook for the Florida industry.
"We've made the most we've ever made in the last few years," said Cary Lightsey, a sixth-generation cattle rancher based in Lake Wales with about 9,000 head across the state. "Fortunately Florida is one of the very few states where cattle herds are higher now than they were five years ago."
"We've had a few good years, and the indications are 2013 will be another good year," said Will Putnam, vice president of Putnam Groves Inc., which also has a cattle herd of more than 1,000 head.
Like most Florida ranchers, Lightsey and Putnam operate cow-calf operations that supply calves generally sold by 1-year-old to ranches in other states, where they continue to grow until ready for slaughter.
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