search our site

home > publications

Characteristics and Production Costs of U.S. Cow-Calf Operations By Sara D. Short ERS Statistical Bulletin No. 974-3. , November 2001 Differences in regional conditions were the chief influence on variations in cow-calf production costs across the United States. Cow-calf operators in the West and Southern Plains have significant cost advantages over operators in other regions because, with a longer grazing season, their herds require less supplemental forage during the winter. The larger acreage size of operations in the West and Southern Plains also can support more cows and take advantage of economies of scale (spreading the fixed investment over more units of production). Because of the harsher climate, operations in the North Central region and Northern Plains spend significantly more to maintain their herds. Cowherds in the Southeast are primarily on small and part-time operations. These findings are based on the 1996 Agricultural Resource Management Study (ARMS), the most recent national survey of cow-calf producers. Keywords: cow-calf, operation characteristics, production practices, costs of production, cost variation, ers, usda, erssb9743 In this report ... Chapters are in Adobe Acrobat PDF format. Entire report, 716 kb web administration: webadmin@ers.usda.gov page updated: November 14, 2001

Ag Chemicals & Production Technology Agribusiness/Industry Concentration Agricultural Market/Trade Projections Agricultural R&D and Productivity Biotechnology Crops Diet, Consumption, & Health Farm Financial & Risk Management Farm Structure, Income, & Performance Farm/Rural Finance & Tax Food & Nutrition Assistance Programs Food Market Structures Food Prices, Spreads & Margins Food Safety International Agriculture Livestock, Dairy, Poultry, Aquaculture Macroeconomics in the Ag & Food Economy Natural Resources, Environment, & Conservation Policy Topics Rural America Trade U.S./State Facts What's New State Facts Calendar of Releases E-Mail Updates Subject Specialists Archive