Cattle and calves on feed for the slaughter market in the United States for feedlots with capacity of 1,000 or more head totaled 11.3 million head on July 1, 2018. The inventory was 4 percent above July 1, 2017. This is the highest July 1 inventory since the series began in 1996. The inventory included 7.13 million steers and steer calves, up 2 percent from the previous year. This group accounted for 63 percent of the total inventory. Heifers and heifer calves accounted for 4.15 million head, up 8 percent from 2017.
Placements in feedlots during June totaled 1.79 million head, 1 percent above 2017. Net placements were 1.74 million head. During June, placements of cattle and calves weighing less than 600 pounds were 400,000 head, 600-699 pounds were 345,000 head, 700-799 pounds were 385,000 head, 800-899 pounds were 378,000 head, 900-999 pounds were 185,000 head, and 1,000 pounds and greater were 100,000 head.
Marketings of fed cattle during June totaled 2.01 million head, 1 percent above 2017. Other disappearance totaled 58,000 head during June, 4 percent above 2017.
Cattle and calves on feed for slaughter market in the United States for all feedlots totaled 13.3 million head on July 1, 2018. The inventory was up 4 percent from the July 1, 2017 total of 12.8 million head. Cattle on feed in feedlots with capacity of 1,000 or more head accounted for 84.8 percent of the total cattle on feed on July 1, 2018, up slightly from the previous year.
