NASHVILLE, TN – USDA’s July Livestock, Dairy, and Poultry Outlook adjusts multiple forecasts across livestock sectors. The 2025 beef production estimate is lowered due to slower cattle slaughter, but the 2026 forecast increases on anticipated higher marketings. USDA raised 2025 steer price estimates based on recent data, while 2026 prices are unchanged.
May beef imports surged 60 percent year-over-year to 550 million pounds, leading to upward revisions in 2025 and 2026 import totals. Beef exports were also revised higher in both years due to recent shipping trends.
For dairy, better-than-expected margins and inventory trends prompted USDA to raise milk cow numbers and milk output projections for 2025 and 2026. Milk production is forecast at 228.3 billion pounds in 2025. All-milk price projections are $22.00 per hundredweight in 2025 and $21.65 in 2026.
In pork, higher litter rates and carcass weights offset reduced sow inventories. Pork production is forecast at 28 billion pounds in 2025, with hog prices averaging nearly $69 per hundredweight. Broiler production and prices rise slightly, while turkey and egg outlooks are mixed.
(Source: USDA Livestock, Dairy, and Poultry Outlook, July 2025)