Feeding time
September 2024 cattle on feed update
During the September quarter 2024 the cattle numbers on feed in Australian feed lots lifted marginally by 0.4% to see a new record created of 1.42 million head. The capacity of the feedlot sector also grew by 0.4% to see it reach over 1.64 million head. Given both cattle on feed and capacity increased by the same amount nationally the capacity utilisation remained unchanged from Q2, 2024 at 87%.
The seasonal chart on cattle on feed numbers shows the stability of the sector over the last two quarters with numbers in feedlots sitting comfortably above the September five-year average levels by 28%. In contrast there was a large increase in cattle marketings with the quarterly turnoff lifting by 17% from the levels reported in Q2, 2024. The September 2024 quarterly cattle turnoff hit 859,930 head, which is the second highest quarterly marketing levels on record. You would have to go back to the March quarter of 2020 to find the peak in quarterly turnoff at 863,403 head.
Meanwhile, Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) cattle slaughter data to the September quarter 2024 shows that a total of 6.17 million head of cattle have been processed, of which 3.81 million head were grass finished and 2.35 million head were grain finished. This reflects a grain finished cattle turnoff ratio of 38.2% for 2024, up from 37.5% in 2023.
Despite the record volumes of cattle on feed this year the proportion of grain fed turnoff of 38.2% of total cattle slaughtered is still well down on the peak of 46.9% grain fed turnoff ratio seen during 2022.
