Plains Ranchers Sell Cattle Amid Drought

WICHITA, Kan. (AP) – Cattle are streaming into auctions across

the country as ranchers sell animals amid a spreading drought that

has shriveled pastures and driven up the price of feed corn.

Beef from those animals will start showing up in grocery stores

in November and December, temporarily driving down meat prices. But

prices are expected to rise sharply by January in the wake of

dwindling supplies and smaller livestock herds.

The number of cattle has been dropping for years, but the pace

picked up last year as Texas ranchers liquidated herds.

Experts say that while the drought in the Southern Plains last

year was bad, the cattle industry nationally was able to absorb the

impact. This year’s drought is much wider, so the market

implications are larger and more industry players are impacted.