# Why beef prices are up and cattle prices are down

> Choice wholesale beef prices jumped $45.61 per cwt in the week to March 20 as COVID-19 shifted demand from food service to retail grocery. Cash prices for calves, feeder cattle and fed cattle fell sharply during the same period, leaving some unhedged producers with heavy losses.

- Date: 2020-04-02 · published 2020-04-02T12:00:00.000Z
- Category: disease · region US · magnitude medium
- Page: https://feedsoft.ai/events/6286-why-beef-prices-are-up-and-cattle-prices-are-down
- Commodities: [Live Cattle](https://feedsoft.ai/c/LCATTLE.md), [Feeder Cattle](https://feedsoft.ai/c/FCATTLE.md)

## Why it matters

Retail-driven beef demand held up boxed beef values while reduced packer capacity and record supply kept cattle prices weak, widening the gap between beef and live cattle prices.

## Read by commodity

- FCATTLE: bearish ▼
- LCATTLE: bearish ▼

## Linked price moves

| Commodity | Date | Window | Change % | z-score | Why linked |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| LCATTLE | 2020-04-06 | 5 | -11.3% | -5.0 | Cash cattle fell sharply while wholesale beef surged, a demand-channel dislocation that squeezed cattle values. |

## Similar past events

| Commodity | Date | Event | 5-day % | 20-day % |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| LCATTLE | 2020-05-05 | [Lots of Cattle, but No Beef](https://feedsoft.ai/events/53259-lots-of-cattle-but-no-beef.md) | +5.6% | +14.5% |
| LCATTLE | 2025-08-26 | [Cattle futures drop on screwworm fears and profit-taking - CME
						 \| The Beef Site](https://feedsoft.ai/events/23462-cattle-futures-drop-on-screwworm-fears-and-profit-taking-cme-the-beef-site.md) | +0.2% | -2.0% |
| LCATTLE | 2020-03-25 | [Kentucky Beef Cattle Market Update \| Farms.com](https://feedsoft.ai/events/7963-kentucky-beef-cattle-market-update-farms-com.md) | +2.1% | -11.7% |
| LCATTLE | 2020-04-01 | [Meat prices rise while cattle prices drop as supermarkets race to stock shelves](https://feedsoft.ai/events/54259-meat-prices-rise-while-cattle-prices-drop-as-supermarkets-race-to-stock-shelves.md) | -10.1% | -17.5% |
| LCATTLE | 2020-03-25 | [Cattle producers face price declines amid coronavirus pandemic](https://feedsoft.ai/events/7962-cattle-producers-face-price-declines-amid-coronavirus-pandemic.md) | +2.1% | -11.7% |
| FCATTLE | 2020-05-05 | [Lots of Cattle, but No Beef](https://feedsoft.ai/events/53259-lots-of-cattle-but-no-beef.md) | +3.8% | +12.1% |
| FCATTLE | 2025-08-26 | [Cattle futures drop on screwworm fears and profit-taking - CME
						 \| The Beef Site](https://feedsoft.ai/events/23462-cattle-futures-drop-on-screwworm-fears-and-profit-taking-cme-the-beef-site.md) | +0.9% | +1.1% |
| FCATTLE | 2020-03-25 | [Kentucky Beef Cattle Market Update \| Farms.com](https://feedsoft.ai/events/7963-kentucky-beef-cattle-market-update-farms-com.md) | -6.4% | -9.0% |

## Sources

- beefmagazine.com: https://www.beefmagazine.com/beef-pricing/why-beef-prices-are-up-and-cattle-prices-are-down

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Data from Feedsoft AI (https://feedsoft.ai/). For information only; not investment advice.