Cattle numbers are shrinking, beef prices are climbing, and ranchers like Joan and Steve Ruskamp are caught in the middle.
On their Colfax County feedlot, the Ruskamps are raising just 2,000 head—down a third from what they’d usually manage. Why? Labor. Or lack of it.
“It’s been a trend the last six years,” Joan says. “We can only feed what we can take care of.”
It’s not just their lot.
The U.S. cattle herd has thinned to its lowest since 1951, according to the USDA. Drought’s drained the pastures. No grass, no grazing, no growth. And no bargains either. “They’re very expensive,” she says of the dwindling cattle supply.
Meanwhile, Americans are still hungry for beef. Demand’s through the roof. And it’s showing up at checkout. Ground beef, once $4.02 a pound in 2019, now sizzles at $6.02.
That’s a 50% jump. From May 2024 to May 2025 alone, prices rose 13%—far outpacing the 3% bump in overall food costs, says the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
“America loves beef,” says Nate Rempe, CEO of Omaha Steaks. He’s not wrong. But love has a price. And Rempe says high costs—feed, fuel, freight—mean moving cattle into the supply chain is simply good economics. “It’s the right call,” he says.
Omaha Steaks hasn’t raised its prices yet, but Rempe warns the pressure’s building. “Expect high beef prices for at least another year, maybe two.”
Tariffs are also tightening the squeeze, especially for lean beef, which often comes from overseas. Rempe’s advice? “Go with lower lean points if you’re going to drain it.”
Joan Ruskamp has her own tip: “Buy in bulk. Freeze it. Stretch it.”
Behind it all, a quiet storm brews. Fewer farmers, more gray hair. The next generation? Still undecided. “I’d love to keep it going long enough to find out,” Joan says of her grandchildren. “I just don’t know if I can work that long.”
In this modern meat saga, America’s appetite remains fierce. But with fewer boots in the barn and more pressure on the pasture, the future of beef may hang by a thread—or a hoof.
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