By JORDAN STRICKLER

Kentucky Correspondent 

FRANKFORT, Ky. — Despite slight declines in the overall number of head, Kentucky has renewed its rank as the largest cattle-producing state east of the Mississippi.

The recently-released USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) Cattle report shows state cattle and calf inventory was estimated at 2.16 million head. This number trails last year’s figures by 10,000.

“The cattle industry is one of the most important sectors of Kentucky’s agriculture,” said David Knopf, director of the NASS Eastern Mountain regional office in Kentucky. “Kentucky ranks 14th in the United States in total cattle, including calves inventory, and eighth in beef cow inventory.

“In 2016 gross receipts from the production of cattle totaled $734 million, ranking it fifth among all commodities. Despite a slight retreat in total inventory, today’s report shows the large breeding herd will continue to produce sizeable calf crops. Heifers held for beef cow replacement dropped slightly to the lowest level in three years, but inventory is not showing a longer-term trend.”

Kentucky’s decline is off from the nation’s as a whole, which saw a 1 percent rise in the number above the 93.7 million head recorded on Jan. 1, 2017. All cows and heifers that have calved, at 41.1 million head nationally, were 1 percent above the 40.6 million on Jan. 1, 2017.

Beef cows, at 31.7 million, were up 2 percent from a year previous, and milk cows, at 9.4 million head, were up 1 percent.

According to CattleFax, U.S beef cow inventory increased 2.8 million head in four years, and an additional 200,000-400,000 head are expected to be added to the herd over the next few years.

“Demand is robust on all fronts,” said CattleFax Senior Analyst Kevin Good. “Domestically, retail demand is increasing and beef is being featured more in the consumer markets.”

Although national beef production is expected to increase to 27.5 billion pounds during 2018, Good said current consumer demand is expected to maintain and potentially increase as retail prices moderate.

“The retail and foodservice industries are doing very well and the solid economy in the United States is one of the main drivers, as unemployment rates continue to decline and per capita income rises.”

In the Bluegrass State, cows and heifers that have calved did show increases. They were estimated at 1.09 million head, up 10,000 from the 1.08 million for 2017. Beef cow inventory was estimated at 1.03 million and milk cows were estimated at 57,000.

Heifers 500 pounds and over were estimated at 305,000 head, unchanged from last year's estimate. Beef replacement heifers totaled 145,000 head, down 5,000 from January 2017.

Dairy heifers, at 45,000 head, were up 5,000 from 2017. Other heifers, at 115,000, were unchanged from the previous year. Steers 500 pounds and over numbered 195,000, down 20,000 from 2017. Bulls 500 pounds and over were unchanged from a year ago and numbered 70,000 head.

Calves under 500 pounds were estimated at 500,000 head, unchanged from the 2017 estimate. Cattle on feed were estimated at 17,000, down 1,000 from the previous year.