Us cattle Farm

Rangelands provide the principal source of forage for the cattle and sheep operations on thousands of American farms and ranches. As human populations increase and demand for food and energy expands, the need for forage and the other range resources will increase.

The United States is the world's largest beef producer and second largest beef exporter, but significant imports of lower-valued processing beef also make it the world's largest beef importer.

Milk has a farm value of production second only to beef among livestock industries. Dairy farms, which are overwhelmingly family-owned and managed, are generally members of producer cooperatives. Dairy products range from cheese, fluid milks, yogurt, butter, and ice cream to dry or condensed milk and whey products, which are main ingredients in processed foods.

Poultry and egg production is expected to expand in the coming years to meet higher domestic and foreign demand. The growing demand for relatively low-cost, healthy, and convenient meat products is expected to support higher domestic poultry consumption. The opening of trade due to bilateral and multilateral trade negotiations is also expected to boost demand for U.S. poultry products.

The United States is the world's second-largest pork producer and a major player in the world pork market, ranking second as both an importing and exporting country. USDA conducts market analyses on the domestic and world pork markets, including domestic supply and utilization, farm and retail pork prices, and international trade.

Alternative livestock production is another option for protecting the genetic diversity in livestock and poultry species through the conservation and promotion of endangered breeds.

Animal identification systems provide the ability to identify disease control and eradication, disease surveillance and monitoring, emergency response to foreign animal diseases, regionalization, global trade, livestock production efficiency, consumer concerns over food safety, and emergency management programs.

Through various market and animal research programs and reports, USDA has developed biotechnological methods and gathered data and statistics to demonstrate the great development of animal productivity in the United States and foreign markets.