Livestock Slaughter ISSN: 0499-0544 Released September 24, 2026, by the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), Agricultural Statistics Board, United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). Commercial Red Meat Production Down 1 Percent from Last Year August 2025 contained 21 weekdays (including 0 holidays) and 5 Saturdays. August 2026 contained 21 weekdays (including 0 holidays) and 5 Saturdays. Commercial red meat production for the United States totaled 4.10 billion pounds in August, down 1 percent from the 4.15 billion pounds produced in August 2025. Beef production, at 1.98 billion pounds, was 2 percent below the previous year. Cattle slaughter totaled 2.24 million head, down 4 percent from August 2025. The average live weight was up 28 pounds from the previous year, at 1,441 pounds. Veal production totaled 1.6 million pounds, 19 percent below August a year ago. Calf slaughter totaled 7,300 head, down 23 percent from August 2025. The average live weight was up 20 pounds from last year, at 373 pounds. Pork production totaled 2.10 billion pounds, down 1 percent from the previous year. Hog slaughter totaled 9.92 million head, down 2 percent from August 2025. The average live weight was up 4 pounds from the previous year, at 284 pounds. Lamb and mutton production, at 9.7 million pounds, was down 4 percent from August 2025. Sheep slaughter totaled 174,300 head, 1 percent below last year. The average live weight was 109 pounds, down 3 pounds from August a year ago. January to August 2026 commercial red meat production was 34.6 billion pounds, down 2 percent from 2025. Accumulated beef production was down 5 percent from last year, veal was down 25 percent, pork was up 1 percent from last year, and lamb and mutton production was down 9 percent. This page intentionally left blank. Contents Commercial Red Meat Production - United States........................................ 4 Federally Inspected Red Meat Production - United States............................... 4 Livestock Slaughter and Average Live Weight - United States........................... 5 Commercial Red Meat Production - States and United States............................. 6 Commercial Cattle Slaughter - States and United States: August 2025 and 2026.......... 7 Commercial Calf Slaughter - States and United States: August 2025 and 2026............ 8 Commercial Hog Slaughter - States and United States: August 2025 and 2026............. 9 Commercial Sheep and Lamb Slaughter - States and United States: August 2025 and 2026.. 10 Livestock Slaughtered Under Federal Inspection by Class - United States............... 11 Federally Inspected Slaughter Average Dressed Weight by Class - United States......... 11 Federally Inspected Slaughter - Regions and United States: August 2026................ 12 Federally Inspected Slaughter - Regions and United States: January to August 2026..... 13 Federally Inspected Slaughter Percent of Total Commercial Slaughter - United States... 13 Terms and Definitions Used for Livestock Slaughter Estimates.......................... 14 Statistical Methodology............................................................... 15 Information Contacts.................................................................. 16 Commercial Red Meat Production - United States [Totals, accumulated totals, and percentages based on unrounded data] -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : : : : August 2026 as % of : January to August : August : July : August :---------------------------------------------------- Type : 2025 : 2026 : 2026 : August : July : : :2026 as % : : : : 2025 : 2026 : 2025 : 2026 : of 2025 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : ------- million pounds ------ --- percent -- million pounds percent : Beef .............: 2,016.7 2,085.1 1,981.6 98 95 17,197.8 16,368.4 95 Veal .............: 1.9 1.5 1.6 81 105 17.1 12.9 75 Pork .............: 2,116.5 2,190.5 2,102.3 99 96 17,937.7 18,098.6 101 Lamb and mutton ..: 10.0 9.7 9.7 96 99 91.4 82.9 91 : Total red meat ...: 4,145.3 4,286.9 4,095.2 99 96 35,243.9 34,562.7 98 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Federally Inspected Red Meat Production - United States [Totals, accumulated totals, and percentages based on unrounded data] -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : : : : August 2026 as % of : January to August : August : July : August :---------------------------------------------------- Type : 2025 : 2026 : 2026 : August : July : : :2026 as % : : : : 2025 : 2026 : 2025 : 2026 : of 2025 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : ------- million pounds ------ --- percent -- million pounds percent : Beef .............: 1,985.9 2,056.5 1,953.3 98 95 16,940.7 16,123.1 95 Veal .............: 1.9 1.4 1.5 80 107 16.2 12.0 75 Pork .............: 2,106.0 2,181.5 2,091.5 99 96 17,865.2 18,030.5 101 Lamb and mutton ..: 8.7 8.7 8.4 97 98 81.0 74.3 92 : Total red meat ...: 4,102.5 4,248.0 4,054.8 99 95 34,903.0 34,239.9 98 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Livestock Slaughter and Average Live Weight - United States [Totals, accumulated totals, and percentages based on unrounded data] -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : : : : August : January to August : August : July : August : 2026 as % :-------------------------------------------- Species : 2025 : 2026 : 2026 : of 2025 : : : 2026 as % : : : : : 2025 : 2026 : of 2025 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : percent percent : Cattle : Number of head : Federally inspected ..1,000: 2,290.3 2,325.9 2,203.2 96 19,480.4 18,060.6 93 Other ................1,000: 43.2 39.6 39.1 90 361.3 338.5 94 Commercial ...........1,000: 2,333.5 2,365.6 2,242.3 96 19,841.7 18,399.1 93 Average live weight : Federally inspected .pounds: 1,416 1,441 1,444 102 1,426 1,461 102 Other ...............pounds: 1,238 1,245 1,251 101 1,238 1,259 102 Commercial ..........pounds: 1,413 1,438 1,441 102 1,423 1,457 102 : Calves : Number of head : Federally inspected ..1,000: 9.0 6.3 6.9 76 81.3 56.7 70 Other ................1,000: 0.4 0.4 0.4 91 4.3 3.8 88 Commercial ...........1,000: 9.4 6.7 7.3 77 85.6 60.4 71 Average live weight : Federally inspected .pounds: 350 377 370 106 338 361 107 Other ...............pounds: 404 434 427 106 401 420 105 Commercial ..........pounds: 353 380 373 106 341 365 107 : Hogs : Number of head : Federally inspected ..1,000: 10,070.9 10,216.4 9,864.3 98 83,231.0 83,131.5 100 Other ................1,000: 55.8 47.1 56.1 100 381.0 352.5 93 Commercial ...........1,000: 10,126.7 10,263.5 9,920.3 98 83,612.0 83,484.1 100 Average live weight : Federally inspected .pounds: 281 286 284 101 288 291 101 Other ...............pounds: 259 263 262 101 261 264 101 Commercial ..........pounds: 280 286 284 101 288 290 101 : Sheep and lambs : Number of head : Federally inspected ..1,000: 150.1 151.4 149.9 100 1,285.9 1,247.7 97 Other ................1,000: 25.1 21.2 24.4 97 205.1 167.9 82 Commercial ...........1,000: 175.2 172.5 174.3 99 1,491.0 1,415.6 95 Average live weight : Federally inspected .pounds: 114 112 110 97 124 117 94 Other ...............pounds: 101 99 97 97 100 101 101 Commercial ..........pounds: 112 111 109 97 121 115 95 : Goats : Number of head : Federally inspected ..1,000: 42.7 43.7 44.8 105 342.5 337.4 99 Other ................1,000: 9.3 9.5 9.3 100 71.8 69.9 97 Commercial ...........1,000: 52.1 53.2 54.1 104 414.3 407.3 98 Average live weight : Federally inspected .pounds: 64 64 65 101 65 64 99 Other ...............pounds: 81 82 83 102 82 82 100 Commercial ..........pounds: 67 67 68 101 68 67 99 : Bison : Number of head : Federally inspected ..1,000: 4.6 4.6 4.4 94 42.1 36.9 88 Other ................1,000: 0.2 0.1 0.2 75 2.1 2.2 102 Commercial ...........1,000: 4.9 4.8 4.5 93 44.3 39.1 88 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Commercial Red Meat Production - States and United States [Includes total beef, veal, pork, lamb, and mutton. Totals and percentages based on unrounded data] -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- State : August : July : August : August 2026 as : 2025 : 2026 : 2026 : % of 2025 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : ----------- million pounds ---------- percent : Alabama ...............: 0.9 1.0 1.3 138 Alaska ................: 0.1 0.1 (Y) (X) Arizona ...............: 36.5 35.7 36.8 101 Arkansas ..............: 0.4 0.5 0.4 105 California ............: 75.3 81.1 74.5 99 Colorado ..............: 171.9 111.8 109.5 64 Delaware-Maryland .....: 1.9 1.9 2.1 108 Florida ...............: 4.4 4.3 4.7 108 Georgia ...............: 7.8 10.5 6.2 80 Hawaii ................: 0.7 0.7 0.5 74 : Idaho .................: 47.0 45.3 43.8 93 Illinois ..............: 252.2 257.1 229.5 91 Indiana ...............: 149.5 162.0 164.0 110 Iowa ..................: 680.6 715.4 691.1 102 Kansas ................: 430.7 501.1 485.2 113 Kentucky ..............: 49.9 48.9 46.4 93 Louisiana .............: 0.3 0.3 0.3 98 Michigan ..............: 122.2 130.5 125.2 102 Minnesota .............: 214.6 216.8 204.8 95 Mississippi ...........: 0.7 0.7 0.7 101 : Missouri ..............: 159.0 172.9 174.6 110 Montana ...............: 2.0 1.7 1.8 92 Nebraska ..............: 594.9 616.9 597.3 100 Nevada ................: 0.1 0.1 0.1 79 New England 1/ ........: 2.6 2.2 2.2 87 New Jersey ............: 4.3 4.6 4.5 105 New Mexico ............: 0.4 0.3 0.4 106 New York ..............: 2.6 2.7 2.6 101 North Carolina ........: 200.0 197.7 171.4 86 North Dakota ..........: 0.6 0.7 0.6 100 : Ohio ..................: 24.1 26.9 25.8 107 Oklahoma ..............: 98.6 104.3 95.6 97 Oregon ................: 2.4 2.3 2.2 92 Pennsylvania ..........: 121.3 123.5 95.8 79 South Carolina ........: 12.1 11.8 11.6 96 South Dakota ..........: 108.6 108.6 111.5 103 Tennessee .............: 23.6 23.9 22.0 93 Texas .................: 335.9 339.7 329.5 98 Utah ..................: 46.6 49.0 47.2 101 Virginia ..............: 1.1 1.1 1.0 94 : Washington ............: 72.6 81.2 77.5 107 West Virginia .........: 0.7 0.6 0.8 108 Wisconsin .............: 82.5 87.9 90.7 110 Wyoming ...............: 0.9 0.8 0.9 97 : United States .........: 4,145.3 4,286.9 4,095.2 99 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- (X) Not applicable. (Y) Less than level of precision shown. 1/ New England includes Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. Commercial Cattle Slaughter - States and United States: August 2025 and 2026 [Data may not add to totals due to rounding] --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Slaughtered : Total live weight : Average live weight State :-------------------------------------------------------------------- : 2025 : 2026 : 2025 : 2026 : 2025 : 2026 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : ---- 1,000 head --- --- 1,000 pounds --- ---- pounds ---- : Alabama ..........: 0.7 1.0 799 1,150 1,148 1,137 Alaska ...........: 0.1 0.1 79 66 1,213 1,152 Arizona ..........: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) Arkansas .........: 0.6 0.6 617 653 1,064 1,106 California .......: 76.4 79.7 107,157 106,149 1,413 1,341 Colorado .........: 185.5 114.8 270,462 170,323 1,460 1,485 Delaware-Maryland : 1.8 2.0 2,534 2,822 1,397 1,386 Florida ..........: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) Georgia ..........: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) Hawaii ...........: 1.0 0.7 1,184 833 1,152 1,198 : Idaho ............: 57.2 52.3 78,342 71,600 1,378 1,378 Illinois .........: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) Indiana ..........: 9.4 10.3 11,701 13,187 1,249 1,288 Iowa .............: 39.7 44.6 55,045 64,463 1,388 1,446 Kansas ...........: 456.6 508.0 656,960 748,345 1,439 1,474 Kentucky .........: 6.5 6.1 7,723 7,455 1,205 1,214 Louisiana ........: 0.5 0.4 485 458 1,004 1,073 Michigan .........: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) Minnesota ........: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) Mississippi ......: 0.4 0.5 417 498 1,008 1,016 : Missouri .........: 14.3 21.8 18,600 29,736 1,304 1,368 Montana ..........: 2.0 1.8 2,531 2,244 1,275 1,262 Nebraska .........: 501.2 488.3 729,421 728,602 1,457 1,493 Nevada ...........: (D) 0.1 (D) 109 (D) 1,134 New England 1/ ...: 2.7 2.4 3,380 3,060 1,237 1,264 New Jersey .......: 4.6 4.6 5,286 5,370 1,153 1,166 New Mexico .......: 0.4 0.5 460 510 1,167 1,063 New York .........: 2.7 2.6 3,328 3,312 1,243 1,264 North Carolina ...: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) North Dakota .....: 0.7 0.7 906 956 1,321 1,328 : Ohio .............: 6.0 5.6 7,957 7,583 1,336 1,345 Oklahoma .........: 6.7 6.4 7,846 7,865 1,186 1,224 Oregon ...........: 1.3 1.3 1,655 1,557 1,252 1,235 Pennsylvania .....: 84.3 56.9 110,595 71,724 1,317 1,266 South Carolina ...: 17.4 17.3 23,621 22,737 1,367 1,324 South Dakota .....: 25.1 (D) 38,793 (D) 1,545 (D) Tennessee ........: 3.1 2.0 3,116 2,194 1,023 1,088 Texas ............: 401.0 375.4 544,152 530,459 1,360 1,416 Utah .............: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) Virginia .........: 1.2 1.1 1,381 1,286 1,109 1,125 : Washington .......: 79.1 84.6 115,577 123,783 1,465 1,467 West Virginia ....: 0.7 0.7 812 917 1,180 1,293 Wisconsin ........: 88.3 95.0 121,949 132,770 1,389 1,404 Wyoming ..........: 1.0 0.9 1,264 1,070 1,208 1,228 : United States ....: 2,333.5 2,242.3 3,289,796 3,225,256 1,413 1,441 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- (D) Withheld to avoid disclosing data for individual operations. 1/ New England includes Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. Commercial Calf Slaughter - States and United States: August 2025 and 2026 [Data may not add to totals due to rounding] --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Slaughtered : Total live weight : Average live weight State :-------------------------------------------------------------------- : 2025 : 2026 : 2025 : 2026 : 2025 : 2026 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : 1,000 head 1,000 pounds --- pounds --- : Alabama ..........: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) Alaska ...........: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) Arizona ..........: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) Arkansas .........: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) California .......: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) Colorado .........: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) Delaware-Maryland : (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) Florida ..........: 0.1 (Y) 45 (X) 391 (X) Georgia ..........: 0.1 (D) 24 (D) 434 (D) Hawaii ...........: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) : Idaho ............: (D) (Y) (D) (X) (D) (X) Illinois .........: 0.1 0.2 56 87 391 420 Indiana ..........: (D) 0.4 (D) 160 (D) 416 Iowa .............: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) Kansas ...........: (Y) (Y) (X) (X) (X) (X) Kentucky .........: (Y) (Y) (X) (X) (X) (X) Louisiana ........: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) Michigan .........: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) Minnesota ........: (Y) (D) (X) (D) (X) (D) Mississippi ......: (Y) (Y) (X) (X) (X) (X) : Missouri .........: (Y) (Y) (X) (X) (X) (X) Montana ..........: (Y) (Y) (X) (X) (X) (X) Nebraska .........: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) Nevada ...........: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) New England 1/ ...: 0.1 0.1 19 21 216 245 New Jersey .......: 1.5 1.2 580 465 380 387 New Mexico .......: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) New York .........: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) North Carolina ...: 0.1 0.1 20 19 344 382 North Dakota .....: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) : Ohio .............: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) Oklahoma .........: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) Oregon ...........: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) Pennsylvania .....: 3.8 (D) 1,591 (D) 418 (D) South Carolina ...: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) South Dakota .....: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) Tennessee ........: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) Texas ............: 0.1 0.1 40 44 478 482 Utah .............: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) Virginia .........: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) : Washington .......: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) West Virginia ....: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) Wisconsin ........: (Y) (Y) (X) (X) (X) (X) Wyoming ..........: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) : United States ....: 9.4 7.3 3,301 2,694 353 373 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- (D) Withheld to avoid disclosing data for individual operations. (X) Not applicable. (Y) Less than level of precision shown. 1/ New England includes Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. Commercial Hog Slaughter - States and United States: August 2025 and 2026 [Data may not add to totals due to rounding] --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Slaughtered : Total live weight : Average live weight State :-------------------------------------------------------------------- : 2025 : 2026 : 2025 : 2026 : 2025 : 2026 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : ---- 1,000 head ---- --- 1,000 pounds --- --- pounds --- : Alabama ..........: 1.7 2.2 743 949 428 432 Alaska ...........: (Y) (Y) (X) (X) (X) (X) Arizona ..........: 0.1 0.1 36 34 246 242 Arkansas .........: 0.3 0.3 89 74 261 276 California .......: 83.8 80.0 19,417 18,844 232 236 Colorado .........: 3.3 2.9 635 574 191 200 Delaware-Maryland : 1.9 1.7 525 473 280 283 Florida ..........: 3.9 5.8 455 536 117 92 Georgia ..........: 4.6 4.9 1,264 1,319 274 267 Hawaii ...........: 0.1 0.1 36 36 268 273 : Idaho ............: 12.0 13.2 2,992 3,434 250 260 Illinois .........: 937.5 949.9 258,182 267,430 275 282 Indiana ..........: 683.0 735.7 190,464 208,102 279 283 Iowa .............: 3,084.6 3,082.0 870,989 875,371 282 284 Kansas ...........: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) Kentucky .........: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) Louisiana ........: 0.1 0.2 34 47 230 252 Michigan .........: 396.1 382.9 112,444 108,165 284 283 Minnesota ........: 935.9 881.0 260,436 247,438 278 281 Mississippi ......: 3.4 3.0 622 567 181 186 : Missouri .........: 699.9 739.0 199,435 209,151 285 283 Montana ..........: 2.1 2.1 546 565 265 269 Nebraska .........: 651.4 652.4 183,484 184,448 282 283 Nevada ...........: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) New England 1/ ...: 2.2 1.9 573 491 264 257 New Jersey .......: 8.0 8.2 840 1,054 104 128 New Mexico .......: 0.3 0.3 66 76 252 241 New York .........: 1.8 2.0 427 490 235 243 North Carolina ...: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) North Dakota .....: 0.3 0.3 76 73 277 286 : Ohio .............: 87.5 99.2 25,552 28,374 292 286 Oklahoma .........: 465.2 416.2 124,507 119,519 268 287 Oregon ...........: 5.6 5.2 1,412 1,337 250 258 Pennsylvania .....: 272.6 (D) 73,153 (D) 268 (D) South Carolina ...: 1.6 1.4 412 350 252 248 South Dakota .....: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) Tennessee ........: 71.7 66.7 32,873 31,236 459 469 Texas ............: 23.3 22.0 4,237 4,169 182 190 Utah .............: 2.6 2.8 539 479 210 174 Virginia .........: 0.9 0.9 255 265 297 311 : Washington .......: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) West Virginia ....: 0.7 0.9 198 239 267 274 Wisconsin ........: 61.3 64.1 25,952 28,097 425 439 Wyoming ..........: 0.7 1.2 177 295 250 253 : United States ....: 10,126.7 9,920.3 2,839,909 2,817,090 280 284 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- (D) Withheld to avoid disclosing data for individual operations. (X) Not applicable. (Y) Less than level of precision shown. 1/ New England includes Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. Commercial Sheep and Lamb Slaughter - States and United States: August 2025 and 2026 [Data may not add to totals due to rounding] --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Slaughtered : Total live weight : Average live weight State :-------------------------------------------------------------------- : 2025 : 2026 : 2025 : 2026 : 2025 : 2026 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : --- 1,000 head -- -- 1,000 pounds -- --- pounds --- : Alabama ..........: (Y) 0.1 (X) 6 (X) 80 Alaska ...........: (Y) (Y) (X) (X) (X) (X) Arizona ..........: 0.5 (D) 66 (D) 121 (D) Arkansas .........: 0.1 0.1 8 10 106 100 California .......: 18.8 19.0 2,636 2,462 140 130 Colorado .........: 27.7 27.8 4,149 3,997 150 144 Delaware-Maryland : 1.4 1.7 143 163 99 99 Florida ..........: 2.9 3.1 145 157 49 51 Georgia ..........: 3.2 3.4 206 250 65 73 Hawaii ...........: 0.1 0.2 9 28 132 135 : Idaho ............: 0.3 0.3 39 42 137 138 Illinois .........: 6.9 5.8 584 499 85 86 Indiana ..........: 6.1 5.8 607 567 100 98 Iowa .............: 0.2 0.2 22 22 123 102 Kansas ...........: 0.4 0.3 46 36 113 110 Kentucky .........: 0.7 0.7 76 77 103 117 Louisiana ........: 0.7 0.6 38 32 58 54 Michigan .........: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) Minnesota ........: 0.6 0.9 50 74 80 79 Mississippi ......: 0.2 0.3 16 20 78 71 : Missouri .........: 1.8 1.6 132 126 74 81 Montana ..........: 0.4 0.4 52 52 136 129 Nebraska .........: 0.1 0.1 8 9 127 118 Nevada ...........: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) New England 1/ ...: 4.2 3.2 404 306 95 96 New Jersey .......: 15.3 15.8 1,319 1,410 86 89 New Mexico .......: 0.6 0.6 84 74 131 132 New York .........: 6.4 7.2 648 722 101 100 North Carolina ...: 7.3 6.3 453 398 62 63 North Dakota .....: 0.1 0.1 21 10 141 125 : Ohio .............: 5.0 4.3 731 661 146 152 Oklahoma .........: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) Oregon ...........: 4.8 4.2 701 577 145 136 Pennsylvania .....: 9.8 10.5 986 1,078 100 103 South Carolina ...: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) South Dakota .....: 0.2 0.2 29 20 132 101 Tennessee ........: (D) 1.3 (D) 121 (D) 91 Texas ............: 21.7 23.3 1,919 1,792 89 77 Utah .............: 1.5 1.3 192 165 130 130 Virginia .........: 1.0 0.9 74 67 73 77 : Washington .......: 1.2 1.0 166 135 134 134 West Virginia ....: (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) (D) Wisconsin ........: 1.3 1.4 157 161 119 112 Wyoming ..........: 0.2 0.3 25 38 145 152 : United States ....: 175.2 174.3 19,663 18,927 112 109 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- (D) Withheld to avoid disclosing data for individual operations. (X) Not applicable. (Y) Less than level of precision shown. 1/ New England includes Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. Livestock Slaughtered Under Federal Inspection by Class - United States [Data may not add to totals due to rounding] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ : : : : January to August : : : : January to August Class : August : July : August :-----------------------: August : July : August :----------------------- : 2025 : 2026 : 2026 : 2025 : 2026 : 2025 : 2026 : 2026 : 2025 : 2026 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ : --------------------- 1,000 head -------------------- ----------------- percent of total ---------------- : Cattle : Steers ...........: 1,160.1 1,231.4 1,190.4 9,675.0 9,124.8 50.7 52.9 54.0 49.7 50.5 Heifers ..........: 709.0 660.8 611.7 6,236.0 5,537.0 31.0 28.4 27.8 32.0 30.7 All cows .........: 382.6 396.8 365.4 3,282.0 3,125.2 16.7 17.1 16.6 16.8 17.3 Dairy cows .......: 217.4 227.6 221.1 1,718.8 1,786.9 9.5 9.8 10.0 8.8 9.9 Other cows .......: 165.1 169.2 144.3 1,563.2 1,338.3 7.2 7.3 6.5 8.0 7.4 Bulls ............: 38.7 36.9 35.7 287.5 273.6 1.7 1.6 1.6 1.5 1.5 : Total ............: 2,290.3 2,325.9 2,203.2 19,480.4 18,060.6 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 : Calves and : vealers ...... : 9.0 6.3 6.9 81.3 56.7 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 : Hogs : Barrows and : gilts ..........: 9,827.4 9,960.2 9,630.3 81,063.3 81,067.9 97.6 97.5 97.6 97.4 97.5 Sows .............: 224.4 234.9 214.0 1,997.6 1,901.5 2.2 2.3 2.2 2.4 2.3 Boars ............: 19.1 21.3 19.9 170.1 162.1 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 : Total ............: 10,070.9 10,216.4 9,864.3 83,231.0 83,131.5 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 : Sheep : Mature : sheep ..........: 10.5 10.4 9.3 83.6 85.5 7.0 6.9 6.2 6.5 6.9 Lambs and : yearlings ......: 139.6 140.9 140.6 1,202.3 1,162.2 93.0 93.1 93.8 93.5 93.1 : Total ............: 150.1 151.4 149.9 1,285.9 1,247.7 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Federally Inspected Slaughter Average Dressed Weight by Class - United States [Data may not add to totals due to rounding] ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : : : : January to August Class : August : July : August :----------------------- : 2025 : 2026 : 2026 : 2025 : 2026 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : pounds : Cattle ............... : 869 886 888 871 895 Steers 1/ ...............: 947 964 967 944 976 Heifers 1/ ..............: 859 877 876 865 890 All cows 1/ .............: 645 650 645 664 661 Bulls 1/ ................: 916 947 931 922 939 : Calves and vealers ... : 207 223 218 200 213 : Hogs ................. : 209 214 212 215 217 Barrows and gilts 2/ ....: 207 211 210 213 215 Sows 2/ .................: 298 308 306 299 303 Boars 2/ ................: 236 232 226 227 231 : Sheep ................ : 58 57 56 63 60 Mature sheep 3/ .........: 63 64 64 65 64 Lambs and yearlings 3/ ..: 58 57 56 63 59 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1/ Included in cattle average dressed weight. 2/ Included in hog average dressed weight. 3/ Included in sheep average dressed weight. Federally Inspected Slaughter - Regions and United States: August 2026 [Data may not add to totals due to rounding] -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Cattle : Calves Standard :----------------------------------------------------------------------- federal : : : : Cows : : regions 1/ : Total : Steers :Heifers :--------------------------: Bulls : Total : : : : All : Dairy : Other : : -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : 1,000 head : 1 ............: 2.2 0.8 0.5 0.7 0.4 0.2 0.2 0.1 2 ............: 7.2 2.4 (D) 2.9 (D) (D) (D) 1.4 3 ............: 58.8 15.9 (D) 35.8 28.7 7.2 (D) (D) 4 ............: 47.4 5.0 2.5 35.8 13.2 22.6 4.1 0.1 5 ............: 205.6 104.4 17.1 (D) 57.3 (D) (D) (D) 6 ............: 378.1 172.7 130.1 66.3 33.8 32.6 8.9 (D) 7 ............:1,054.1 654.3 351.2 (D) (D) 29.7 (D) (Y) 8 ............: 189.3 126.0 51.6 (D) (D) (D) (D) (Y) 9 ............: 123.3 48.7 18.1 55.3 41.9 13.4 1.1 (D) 10 ...........: 137.4 60.2 37.1 37.3 29.4 7.9 2.8 (Y) : United States :2,203.2 1,190.4 611.7 365.4 221.1 144.3 35.7 6.9 :---------------------------------------------------------------------- : Hogs : Sheep :---------------------------------------------------------------------- : Total : Barrows : : : Total : Mature :Lambs and : :and gilts: Sows : Boars : : sheep :yearlings :---------------------------------------------------------------------- : 1,000 head : 1 ............: 1.7 1.7 (Y) (Y) 3.2 0.2 3.0 2 ............: 10.2 10.1 (Y) (Y) 22.5 2.3 20.3 3 ............: (D) (D) 0.2 (D) 13.6 1.0 12.5 4 ............: (D) (D) 68.3 (D) 13.4 0.9 12.5 5 ............: 3,087.4 3,001.2 80.5 5.8 28.0 1.5 26.5 6 ............: 435.3 435.2 0.1 0.1 16.0 1.2 14.8 7 ............: 4,480.8 4,405.8 64.7 10.2 1.6 0.1 1.5 8 ............: (D) (D) (Y) (D) 28.8 (D) (D) 9 ............: 76.7 76.6 0.1 (Y) 18.3 (D) (D) 10 ...........: 19.2 19.2 (Y) (Y) 4.5 0.1 4.3 : United States : 9,864.3 9,630.3 214.0 19.9 149.9 9.3 140.6 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- (D) Withheld to avoid disclosing data for individual operations. (Y) Less than level of precision shown. 1/ States included in regions are as follows: 1 - Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Vermont; 2 - New Jersey, New York; 3 - Delaware-Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia; 4 - Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee; 5 - Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, Wisconsin; 6 - Arkansas, Louisiana, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas; 7 - Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska; 8- Colorado, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Utah, Wyoming; 9 - Arizona, California, Hawaii, Nevada; 10 - Alaska, Idaho, Oregon, Washington. Federally Inspected Slaughter - Regions and United States: January to August 2026 [Data may not add to totals due to rounding] -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Cattle : Calves Standard :----------------------------------------------------------------------- federal : : : : Cows : : regions 1/ : Total : Steers :Heifers :--------------------------: Bulls : Total : : : : All : Dairy : Other : : -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : 1,000 head : 1 ............: 16.8 6.3 4.0 4.8 3.3 1.6 1.6 0.6 2 ............: 57.5 18.5 (D) 21.8 (D) (D) (D) 12.1 3 ............: 657.2 261.4 (D) 322.7 251.9 70.8 (D) (D) 4 ............: 419.5 45.8 17.8 318.1 104.2 214.0 37.8 1.1 5 ............: 1,848.3 904.4 215.4 (D) 462.6 (D) (D) (D) 6 ............: 3,011.8 1,341.6 1,072.4 526.2 238.7 287.5 71.7 (D) 7 ............: 8,264.0 4,725.8 3,092.2 (D) (D) 305.8 (D) 0.4 8 ............: 1,664.8 936.0 619.9 (D) (D) (D) (D) (Y) 9 ............: 1,017.9 427.6 150.7 430.3 348.5 81.8 9.3 (D) 10 ...........: 1,102.8 457.5 318.8 311.2 246.4 64.8 15.4 0.3 : United States :18,060.6 9,124.8 5,537.0 3,125.2 1,786.9 1,338.3 273.6 56.7 :---------------------------------------------------------------------- : Hogs : Sheep :---------------------------------------------------------------------- : Total : Barrows : : : Total : Mature :Lambs and : :and gilts : Sows : Boars : : sheep :yearlings :---------------------------------------------------------------------- : 1,000 head : 1 ............: 12.3 12.1 0.1 0.1 25.9 1.3 24.6 2 ............: 87.8 87.3 0.3 0.2 184.3 22.8 161.4 3 ............: (D) (D) 1.5 (D) 109.9 8.2 101.7 4 ............: (D) (D) 629.4 (D) 108.6 7.6 101.0 5 ............: 25,633.2 24,880.7 709.8 42.7 230.4 12.9 217.5 6 ............: 3,560.3 3,559.0 0.7 0.7 131.1 10.1 121.1 7 ............: 37,532.1 36,881.5 558.8 91.8 14.5 0.7 13.8 8 ............: (D) (D) 0.4 (D) 260.9 (D) (D) 9 ............: 623.8 623.3 0.3 0.2 143.8 (D) (D) 10 ...........: 160.2 160.0 0.1 0.1 38.3 0.8 37.5 : United States : 83,131.5 81,067.9 1,901.5 162.1 1,247.7 85.5 1,162.2 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- (D) Withheld to avoid disclosing data for individual operations. (Y) Less than level of precision shown. 1/ States included in regions are as follows: 1 - Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Vermont; 2 - New Jersey, New York; 3 - Delaware-Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia; 4 - Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee; 5 - Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, Wisconsin; 6 - Arkansas, Louisiana, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas; 7 - Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska; 8- Colorado, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Utah, Wyoming; 9 - Arizona, California, Hawaii, Nevada; 10 - Alaska, Idaho, Oregon, Washington. Federally Inspected Slaughter Percent of Total Commercial Slaughter - United States -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : : : : January to August Species : August : July : August :------------------------ : 2025 : 2026 : 2026 : 2025 : 2026 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : percent : Cattle .......: 98.1 98.3 98.3 98.2 98.2 Calves .......: 95.4 93.4 94.6 95.0 93.8 Hogs .........: 99.4 99.5 99.4 99.5 99.6 Sheep ........: 85.7 87.7 86.0 86.2 88.1 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Terms and Definitions Used for Livestock Slaughter Estimates Average Live Weight: The weight of the whole animal, before slaughter. Excludes post-mortem condemnations. Commercial Production: Includes slaughter and meat production in federally inspected and other plants, but excludes animals slaughtered on farms. Based on packers' dressed weights. Custom-Exempt Plants: Plants that do not sell meat but operate on a custom basis only are custom-exempt. The animals and meat are not inspected, but the facilities must meet health standards. These are considered NFI plants and head kill is included in NFI totals. Dressed Weight: The weight of a chilled animal carcass. Beef with kidney knob in; veal with hide off; lamb and mutton with pluck out; pork with leaf fat and kidneys out, jowls on and head off. Dressing Percent: Usually expressed as a percentage yield of chilled carcass in relation to the weight of the live animal on hoof. For example, a live hog that weighed 200 pounds on hoof and yielded a carcass weighing 140 pounds would have a dressing percentage of 70. Federally Inspected (FI) Plants: Plants that transport meat interstate must employ federal inspectors to assure compliance with USDA standards. Any state whose commercial plants operate entirely under federal inspection may still have custom-exempt establishments for which NFI estimates are made. Food and Meat Inspection: Includes examination, checking, or testing of a carcass and/or meat against established government standards and involves checking the facility for cleanliness, health of animals, or parts of animals and quality of the meat produced. Non-Federally Inspected (NFI) Plants: Plants which sell and transport only intrastate. State inspectors assure compliance with individual state standards for these NFI plants. Mobile slaughtering units are excluded and are considered farm slaughter. Number of Head: Includes post-mortem condemnations. Plant, Slaughter: An establishment where animals are killed and butchered. Red Meat: Red meat production is the carcass weight after slaughter excluding condemnation and is comprised of beef, veal, pork, and lamb and mutton. The FI red meat production is equal to the total carcass weight after slaughter. The NFI meat production formula is (NFI head kill) X (live weight) X (FI dressing percentage) = NFI red meat production. Slaughter: Killing and butchering of animals primarily for food. Slaughter, Farm: Animals slaughtered on farms primarily for home consumption. Excludes custom slaughter for farmers at commercial establishments, but includes mobile slaughtering on farms. These estimates appear only in the annual slaughter release. Talmedge-Aiken (TA) Plants: Slaughter plants in which USDA is responsible for inspection. However, federal inspection is carried out by State employees. These plants are considered to be federally inspected. Total Live Weight: The total weight of live animals, before slaughter. Excludes post-mortem condemnations. Wholesome Meat Act: Legislation that specifies that all meat produced for sale in the United States must be inspected. Meat that is transported interstate must be inspected in compliance with Federal (USDA) Standards. Statistical Methodology Data Sources: Primary data for the Livestock Slaughter publication are obtained from electronic reports completed by inspectors from the Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS), USDA, which provide daily counts of animals slaughtered in Federally Inspected (FI) plants, in addition to total live and dressed weights. These counts are combined with data from State-administered Non-Federally Inspected (NFI) slaughter plants to derive total commercial slaughter estimates. There are approximately 1,125 livestock slaughter plants in the United States operating under Federal Inspection and about 1,800 Non-Federally Inspected (State-inspected or custom-exempt) slaughter plants. Slaughter from State- inspected Talmedge-Aiken plants is included in FI totals (see Terms and Definitions, page 14). To prevent duplication in reporting between FI and NFI plants and assure all FI plants are included, certificates prepared by FSIS identifying operating status are constantly monitored. Revision Policy: Number of head slaughtered, live weights, and dressed weights are subject to revision the following month after the monthly release. Annual totals are published in the slaughter summary each April which includes any revisions made to current and previous year's published data. Revisions are generally the result of late reports received from slaughter plants and are usually less than one-half of one percent. No revisions will be made to the previous year's data after the publication of the annual summary in April. Procedures and Reliability: The livestock slaughter data is obtained electronically on a daily basis and summarized approximately two weeks after the week of slaughter. A computer program compares each plant's data with the historical data for that plant. Data are checked for unusual values for head kill, patterns of kill, average weights, and dressing percent, based on each plant's past operating profile. In addition, the computer program provides a listing of missing reports for follow-up contact with FSIS. Average live and dressed weights and dressing percentages by State are compared with the previous weeks as an additional check. Fluctuations are frequently the result of plants permanently or temporarily closing and a shift in the species reported. The FSIS District Veterinary Medical Specialists (DVMS) are contacted by e- mail or telephone for missing or potentially erroneous slaughter data. This assures that plants slaughtering a large number of head or several species are accounted for each week. Any corrections FSIS makes to the slaughter data are included in the summary. Computer imputation may be necessary for incomplete reports. The imputation of live and dressed weights is based on the current week reported data of plants of similar size and location. Imputation for live and dressed weight data for cattle and hogs is less than 10 percent and 7 percent, respectively. The imputation for calves and sheep is more frequent and variable. If no data is received electronically or by other means, for plants slaughtering fewer than 50 total head weekly of only one species, data are imputed. The imputation of head for any plant is based on the historical data for that particular plant. The imputation of head slaughtered is rare but when necessary, the imputed head kill for missing plants usually is less than 1 percent of the United States head kill totals. FI data are summarized weekly and accumulated to a monthly total for this release. These weekly totals are published by USDA's Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) in Livestock, Poultry, and Grain Market News, Actual Slaughter Under Federal Inspection, and statistics are also available on the NASS website. NFI data are summarized monthly only. Livestock slaughter estimates are based on a census of operating plants and therefore, have no sampling error. However, they may be subject to non- sampling errors such as omissions, duplications and mistakes in reporting, recording and processing the data. These errors are minimized through rigid quality controls in the computer edit program and summarization process, and a careful review of all reported data for consistency and reasonableness. No data are published when an individual plant's data could be divulged. If not published, as indicated with a (D), these data are still included in United States and region totals. A review of the data is made annually to determine the publishable data. USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service - Estimation Branch Contacts For more information about specific data items, please contact the Estimation Branch staff members below. You can also email inquiries to nass@usda.gov. Anthony Prillaman, Associate Deputy Administrator............................................................................... (202) 720-2127 Darin Jantzi, Section Chief..................................................................................................... (701) 412-5953 Broiler Hatchery, Chicken Hatchery, Eggs, Hogs and Pigs, Layers, Sheep and Goats Jeff Lemmons, Section Chief..................................................................................................... (202) 973-3272 Cattle, Cattle on Feed, Capacity of Refrigerated Warehouses, Cold Storage Fleming Gibson, Section Chief (Acting).......................................................................................... (202) 236-2428 Catfish, Census of Aquaculture, Dairy Products, Livestock Slaughter, Poultry Slaughter, Trout, Turkey Hatchery, Turkey Raised Julie Weber, Section Chief...................................................................................................... (202) 317-0165 Cost of Pollination, Egg Products, Honey, Honey Bee Colonies, Milk Production Access to NASS Reports For your convenience, you may access NASS reports and products the following ways: All reports are available electronically, at no cost, on the NASS web site: www.nass.usda.gov. The national specific reports are available via a free e-mail subscription. To set-up this free subscription, visit www.nass.usda.gov and click on "National" in upper right corner above "search" box to create an account and select the reports you would like to receive. 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