STARKVILLE, Miss. (WJTV) – Rising production costs are decreasing the benefit of high market prices when it comes to Mississippi’s cattle operations.

Brandi Karisch, beef specialist with the Mississippi State University (MSU) Extension Service, said beef production is a significant component of the state’s agricultural economy, with a total estimated value of $318 million in 2022.

“Mississippi producers face similar challenges to those in many other states, as costs for feed, fuel and fertilizer for pastures continue to be high or rise,” Karisch said.

Rocky Lemus, Extension forage specialist, said the state’s beef industry is supported by the 2.6 million acres of forage production across the state, including about 600,000 acres in hay production.

“Although forage should be the foundation of livestock production, some limitations such as limited rotational grazing and farm forage diversification require hay supplementation for 90 to 110 days in the year,” Lemus said.

They said this demand from the beef cattle industry puts pressures on the state’s pastures to provide sufficient, high-quality forage. Lemus said producers can reduce the need for supplementation if they implement more efficient rotational grazing systems rather than overgrazing and allowing weeds to become a barrier to forage utilization and return.

The MSU Forage Extension Program works with county Extension offices across the state to provide tools and recommendations for producers.

The hard freeze of December and the freeze in early March impacted cool-season annual grasses, such as oats, and caused a delay in the opportunity to graze annual ryegrass.

Mississippi has just under 16,000 individual beef cattle operations in the state. Karisch said that, as of January 1, these producers had 860,000 head of cattle, including 478,000 beef cows and 91,000 beef cow replacements. Scott, Jones, Tate, Hinds and Walthall counties lead the state with the number of beef cattle.

The Mississippi Department of Agriculture and Commerce offers resources through the Genuine Mississippi program that allows consumers to find cattle producers who have their farms listed through that program.