Cow-calf profit per head in California

Feeder calf prices in 2024 were the strongest in a decade, with CME feeder cattle futures averaging near $2.50/lb and California auction barns reporting 500-600 lb steer calves at $2.90-$3.20/lb per the California Cattlemen's Association market reports. Applied to the UC ANR benchmark of a 550 lb weaned steer, gross calf revenue lands near $1,600 per calf sold, but because UC ANR budgets assume an 88% weaning rate and include a cull-cow credit blended across the breeding herd, gross revenue per exposed cow settles closer to $1,120.

USDA ERS Commodity Costs and Returns for the Pacific region put cash costs for cow-calf producers at roughly $950-$960 per bred cow in 2024, dominated by feed (purchased hay and leased pasture at $18-25/AUM). That leaves net cash income of about $165 per cow — positive, but thin relative to the capital tied up in breeding females currently valued at $2,200-$2,600 per head.

Once USDA ERS non-cash charges are added — depreciation on the cowherd and opportunity cost on land, labor, and capital totaling roughly $260 per cow — total economic profit swings to approximately -$95 per cow. UC ANR's Sample Costs studies corroborate the pattern: California's lease rates and hauled hay during drought cycles push the state's cost structure 15-20% above the Western regional average, so even in a record calf-price year most California cow-calf operations cover cash costs and operator draw but do not fully cover the economic cost of the land and breeding herd.