While the world at large keeps a collective and wary eye on the ravages of European livestock, producers here in Texas are enjoying the best of times due to abundant rainfall and near record market prices for cattle.Steven Lastovica, co-owner with his brother Ronnie of the Milano Livestock Exchange, said producers are getting higher prices for their cattle than what they have received in many years."The market is very good in terms of prices producers are receiving for their cattle," he said.Fueling the cattle market is the age-old factor of supply and demand."We've been able to move a lot of boxed beef, which tells me people are eating more beef," Lastovica said.The National Cattleman's Beef Association reports that the U.S. beef industry has recorded seven straight quarters of increased beef demand despite the fact that beef supplies are also at a record high. Instead of sending prices lower in response to market saturation, average retail prices for beef have actually increased by about 15 cents over 1999 prices, indicating that demand is exceptionally strong.Americans spent $52 billion on beef in 2000, averaging about 70 pounds per person, according to the cattleman's association.Chuck Schroeder, chief executive officer of the National Cattleman's Beef Association, said the increased demand is the result of a concentrated effort by the beef industry to improve its products while getting information to the public about the nutritional benefits of beef."We've worked hard to deliver added value to the consumer, and when consumers are consistently seeing that value, price becomes less of a factor in the purchase decision," he said.Despite the new prosperity in the cattle business, producers are concerned about the foot-and-mouth and mad cow diseases devastating cattle and sheep herds in Europe."We feel for those guys over there," Lastovica said. "Anybody who depends on livestock for their livelihood is going to be sensitive to what they're going through right now. A lot of them are losing several generations of genetics all at one time." by Clay Coppedge
