Department of Agriculture.
University of NebraskaLincoln Extension educational programs abide with the nondiscrimination
policies of the University of NebraskaLincoln and the United States Department of Agriculture.
© 2007, The Board of Regents of the University of Nebraska on behalf of the
University of NebraskaLincoln Extension. All rights reserved.
EC847
Nebraskas Cattle Feeding Industry:
Size, Structure and Related Industries
Rebecca M. Small, Graduate Research Assistant
Darrell R. Mark, Extension Livestock Marketing Specialist
David J. Peters, Extension Community Economics Specialist
With 6.7 million head of cattle and calves in 2007,
Nebraska has the second largest beef cattle herd in the
nation. Cash receipts from sales of these cattle and calves
totaled $6.6 billion in 2006. Nebraskas 2.7 million head
of cattle on feed in January 2007 also makes the state the
second largest in the number of cattle on feed and com-
mercial cattle slaughtered. A number of unique factors
and resources contribute to the large and thriving cattle
feeding industry in Nebraska. More than half of the
states land area is comprised of pasture and rangeland,
which supports a large cow-calf sector and provides a
large calf crop to Nebraska feeders. Not only are cattle
feeders near an ample supply of feeder cattle, but they
also are close to key feed input markets. Nebraska tradi-
tionally is known for its corn production and is increas-
ingly growing production of distillers grains and other
feed byproducts from bio-energy production plants op-
erating in the state. Finally, Nebraska cattle feeders have
close access to a number of cattle slaughtering plants
located throughout the state. Lower transportation costs
for feeder and slaughter livestock as well as feed inputs
creates cost advantages for Nebraska feeders that are not
available in other states.
This report provides information on the size, scope
and structure of Nebraskas cattle feeding industry. Such
information can help Nebraska producers, industry lead-
ers, state and local policy makers, rural communities and
consumers understand the impact the cattle feeding sec-
tor has on the states economy. Along with discussing the
importance and magnitude of the cattle feeding sector
in the state, the report also examines the relationship of
the feeding industry with the cow-calf production sector,
beef processing industry, feedstuff production industry
and export market.
Overview of Nebraskas Beef Cow Industry
The availability of high quality feeder cattle and
calves in Nebraska supports the states feeding industry.
In 2006, Nebraska had about 5.6 percent of the nearly
32.9 million beef cows that calved in the U.S. that year.
These 1.9 million head of beef cows are on 20,991 beef
cow operations throughout Nebraska for a state average
herd size of 90 cows per operation. Cherry, Custer and
Holt Counties have the three largest beef cow invento-
ries in the state as well as the nation. Notice that these
counties generally are located close to counties with
some of the largest cattle on feed numbers in Nebraska
(see Figure 4). Interestingly, despite Cherry County hav-
ing 66,000 more head of beef cows than second-ranked
Custer County, total cattle inventory numbers (including
breeding stock, calves and cattle on feed) for each equals
305,000 head.
Table 1. Top Five Beef Cow Counties in Nebraska

Rank
County
Head

1
Cherry
166,000

2
Custer
100,000

3
Holt
99,000

4
Lincoln
69,000

5
Sheridan
56,000
Source: National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) 
© The Board of Regents of the University of Nebraska. All rights reserved.
The Cattle Feeding Sector
In early 2007, Nebraska ranked second nationally in
the number of cattle on feed in all feedyards and in feed-
yards with 1,000+ head capacities. Texas and Kansas have
the first and third largest cattle on feed inventory nation-
ally. Much of the rest of the concentration of cattle on
feed is in California, Colorado, Iowa, Oklahoma and New
Mexico (Figure 1). Because of the increasing challenge of
originating feed inputs, particularly corn, and competi-
tion for ethanol co-product feeds, there has been some
Figure 1. Cattle on Feed in January 1, 2007 (1,000 head). Source: Livestock Marketing Information Center (LMIC)
330 to 2,880
(9)
140 to
330
(7)
60 to
140
(7)
0 to
60
(11)
shift of cattle feeding numbers from the Southern Plains
to Northern Plains states like Nebraska (Mark).
In 2006, there were 4,570 cattle feeding operations in
Nebraska with approximately 2.7 million head of cattle
on feed. The average size of those feeding operations
was 590 head, but ranged considerably from smallest
to largest. Of the 4,570 operations, 770 of them had ca-
pacities of 1,000 head or more (NASS). This means that
approximately 83 percent of cattle feeding operations in
Nebraska have fewer than 1,000 head capacity feedlots
(Figure 2).
Figure 2. Number of Cattle Feeding Operations in Nebraska, By Size, 2006. Source: National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS)
11, 0.2%
30, 0.7%
199, 4.4%
530, 11.6%
3800, 83.2%
< 1,000 Head
1,000 - 3,999 Head
4,000 - 15,999 Head
16,000 - 31,999 Head
32,000+ Head © The Board of Regents of the University of Nebraska. All rights reserved.

While Nebraskas feeding industry is comprised
of a relatively large number of small feedyards, these
small feedyards account for a small proportion of cattle
marketed in the state. For example, the 83 percent of
feedyards with less than 1,000 head capacities supplied
about 6 percent of the total cattle marketed in the state in
2006 (Figure 3). Conversely, the 11 feedyards with more
than 32,000 head capacities marketed nearly 16 percent
of cattle sold by Nebraska feedyards. The majority of
cattle marketings, however, are from mid-sized feedyards.
Figure 3 shows that more than 1.8 million cattle were
marketed from feedyards with 4,000 to 15,999 head, or
38 percent of all cattle marketings in Nebraska. This
size structure contrasts with other states. In Kansas and
Texas, the majority of cattle marketed are from feedyards
with 32,000+ head capacities, while most of Iowas cattle
marketings came from 1,000 to 3,999 head size opera-
tions in 2006 (NASS).
Cattle are fed throughout the state (Figure 4), but
cattle on feed inventories are generally concentrated in
the northeast, south central and Panhandle areas of the
state. Table 2 shows the five counties in Nebraska with
the most cattle on feed (NASS). These top five counties,
distributed from the east to west end of the state, account
for approximately 23 percent of the cattle on feed inven-
tory in Nebraska. There are 10 counties in Nebraska with
more than 50,000 head of cattle on feed.
2000
1800
1600
1400
1200
1000
800
600
400
200
0
H
ea
d (1,000)

<1,000
1,000 - 3,999
4,000-15,999
16,000-31,999
32,000+

Head
Head
Head
Head
Head
Size of Operation
Figure 3. Cattle Marketed, By Operation Size, 2006
.
Source: National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS)
Figure 4. Nebraska Cattle on Feed, By County, 2002. Source: National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS)
22,567
84,163
1,048
1,166
38,849
88,944
29,929
7,939
14,173
7,304
1,332
1,628
24,208
4,746
30,328
21,246
3,583
1,013
83,283
21,393
1,499
10,135
17,461
4,608
6,423
35,074
34,481
3,750
5,189
104,181
142,097
4,019
12,873
11,754
24,671 9,109
5,637 33,515
28,107
40,887
132,489
60,098 35,111
10,734 4,427
25,085
33,988
38,249 35,089
34,416
50,142
9,097
27,313
32,014
2,428
41,139
15,747
1,377
24,813 27,863
27,695
229,321 17,984
47,854
56,106
26,505
18,908
31,230 9,378 41,532
3,422
14,682
32,709 23,441 1,349 1,964
22,004 5,079
1,488
15,907 7,436 3,250
850 2,965
1,820
6,235 
© The Board of Regents of the University of Nebraska. All rights reserved.
Table 2.
Top Five Cattle on Feed Counties in Nebraska, 2002

Rank
County
Head

1
Cuming
229,321

2
Dawson
142,097

3
Phelps
132,489

4
Custer
104,181

5
Morrill
88,944
Source: NASS
Employment and Wages
Cattle feeding operations employ significant labor
resources. Typically, efficient feedyards in Nebraska hire
approximately one person for every 1,000 head of cattle
on feed (Smith and Mark). Based on the cattle on feed
inventory, this equates to about 2,700 people working in
feedlots across Nebraska in positions ranging from feed-
lot managers to mill operators to feedtruck drivers to pen
riders and cowboys. The number of people employed at
a feedlot is dependent on the size of the feedlot. A 2004
survey of Nebraska feedyards indicated average payrolls
of about 355,000 in the form of annual salaries, hourly
wages, benefits and bonuses. The average wage of a feed-
lot employee in 2004 was over $38,000. (Note that this
average compensation included both base annual salaries
and hourly wages.) In addition, the average benefit pack-
ages received by feedlot employees totaled $6,699. (The
size of operations surveyed by Smith and Mark ranged
from 1,000 to 65,000 one-time capacities with the fol-
lowing categories: below 4,000 head, 4,000 to 12,000
head, and more than 12,000 head.)

Feed Inputs and Amounts
In addition to a large cow-calf industry and diverse
feeding sector, part of Nebraskas success in cattle feeding
is attributable to abundant crop production in the state.
In 2006, Nebraska harvested approximately 7.8 million
acres of corn for grain totaling 1.2 billion bushels with
a value of production of $3.7 billion. In addition, som