ABOVE: Several of Haley Ekstrom’s cows come out to graze together on the farm in Odin. Ekstrom said right now they are in their pasture period to live with their moms, before those that are ready get sold to a feedlot in the early fall.

MARTIN COUNTY – As beef and steak prices continue to rise, local cattle farmers and sellers are finding themselves balancing the good with the bad.

According to the most recent U.S. Department of Agriculture report from the week of June 8-14, 10,875 cattle were sold in Minnesota at an average price of $256.16 per hundredweight, or 100 pounds. On that week last year, over 6,000 more cattle were sold at $16,970, and the average price was $240.

The real impact can be seen going back nearly two years ago, as 23,535 cattle were sold on the week of July 15-21, 2024 for only $196.86 per hundredweight.

Increased prices and decreased supply numbers are showing themselves at the grocery store as well. According to the Federal Reserve’s Economic Data chart, the average price for a pound of ground beef in May was $6.75. In May of 2025 it was $5.98, and in May of 2024 it was $5.15.

Steak is the same. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics tracked steak prices at $12.80 in May 2026, $11.03 in May 2025 and $10.73 in May 2024.

Haley Ammann Ekstrom owns a farm with over 50 cattle, running a spring calving operation that raises cows then sells them to a feed lot. As a sixth generation farmer, Ekstrom said they have never seen prices this high, because inventory levels have never been this low.

“Because the United States cattle inventories are at a historic low, it’s causing historic high cattle prices,” she said. “My dad has said that too, he’s never seen prices this high for all cattle of all breeds and all ages. It’s unusual, and that’s why I say prices have gone up, but prices will come back down. Eventually you will see that reflect in grocery stores and meat markets. You’ll see prices relieve and come down. It’s just going to take time, because it takes time to build herds up.”

In speaking with other cattle farmers, there is a silver lining being seen with these higher prices.

“In a sense the cow calf farmers and ranchers are being paid for all their hard work they put in year round,” Ekstrom said. “Farmers and ranchers, we don’t get a bi-weekly paycheck. We don’t get paid until we sell those cattle calves, and so it is nice to feel, in a sense, rewarded for all our hard work that goes into it year-round.”

Even so, Ekstrom acknowledged the risks of high prices, including people switching to other proteins as their main source. For prices to come down, she said herd populations need to start building, which isn’t always the easiest sell for a business.

“We need people to keep building their cattle herds and wanting to retain some of their cattle versus always selling them,” Ekstrom said. “When prices are so good right now, that’s part of your business, right? You’re in a business. No matter what your business is, the point of a business is to turn a profit.”

Dean Weiss, who owns Weiss Milling and currently has 100 head of cattle, sells his to local beef lockers for processing. With the higher prices, Weiss said things have tightened up for cattle farmers.

“To purchase calves to feed are all set record price, so the profit margin’s really tight when you go out and buy a calf right now,” he said. “Then you’re finished all the way, the profits barely even there right now. We’ve lived to our glory. We had them early two years ago, we bought calves fairly reasonable, and then we got a high price for fat, so we did really great, but now that’s all changing.”

Because of this, Weiss said he has heard of multiple people leaving cattle farming, at least for the time being.

“We’ve had a couple guys around here too, they’re just done,” he said. “They can get out with a profit, and they’re taking it, because a lot of these young guys can’t afford to buy it.”

With this occurring, Weiss spoke to the potential ripple effect of higher prices driving away the next generation of cattle farmers.

“A lot of these good old boy ranchers that ranch all their life, they can get out now,” he said. “Their boys, why would they quit a good job in the city to come out and ranch and buy their dad out at the highest price ever? They’ll have to go borrow these millions of dollars, and there’s just no money left. That’s why their growth hasn’t started in the cattle industry. They just can’t. It just takes too long to get going. It’s taking way too much money.”

As a cattle farmer for over 40 years, Weiss said there have been some times prices have been high, but never to their current level.

“In 2013-14, the prices were high,” he said. “It’s still not even close to what is this, is way above and beyond anything’s ever been. We made good money last year, I ain’t gonna lie. Now that the margins are tight, you go buy your feed of cattle right now today, and I don’t think you can lock in a profit if you want to. It’s that close, and you’re playing a lot of money.”

Regarding screwworm, which has re-emerged in Texas, Ekstrom and Weiss both were not overly concerned about its potential impact on cattle herds and beef prices.

“I think they’re on top of it,” Weiss said. “We got products now that can eliminate it. It’s an animal, ivermectin has a product they can use on the animal. I mean, eliminate it. We pour our cattle all the time for grubs, lice, mange, all that. It’s just something we do, they’ll just start doing that with these cattle, and that should take care of it.”

Moving forward, Ekstrom said they will stick to their plan of continuing to raise a safe and nutritious product for everyone while also finding a way to ensure it is sustainable to continue as a business for her and future generations.

With his mill business, Weiss said being an independent feed mill has been in their favor and it continues to grow and be successful. As for the farm, he said it has become a little bit harder to make a profit, but he is going to keep at it.

“I’ll keep banging away at,” Weiss said. “I’ve done it all my life, and that’s all I know, so we’ll keep going.”