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Abstract
Pricing and technological innovation are discussed within the context of the beef
industry’s value-based marketing initiative. Cash and contract marketing
practices for fed cattle are addressed with respect to slaughter volume and
pricing methods (live, dressed, and grid). A methodology for estimating grid
market share of weekly slaughter volume, based on USDA market reports
(2004–2009), is introduced. Weekly grid market shares for the cash and contract
markets are derived. Summary statistics indicate that grid pricing has become an
important pricing mechanism, but has not surpassed average pricing with respect
to slaughter volume market share.