While seated atop his John Deere tractor and sprinkling cattle feed to his 140 steers, Ken Herink of West Wisconsin was perfectly cognizant of the cattle futures' strong performance.
Cattle futures are now 25 percent higher than they were in early February 2010, which is not lost on Herink. The commodity shows no signs of relenting.
"These are mostly angus," Herink told KARE11 of Minneapolis-St. Paul. "Yeah, this will be a good year."
The low supply of beef cannot meet the high demand, according to an official at an advocacy group.
"We're dealing with what we believe will be the lowest calf crop in the U.S. in about 60 years; lowest cow numbers since 1958," said Jeff Reed of Central Livestock Association.
Fast-food chain McDonald's announced late last month its prices will rise. Analysts are predicting grocery stores are highly likely to raise beef prices by as much as 5 percent this year.
Herink thinks that's OK as well. His expenses include $30 per day to fuel his 32-year-old Deere tractor.
Just before 4 p.m., cattle futures were down 0.35 percent, a 0.4 cent slip to $1.13125 per pound.
Cattle futures up 25 percent since February 2010
Cattle futures are 25 percent higher than they were this time last year.