Cattle Market Pulse

Kalona Livestock Slaughter Cattle Auction Market Report

Kalona, Iowa · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Thursday, May 25, 2023

433 head sold ·Official USDA report

This is an archived report. See the latest Kalona Livestock Slaughter Cattle Auction report →

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 433 970 779
Slaughter cattle 433 970 779

Slaughter cattle sale today: No comparison due to last week sale not reported. Trade active. Demand good.

New to these tables? Plain-English explainers ↓

N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
955–1375 1179 7 150.00–163.00 $156.44 $1,844
1065–1465 1276 17 169.00–181.75 $178.11 $2,273
1105–1670 1388 196 182.00–192.00 $187.62 $2,604

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N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
940–975 958 5 136.00–165.00 $149.91 $1,436
1000–1460 1165 15 170.00–181.00 $176.15 $2,052 +41.96
1051–1655 1272 134 182.50–192.25 $188.05 $2,392 +17.38

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N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1235–1480 1370 3 146.00–152.00 $149.50 $2,048
1395–1815 1585 5 155.00–167.00 $160.81 $2,549

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What does "Medium and Large 1" mean?

USDA feeder grades describe frame size and muscle thickness, not quality of the individual animal. "Medium and Large" is the frame score; the number is muscle (1 = heaviest muscled). "Medium and Large 1–2" pens mix both muscle scores — common across the Southeast.

What is $/cwt?

Dollars per hundredweight — per 100 lb of animal. A 500-lb calf at $450/cwt brings 5 × $450 = $2,250. Lighter cattle usually bring more per cwt but less per head.

Why are some prices per head?

Bred cows, cow-calf pairs, and some replacement classes sell by the head, not by weight. We show those exactly as USDA reports them — a $/head figure is never converted into $/cwt on this site.

Where do these numbers come from?

From the USDA Agricultural Marketing Service's Livestock Market News — federal reporters at the sale. We publish each report in full and link the official USDA document at the top of the page.