Cattle Market Pulse

Tama Livestock Slaughter Cattle Market Report

Tama, Iowa · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Wednesday, January 4, 2023

540 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 540 601 609
Slaughter cattle 540 601 609

Slaughter cattle sale today: No comparison. 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
1050–1340 1245 7 135.00–153.00 $144.90 $1,804
1200–1579 1402 34 146.00–159.50 $155.65 $2,182 +10.46
1249–1760 1530 174 160.00–170.00 $166.03 $2,540

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N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1050–1230 1161 9 130.00–147.00 $141.26 $1,640
1110–1515 1298 43 148.00–159.00 $155.41 $2,017
1153–1597 1406 91 159.00–169.00 $165.66 $2,329

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Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1170–1925 1456 75-80% 34 71.00–79.00 $75.39 $1,098
1565–1615 1593 75-80% 4 83.00–90.00 $85.02 $1,354
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1100–1725 1383 80-85% 36 62.00–70.00 $66.51 $920
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
815–1280 1008 85-90% 8 20.00–50.00 $42.06 $424
910–1385 1150 85-90% 12 52.50–61.00 $57.91 $666 +3.07

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YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1160–1175 1168 2 54.00–56.00 $55.01 $643
1010–2225 1720 8 76.00–92.00 $83.99 $1,445
1985–2080 2033 2 99.00–100.00 $99.49 $2,023

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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.