Fed dairy cattle market reporting: Changing marketing methods, regional variation, and hedonic modeling

Fed dairy cattle represent an important and growing component of the U.S. fed cattle market. However, little is known about factors affecting fed dairy cattle transaction prices. This study analyzes confidential transaction-level data collected by United States Department of Agriculture Agricultural (USDA) Marketing Service (AMS) under Livestock Mandatory Reporting to determine how data collected for price reporting explains price variation. Hedonic models are developed to illustrate potential use to enhance fed dairy cattle price reporting. However, important price variation remains unexplained suggesting factors not available in AMS data are associated with fed dairy cattle price variation. We suggest AMS collect and utilize additional data to enhance price reporting.