Flames continue to burn through the Texas Panhandle. The Smokehouse Creek Fire has burned over a million acres, the largest recorded fire in Texas history.
Some of that land is home to cattle. The cattle industry is the bread and butter for many in the Panhandle.
“The Texas panhandle right now houses greater than 80% of Texas’ beef cattle population” says Matthew Garcia, the director of Ranch Management program with Texas Christian University.
Question: “Texas is a good place to have these cattle and have this type of supply chain. Why is that?”
Answer: “Well, I think the main reason is we have large land mass. You know, we have really good pastures, really good grass, but we also have every segment of our industry here. We have the cow calf guys who are producing the raw product. We have our stocker guys who are kind of the middleman. And then we have our feedlot guys who are finishing those cattle out to specifications that the American consumer likes. Then we have our own packing plants here. We also have a really good interstate system, so we can get that product across the state and out of the state. So that’s why Texas has been very successful in the beef industry,” Garcia said.
Although the panhandle is great for the cattle industry, wildfires of this magnitude pose a threat to the supply. Garcia says cattle supply is already at a 70-year low across the country.
“So right now, we don’t know the number of cattle we’re actually losing in these fires. It could be tens of thousands which further impacts our inventory,” he said.
Garcia says high demands and low inventory will drive prices for consumers for beef products.
Garcia has been in contact with ranchers in the area and its not only the cattle that is at risk but their food as well.
Question: “We’re not only seeing cattle impacted, but their food sources like the grass and the hay. Have you heard of, any any of those sources being burnt, from any of the farmers that you might be talking to?”
Answer: “So a lot of the people I have talked to, you have lost grain silos that they’re using to feed those cattle. They’ve lost hay barns with a lot of their stored forages,” Garcia said.