WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator John Hoeven of North Dakota Tuesday announced that the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) has launched the cattle contract library pilot program to improve transparency and competition in cattle markets. The Cattle Contract Library Act of 2021 (H.R. 5609), was introduced by Dusty Johnson (R-SD) and Representative Henry Cuellar (D-TX-28).
The library includes aggregated contract information including key terms, conditions, and volumes. The contract library can be accessed at https://bit.ly/3wNzRKw  The contract library requires beef packers to provide details of the types of forward contracts they use for purchasing fed cattle that are not purchased in the negotiated cash market, which is the price discovery market for the cattle industry.
It also requires the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) publicly report the total number of cattle that beef packers have committed to them six months and 12 months into the future. See related news
“With the cattle contract library now live, ranchers will be better positioned to market and sell their livestock, securing a better price for their high-quality products,” said Hoeven. “This library comes as part of our ongoing efforts to ensure livestock producers can access fair and competitive markets.”
