What Percent of the Consumer Dollar Does the Livestock Producer Recieve?

• Cattle producers received 62 percent of the retail value of a steer in 1980, but only 42.5 percent in 2009.
• Hog producers received 50% of the retail value of a hog in 1980, but only 24.5 percent in 2009.

As Speer points out, packer share of the retailer dollar has been relatively steady over time and allocation has shifted between the retailer and the producer not the packer and the producer. However, note that during the time period covered in the above graph, packers have also lowered employment costs by hiring immigrant labor and have become more efficient due to scale, consolidation, and operation methods.
K. McDonald