1 of 6
Beef State in the 21st Century


Nebraska entered the 21st century with impressive statistics. As of 2006, Nebraska had the top three beef cow counties in the U.S., including the nation’s No. 1 cow county — Cherry County, with nearly 165,000 cows. Holt County was No. 2 (101,000) and Custer County was No. 3 (93,000). Also among the top counties in the nation was Lincoln County at No. 15 (69,000).

Four Times as many Cattle as People


Cowboys rounding up cattle
Source: NET Television
January 2006 figures illustrated that Nebraska continued to have far more cattle than people. Cattle outnumbered Nebraskans nearly 4 to 1. Cows numbered 1.93 million versus Nebraska residents who numbered just 1.7 million. Those cows plus the 4.7 million head that were sent here to be fed annually totaled nearly 6.64 million cattle.

The cattle industry continued to be Nebraska’s largest industry, with nearly $7 billion in sales and, when you accounted for all of the other businesses that supported the cattle industry (like veterinary medicine), that number jumped to just over $12 billion.


Cattle eating grain at fence row
Source: U.S. Department of Agriculture
There were about 4,500 feeding operations in Nebraska in the early 2000s, and while some lots were enormous, just under 800 of them took care of more than 1,000 animals. That meant there were over 3,700 feedlots that each held less than 1000 animals at a time.

Nebraska led the nation in beef exports, and world trade was growing, linking Nebraska to a much larger global economy.

But those exports were injured severely by a single sick animal.

1950-1974 Beef State  
 
 
Follow THE STORY OF BEEF through the decades.
1850-1874
Beef Moves
to Nebraska		 1875-1899
High Falutin’
Beef		 1900-1924
Reforming
Beef		 1925-1949
Beef Goes Modern		 1950-1974
Beef
State		 2000-2024
NE Beef
Goes Global