How to Read the United States and Canadian Cattle Report — Combined Inventories and Class Definitions
NASS-Statistics Canada joint report (Aug 26, 2026): U.S. plus Canadian cattle 106,300.0 thousand head on July 1, 2026 (101% of 2025); Canada 12,100.0, U.S. 94,200.0.
Key figures (United States and Canadian Cattle, July 1, 2026)
As of 7 November 2026, 01:58 KST (retrieved by this page at that time); latest edition: United States and Canadian Cattle, released August 26, 2026 by the USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) with Statistics Canada, for inventories on July 1, 2026. Primary source: https://esmis.nal.usda.gov/sites/default/release-files/796036/uscc0826.txt[1][2]
| Indicator (inventory on July 1, 1,000 head) | Previous: July 1, 2025 | Current: July 1, 2026 | Change vs previous: percent of previous year, as printed | Change vs year ago: not applicable (same July-to-July comparison); this column gives this page's percent change, rounded to two decimal places | Evidence type |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| United States and Canada, all cattle and calves | 105,730.0 | 106,300.0 | 101 | +0.54% | NASS-Statistics Canada joint report table; change calculated by this page |
| United States and Canada, cows and heifers that have calved | 42,517.6 | 42,593.1 | 100 | +0.18% | NASS-Statistics Canada joint report table; change calculated by this page |
| United States, all cattle and calves | 94,000.0 | 94,200.0 | 100 | +0.21% | NASS-Statistics Canada joint report table (source: NASS); change calculated by this page |
| United States, cows and heifers that have calved | 38,100.0 | 38,100.0 | 100 | 0.00% | NASS-Statistics Canada joint report table (source: NASS); change calculated by this page |
| Canada, all cattle and calves | 11,730.0 | 12,100.0 | 103 | +3.15% | NASS-Statistics Canada joint report table (source: Statistics Canada); change calculated by this page |
| Canada, cows and heifers that have calved | 4,417.6 | 4,493.1 | 102 | +1.71% | NASS-Statistics Canada joint report table (source: Statistics Canada); change calculated by this page |
Comparison basis: inventories are in 1,000 head as printed; the percent of previous year is NASS's rounded figure, and the percent changes rounded to two decimal places are this page's calculations from the printed levels. U.S. inventory levels in the table above are printed in increments of 50,000 or 100,000 head, while Canadian levels are printed to a tenth of a thousand head.[1]
In three lines
1. The joint NASS-Statistics Canada report puts U.S. and Canadian cattle inventories for July 1 side by side and adds them up.
2. Combined cattle and calves were 106,300.0 thousand head on July 1, 2026 against 105,730.0 thousand a year earlier, printed as 101 percent of the previous year.
3. Canada's herd rose to 12,100.0 thousand (103 percent); the U.S. herd was 94,200.0 thousand (100 percent).[1]
Who produces the figures
Two agencies. "This publication is a result of a joint effort by Statistics Canada and NASS to release the number of cattle and calves by class and calf crop for both countries within one publication." The U.S. tables are sourced to NASS and the Canadian tables to the Livestock and Animal Products Section of Statistics Canada. "United States inventory numbers were previously released on July 24, 2026." "Canadian inventory numbers were previously released on August 24, 2026." The joint report repeats figures first published by each agency.[1]
A missing year. The 2021–2024 tables show no U.S. or combined inventory for July 1, 2024, with the footnote 2024 United States Cattle report not conducted due to reduced funding; Canada's July 1, 2024 inventory (11,770.0 thousand head) is printed. The combined calf crop for 2024 (37,567.1 thousand) is printed even though the July inventory is not.[1]
Frequency. The publication page says the report is published twice a year in late winter and summer. "The late winter edition also contains information on sheep and lambs."[2]
Reading in pairs
Rounded text vs table. "All cattle and calves in the United States and Canada combined totaled 106 million head on July 1, 2026, up 1 percent from the 106 million head on July 1, 2025." The levels are 105,730.0 and 106,300.0 thousand, a 0.54% rise (this page's calculation) that NASS prints as 101 percent of the previous year; both totals round to 106 million, so the 1 percent in the text comes from rounding a change of about half a percent.[1]
United States vs Canada. "All cattle and calves in the United States as of July 1, 2026, totaled 94.2 million head, up slightly from the 94.0 million head on July 1, 2025." "All cattle and calves in Canada as of July 1, 2026, totaled 12.1 million head, up 3 percent from the 11.7 million head on July 1, 2025." The combined total is the sum of the two (94,200.0 + 12,100.0 = 106,300.0, this page's check), so of the combined rise of 570.0 thousand head, 370.0 came from Canada and 200.0 from the United States (this page's subtraction).[1]
Class definitions differ. The weight and age cutoffs apply to heifers, steers, bulls and calves, not to cows. The U.S. tables list Heifers 500 pounds and over (for beef cow replacement, for milk cow replacement and other heifers), Steers 500 pounds and over, Bulls 500 pounds and over and Calves under 500 pounds; the Canadian tables list Heifers 1 year and over, Steers 1 year and over, Bulls 1 year and over and Calves under 1 year. Beef cows and milk cows carry no such cutoff in either country's table. The combined table shows only cattle and calves, cows, beef cows, milk cows, all other cattle and calf crop.[1]
Calf crop is not a July 1 count. The calf crop is the January to December crop: 37,136.2 thousand for 2025 combined (32,995.6 U.S. plus 4,140.6 Canada, this page's check), while the 2026 U.S. figure of 32,500.0 is shown; the 2026 combined and Canadian calf-crop values are blank, and their percent-of-previous-year entries are marked not applicable.[1]
Next edition
Next edition. The publication page lists recent editions in March and August each year and describes a late-winter edition; the date of the next edition is not established by these sources.[2]
Verified facts
Each fact is labelled with its evidence typeEach fact in this section carries its evidence type — either cross-checked against independent sources, or confirmed from a single authoritative record.
Cattle and calves in the United States and Canada combined totaled 106,300.0 thousand head on July 1, 2026, against 105,730.0 thousand on July 1, 2025.[1] 1 source · authoritative record
Canada's cattle and calves totaled 12.1 million head on July 1, 2026, up 3 percent from 11.7 million, per Statistics Canada figures in the joint report.[1] 1 source · authoritative record
U.S. cattle and calves totaled 94.2 million head on July 1, 2026, against 94.0 million a year earlier.[1] 1 source · authoritative record
The joint report shows no U.S. July 1, 2024 inventory because the 2024 United States Cattle report was not conducted due to reduced funding.[1] 1 source · authoritative record
Statements and readings
Not counted as facts — each item shows what kind of statement it isFrom here on: statements not counted as facts — single-source reports, the issuing body’s own statements, and this page’s own readings, each labeled.
The combined inventory rose 0.54% from July 1, 2025 to July 1, 2026, which the text rounds to 1 percent.[1] This page’s own calculation or reading · This page's calculation from NASS's printed levels
Because the U.S. heifer, steer, bull and calf classes use 500-pound cutoffs and the Canadian ones use 1-year cutoffs, the combined all other cattle category adds animals classified on different bases.[1] Stated by the issuing body itself (primary source) · not independently verified · inference from the class definitions in the report's tables
Timeline
What this page could not establish
These are questions this page tried to answer and could not. The gaps are left open rather than filled with a guess.- Will a U.S. July 1, 2024 inventory be estimated later?
- When will the next joint edition be released?
- Model
- claude-opus-5
- Time
- 11/07/2026, 01:58
- Body characters
- 5,742
- Sources
- 2 sources adopted
- Model
- ChatGPT (checked sources on the web)
- Time
- 11/07/2026, 02:09
- Verdict
- Revision required
Show revision history (3)
| 11/07/2026, 09:00 | First authored (claude-opus-5) | Created |
| 11/07/2026 | First version. Read in full the United States and Canadian Cattle report (August 26, 2026) and its ESMIS publication page; quotations are complete sentences matched against the source text. | Updated |
| 11/07/2026 | Revised after review: the calf-crop sentence says the 2026 combined and Canadian values are blank with their percent-of-previous-year entries marked not applicable; this page's percent changes are described as rounded to two decimal places; the U.S. rounding note is limited to inventory levels in the key table (increments of 50,000 or 100,000 head); the 500-pound and 1-year cutoffs are tied to the heifer, steer, bull and calf classes, not cows; the claim origin no longer repeats the word CLAIM. | Updated |
Frequently asked
How many cattle were in the United States and Canada combined on July 1, 2026?
106,300.0 thousand head (about 106 million) on July 1, 2026, against 105,730.0 thousand a year earlier.[1]
How many cattle were in Canada on July 1, 2026?
12,100.0 thousand head on July 1, 2026, up 3 percent from 11,730.0 thousand, per Statistics Canada.[1]
How many cattle were in the United States on July 1, 2026?
94,200.0 thousand head on July 1, 2026, against 94,000.0 thousand a year earlier.[1]
Is there a U.S. July 1, 2024 cattle inventory in the joint report?
No: the 2024 United States Cattle report was not conducted due to reduced funding, according to the report's footnote.[1]
Are U.S. and Canadian cattle classes defined the same way in the 2026 report?
No: in the 2026 report the U.S. heifer, steer and bull classes use 500 pounds and over (calves under 500 pounds) and the Canadian ones use 1 year and over (calves under 1 year); cows have no such cutoff.[1]
When is the next United States and Canadian Cattle report?
Editions appeared in March and August 2026; the date of the next edition is not established by these sources.[2]