SAN ANTONIO — SAN ANTONIO— Beef prices have surged to unprecedented levels, with costs reaching heights not seen in years. Federal Reserve economic data revealed that beef was priced at $6.25 per pound in July, and prices are expected to remain high, particularly with the holiday season approaching.

Carter Ray, owner and manager of Wiatrak’s Meat Market, explained the situation, saying, “Our ground beef has gone up about 12% year after year, but it’s the herds that are shrinking. Drought is happening all the way from Texas to Nebraska, and it just puts a strain on Mom and Pop ranchers to be able to afford to feed out animals. So they sold all those animals out.”

Ray noted that about a year ago, they were selling 80/20 ground beef for close to $4, but now, “your regular ground beefs are close to $6, as you get leaner with lower fat content, you can get into the sevens. That’s been the first time that it’s ever been in the sevens since we’ve owned it back in 2008.”

Ray said, “We think that 2026 is going to be a strong market as well. So in the near future, we don’t see any pullback on pricing. We’re hoping that some cattle ranchers will start to decide to keep their heifers, so that way we can just regrow the herds. That’s kind of the main focus for cattle ranchers here in Texas is regrowing those herds to get the numbers back up.”

He added, “In the beef industry, it’s a concern, but it’s not changing the way people are buying meat. Maybe if they were buying prime products, they’re buying choice products now. So that might be a behavioral change, but for the most part, it’s still holding strong.”

Otto Luensmann, owner of Seguin Cattle Company, which has been in business for 45 years, said, “The numbers are down, but then your price is good, and we work on commission, you know. So our deal has been pretty good.”

Luensmann said, “They’re as high as I’ve ever seen them. There’s big cattle bringing lots of money.”

Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller highlighted another issue affecting the industry. “The screw worm. It’s not affecting our cattle, but we have shut down imports from Mexico live cattle, and we get about 15% of our feeder cattle,” he said.

He added, “And feeder cattle are those calves that come up here and graze out on grass, wheat, winter pasture. Some of them are sold as grass fed, but a lot of them end up in our feed lots. So that makes our placement numbers over last year at about 90-92% so we’re going to have an even bigger shortage coming up, probably in the next four to five months through Christmas, New Year’s time. So it’s going to get a little bit worse, possibly before it gets better.”

Miller expressed concern over the long-term impact of high prices, stating, “If they stay there long enough, people will find other sources of protein. And once you lose your customer, they’re hard to win back.”

“This is highest. I’ve seen it my lifetime. Actually, we got high back during covid, when the packing plants couldn’t process the animals because of the flu, the workers weren’t there. Got high them. But I don’t I don’t believe it was this high. It’s so high. Now if you buy steaks to grill outside, you stand there and watch them,” he said.

Miller concluded that beef prices are unlikely to decrease anytime soon and may take several years to return to previous levels.

When asked, H-E-B released a statement on the ongoing rise in beef prices, emphasizing its dedication to bringing Texans the best prices.

H-E-B is committed to bringing Texans some of the lowest meat prices in the nation,” said the company in a statement. “While industry-wide issues continue to impact prices of certain items, our team works hard to absorb costs increases so we can keep prices low.