The Montana rancher had never seen anything like it. Few people had.
âThe grocery store coolers were empty of beef, thatâs the first thing that went,â said Steinbeisser, who ranches near Sidney.
For ranchers, it was a frustrating sight, those empty meat cases. Ranchers had cattle to sell but few were being bought because COVID-19 had kinked the supply line. Packing plants with sick workers were slowing down, or shutting down.
At the same time meat was disappearing from the stores, restaurants were closing, which meant the demand for prime-grade ribeyes and steaks was evaporating.
Itâs a strange thing to be in a state like Montana, where cattle outnumber people two to one, and not be able buy a pound of hamburger. The disconnect stems from the way calves are raised to about 450 pounds, sold into feedlots and then sold again into slaughterhouses two states away before being shipped to grocery stores and food service companies. Most agree itâs a broken syste
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