(Pierre, SD) — It’s the tale of two cows in South Dakota. State agriculture reports show the number of beef cows in the state continues to decline, but the dairy cow population is on the rise. The National Agricultural Statistics Service released the cattle inventory estimates, showing heavy steers and calves were down. The decline in beef cows was only noticeable in South Dakota since 2021, whereas beef numbers across the country have been dropping since the early 2010s, according to the report.
