Why Beef Prices Are Rising
FROM THE RANCH…
Why Beef Prices Are Rising
By Brian & Mary Heffernan, Five Marys Ranch | March 2026
Why Beef Prices are Rising
If you've been to the grocery store or have been buying beef anywhere lately, you've probably noticed that beef costs more than it used to. A lot more.
We've been raising beef here in Siskiyou County for eleven years now. Brian and I started this ranch because we wanted to do things the right way and for the best quality meat we could raise. That mission hasn't changed. But the economics of cattle ranching in 2026 look very different than they did when we started in 2014.
The Cattle Supply Crisis Is Real
The U.S. cattle herd is at its lowest level in decades. Ranchers were forced to sell off their mother cow breeding herd in the last half a decade due to various factors - years of drought, rising feed and input costs, and unrealistic regulations. Years of shrinking profit margins pushed many ranchers, especially smaller family operations, out of the business entirely over the last several years. When the US herd contracts that severely, it takes many years to rebuild. You can't just flip a switch and produce more cattle. A cow takes nine months to carry a calf, and that calf takes another 1.5 to 2 years before it's ready for harvest and replacement breeding cows take a few years before they are ready to breed calves of their own. The supply chain for beef is measured in years, not weeks.
What that means right now: there are simply fewer cattle available, and everyone from the big packers to small ranches like ours are affected. Prices for yearling cattle have followed accordingly and currently, the price of beef cattle is at an all-time high.
We'll need to increase prices on beef cuts very soon - but our M5 Meat Club Members keep the existing pricing of the club box they subscribe too as a perk for their loyalty to Five Marys. If you aren't a member yet, we are giving you the chance to join before prices go up next week.
Where Our Cattle Come From
We raise one-third of our calves right here on the ranch from birth. The other two-thirds of calves or yearlings we source from two ranches we trust completely: my brother-in-law Donald & Katherine Doverspike’s operation Hotchkiss Ranch in Oregon and the Bengard Ranch in California. Both are GAP-4 certified, All-Natural programs with similar quality genetics to ours and the same values, and care for the land and animals that we practice here.
These are people we'd stake our reputation on, and we do, every single day. When we bring their cattle onto our ranch, we know exactly how those animals were raised. We buy from them at auction and market prices, because that's the fair thing to do.
The Numbers Tell the Story
Eleven years ago, when we bought our first yearling cattle to raise and finish, we paid a certain price.
Today, those same yearling cattle cost 2 to 3 times as much.
Brian said the young steers we bought in 207 to finish were $1300 and today those same steers are $3100.
That's not a small shift but a fundamental change in the cost structure of what we do.
And cattle aren't the only input that's gone up. Fuel, supplies, insurance…. virtually everything it takes to run a ranch has gotten more expensive. We've absorbed as much of that as we possibly can, because we never want to be the ranch that prices families out of good food. In eleven years, our prices have only gone up about 20%. When the cost of the cattle themselves has doubled or tripled.
But I'd be misleading you if I told you we can hold that line indefinitely. We're at a point where we need to have an honest conversation about what's coming.
What This Means for the Future
The cattle supply isn't going to rebound quickly. Experts across the industry agree that we're likely to see tight supply, and elevated prices, for the foreseeable future. That means the cost pressures we're feeling today aren't going away in six months. We are going to need to look at adjusting our pricing to reflect what it actually costs to raise the quality of beef we're committed to delivering.
I don't say that lightly. I know what it means for family budgets. But I also know what it means to cut corners, and we're not willing to do that. Every animal that leaves this ranch represents everything we believe in.
How to Lock In Current Pricing: The M5 Meat Club
We want to give our most loyal customers a way to get ahead of these price increases. Right now, we're temporarily opening our M5 Meat Club to new members, and joining today means you lock in our current pricing.
Here's how it works: you sign up for a monthly box subscription and choose your delivery cadence: every 30, 60, or 90 days, whatever fits your household. The boxes are completely flexible. You can pause, cancel, or change your order at any time, no questions asked. We built it that way because we believe your commitment to us should be earned every single month, not locked in by fine print.
Members get the best price we offer on Five Marys beef, delivered to your door. And when pricing does need to change down the road, members will be the last to feel it.
Thank You for Being Part of This Ranch
I know this is a lot to take in. Rising prices are never fun to talk about, and I'll be honest, it's not fun to write about either. But I'd rather have this conversation with you directly than let you wonder why things cost more without any explanation.
You chose Five Marys because you care about where your food comes from. We chose this life because we care about getting it to you right. That hasn't changed.
Mary & Brian
Five Marys Ranch, Fort Jones, California
