November 22, 2025· 43 min

Why America's Cattle Ranchers Keep Getting Squeezed

Bill Bullard

Orality

Model

77%

Oral-dominant (speeches, podcasts, storytelling)

Speaker Breakdown

HostJoe Weisenthal(988 words)

M:29%

HostTracy Alloway(1,711 words)

M:29%

GuestBill Bullard(4,474 words)

M:27%

Oral Indicators

Agonistic29%

very, extremely, certainly

Engagement62%

you, our, your

Memory Aids100%

listen, so, now

Repetition100%

beef (123x), cattle (73x), about (62x)

Parallelism72%

So why would I pay for stuff I..., So have you heard the story ab..., And I'm Joe Weisenthal....

Sound Patterns58%

52 question(s), alliteration: "markets move", alliteration: "barclays brief"

Formulaic Phrases4%

you know what, to be honest

Literate Indicators

Hedging7%

could, probably, quite

Passive Voice10%

be obsessed, be allocated, was allocated

Abstract Nouns21%

investment, information, volatility

Subordination9%

because, since, until

Sentence Length35%

Avg: 13.8 words/sentence

Word Complexity52%

investment, analyze, anticipate

Academic Markers0%

Impersonal Style38%

551 personal pronouns found

Descriptive Style95%

monthly, carefully, exactly

Description

The country's cattle herd has shrunk to its smallest size in decades and beef prices have been soaring this year, with hamburgers and steaks becoming the latest flashpoints in the political debate over higher food prices. In this episode, we untangle the roots of declining domestic beef supply — from drought and surging feed costs to the lasting impact of consolidation in the meatpacking industry. We speak with Bill Bullard, CEO of R-CALF USA, a trade association for independent cattle ranchers, about the forces shrinking America's cattle industry and what can be done about it. (Editor's Note: This episode was recorded Oct. 30) Subscribe to the Odd Lots Newsletter Join the conversation: discord.gg/oddlots Only Bloomberg.com subscribers can get the Odd Lots newsletter in their inbox — now delivered every weekday — plus unlimited access to the site and app. bloomberg.com/subscriptions/oddlots See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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