Most cattle producers probably wont view 2009 as one of their better years from a marketing standpoint.

Cattle prices, which struggled to get above the mid-$80 range for much of the year, recently limped toward the year-end finish line and dipped into the high $70s.

The market as a whole for the year tended to be on the disappointing side, said Dale Durchholz, AgriVisor market analyst. Placements tended to be light, but we could never get any traction in the market.

Durchholz believes the economic recession, which likely cut into beef exports and overall beef demand, is the main culprit for the poor prices.

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