At least 2,000 cattle have died in Kansas heat, adding to the industry's woes.
With almost 2.4 million cattle in feedlots, Kansas is the third largest cattle state in the United States, after Texas and Nebraska.
According to the Kansas Department of Health and Environment, at least 2,000 cattle have died in recent days due to high temperatures and humidity.
With almost 2.4 million cattle in feedlots, Kansas is the third largest cattle state in the United States, after Texas and Nebraska.
The deaths add to the industry's woes, which have already seen producers cut herds due to drought and deal with rising feed costs as Russia's invasion of Ukraine squeezed global grain supplies. Ukraine is one of the world's biggest grain exporters.
According to Reuters, a Kansas Department of Health and Environment official, Matthew Lara, said the cow deaths were tallied based on the number of carcasses the agency was asked to dispose of.
Temperatures and humidity in western Kansas soared over the weekend, and cooling winds vanished, causing heat stress in cattle, according to Scarlett Hagins, a spokesperson for the Kansas Livestock Association.
Meanwhile, earlier this month, eight counties in northwest Kansas were placed under extreme drought alerts.