The USDA's National Agricultural Statistics Service reports the number of U.S. cattle in feedlots of a thousand or more to start January totaled 10.6 million head.
The inventory is slightly larger than what it was a year ago.
The department notes it's also made up of 7 million steers, which is two per cent lower than last year.
Overall, the feedlots of 1000-plus made up 66 per cent of America's entire inventory.
Heifers and calves accounted for 3.6 million head in the group, which is 5 per cent more than a year ago.
NASS also points out placements in those feedlots during December were 18 per cent higher than in 2015, while marketings increased by 7 per cent.
