So OCM tell me what is the pen of cattle worth in the question I posed to Sandhusker?  Prices went up because producers withdrew their offerings from the market.  I can assure you I am much closer to the total market and events than you are.  Your simple conclusion that packers would know dismisses the fact that data is entered into a blind pool.  If you think it is so clear that the packers knew there was a problem then it should be easy for you to answer the question I posed.  Post the answer please. You claim to know what cattle sell for; post the answer.  Knowing what cattle sell for is much earlier than knowing what hundreds of different items of beef sell for.  Give it a shot.   

BTW, by the end of next week you will know the outcome of the brief filed with the Supreme Court regarding the ruling in the Pickett case. Are you willing to make a side wager regarding the outcome of the so called brilliantly written Amicus Brief filed with the court.  I will bet a cool one that the court resoundly rejects and dismisses the petition for a hearing.