Early access, free.
Cownty

Home › Arkansas › Craighead County

Craighead County, AR

Cattle prices near Craighead County, Arkansas. The closest sale barn with a recent report is Ash Flat AR in Ash Flat, AR, about 61 miles away. On Nov 13, 5-weight steers (500–599 lb) averaged $369.08 per hundredweight on 10 head (USDA). Check a bid against your own costs with Ring Price.

Check a bid with Ring Price

Change county
CRP emergency haying & grazing: Craighead County is on FSA's list (since Sep 1, 2026). Check with your FSA county office first. Details · FSA list as of Nov 5, 2026.
Drought ExceptionalD4 · most of county Drought pay (LFP) Eligibleup to 5 payments Burn ban Checkcall the county Ash Flat AR 5-wt steers $369per cwt

Craighead County rain, outlook and forecast

Most of Craighead County, AR was in exceptional drought (D4) on the Nov 10 U.S. Drought Monitor map, and D2-or-worse drought has held there 48 weeks running. Rain has run 35% of normal over the last 30 days (well below normal); the best rain chance this week is 27% on Saturday (high 73°) and the 6-10 day outlook for Nov 20–24 leans wetter than normal (33% chance of above-normal rain). FSA's 2026 LFP list includes Craighead County with up to 5 monthly payments, and the nearest USDA-reported sale barn is Ash Flat AR, 61 miles away.

Rain vs normal

  • Last 30 days 35% of normal
  • Last 60 days 35% of normal
  • Last 90 days not read yet

NOAA river forecast center rain (radar plus gauges) at the county center, Nov 15, 2026. Source.

Rain outlook

  • 6-10 day outlook (Nov 20–24) Leans wetter than normal (33% chance of above-normal rain)
  • 8-14 day outlook (Nov 22–28) Leans toward near-normal rain

NOAA Climate Prediction Center precipitation outlook, issued Nov 14, 2026. Source.

Next 7 days

  1. Today Widespread Frost then Mostly Sunny, high 57°, low 34°, 0% rain, wind 5 mph
  2. Monday Areas Of Frost then Sunny, high 60°, low 34°, 0% rain, wind 0–5 mph
  3. Tuesday Areas Of Frost then Sunny, high 63°, low 37°, 0% rain, wind 0–5 mph
  4. Wednesday Sunny, high 66°, low 43°, 0% rain, wind 0–5 mph
  5. Thursday Mostly Sunny, high 70°, low 47°, 1% rain, wind 0–5 mph
  6. Friday Sunny, high 72°, low 48°, 1% rain, wind 0–5 mph
  7. Saturday Mostly Sunny, high 73°, low 50°, 27% rain, wind 5–10 mph

National Weather Service forecast for the county center, updated Nov 15, 2026. Wind, warnings and burn bans.

PRF pasture insurance: sign up by Dec 1, 2026

The 2027 Pasture, Rangeland, Forage (PRF) insurance sales closing date for Craighead County is Dec 1, 2026, 16 days from today. PRF (Rainfall Index) pays on a rainfall index for your grid, not on your own rain gauge. You buy it through a crop insurance agent.

How PRF works · PRF 2027 sign-up · Find your grid on RMA's PRF tool

Date from USDA RMA's actuarial data, read Aug 28, 2026 · RMA dates map. Your agent confirms the date for your policy.

Craighead County grass production

In 2025, grassland and pasture in Craighead County grew about 2,772 pounds per acre of grass and forbs, 98% of the county's 1991-2020 normal of 2,822 pounds per acre. That was the 20th lowest of 40 years on record (1986-2025). Best year: 2016 at 3,284 pounds per acre; worst: 1986 at 1,310.

Pounds per acre of new grass and forbs each year on rangeland and pasture, from the Rangeland Analysis Platform (satellite-based estimates). See every year on the Land tab.

Open loss windows 1 open

What happenedStartedTell FSA early byFSA deadline
Exceptional drought (D4) reached (U.S. Drought Monitor) Oct 27, 2026Nov 26, 2026 (11 days left)Mar 1, 2027

If this cost you livestock, extra feed or hauled water, call your county FSA office now, while it's fresh. The 30-day date is a suggestion from Cownty; FSA's deadline for the notice of loss and application is the March 1 date. Log it in your Drought Ledger · Find your FSA office and phone

Text YES CLOCK for a reminder on day 21 and day 28.

Information only; not financial, tax or legal advice. FSA decides eligibility. Cownty sends nothing to FSA.

Drought-sale tax flag IRS list

Craighead County is on IRS Notice 2026-54 (severe or worse drought, Sep 1, 2025 to Aug 31, 2026).

Why it matters: if you sold breeding, dairy or draft livestock because of drought, the tax code may let you put off the gain (more time to buy replacement animals, or report the extra-sale income a year later). Your tax preparer decides whether either applies.

Work out your numbers and print a page for your preparer

Information only; not financial, tax or legal advice. Ask your tax preparer. FSA decides program eligibility. IRS Notice 2026-54 (PDF)

5-wt steers, nearest barns

Steers 500–599 lb, $/cwt, weekly average.

BarnLast sale5-wt steers
Ash Flat AR 61 miNov 13$369
Searcy AR 74 miNov 10$390
Heber Springs AR 82 miNov 9$372
How to read this

Each line is one barn's head-weighted average for 5-weight steers (500–599 lb) in that week; gaps are weeks with no sale or no lots that size. Past sales, not a bid.

Dollars per hundredweight ($/cwt, per 100 lb), calculated from USDA AMS Market News sale reports (Medium & Large 1 and 1-2). Not a USDA-published average. ≈ $/head = $/cwt × the middle of the weight class ÷ 100.

Guide: How to read a USDA sale barn report

Price history · Barn map · Fed vs feeder cattle

All weights at the 3 nearest barns

Ash Flat AR 61 mi

Ash Flat, AR
Sale of Nov 13, 2026
CattleHead$/cwt≈ $/head
Heifers 400-499 lb15358.08$1,610
Heifers 500-599 lb29341.35$1,880
Heifers 600-699 lb20323.94$2,110
Heifers 700-799 lb3298.53$2,240
Steers 400-499 lb8423.01$1,900
Steers 500-599 lb10369.08$2,030
Steers 600-699 lb7349.68$2,270
Steers 700-799 lb3335.00$2,510

USDA report (PDF) · Price history

Searcy AR 74 mi

Searcy, AR
Sale of Nov 10, 2026
CattleHead$/cwt≈ $/head
Heifers 400-499 lb33379.92$1,710
Heifers 500-599 lb21349.27$1,920
Heifers 600-699 lb17319.47$2,080
Heifers 700-799 lb1307.50$2,310
Steers 400-499 lb25450.28$2,030
Steers 500-599 lb38389.79$2,140
Steers 600-699 lb23353.72$2,300
Steers 700-799 lb6321.29$2,410

USDA report (PDF) · Price history

Heber Springs AR 82 mi

Heber Springs, AR
Sale of Nov 9, 2026
CattleHead$/cwt≈ $/head
Heifers 400-499 lb9366.15$1,650
Heifers 500-599 lb13339.89$1,870
Heifers 600-699 lb19307.79$2,000
Heifers 700-799 lb5301.04$2,260
Steers 400-499 lb8420.50$1,890
Steers 500-599 lb14371.94$2,050
Steers 600-699 lb29331.04$2,150
Steers 700-799 lb12317.84$2,380

USDA report (PDF) · Price history

24 more within 200 mi: West Plains MO (93 mi), Trenton TN (95 mi), Como MS (99 mi), Jackson MO (120 mi), Huntingdon TN (125 mi), Farmington MO (136 mi), Savannah TN (141 mi), Ledbetter KY (146 mi), Grenada MS (149 mi), Green Forest AR (160 mi), Cuba MO (161 mi), Houston MS (162 mi), Phillipsburg MO (169 mi), Winona MS (169 mi), Springfield MO (175 mi), Vienna MO (179 mi), Florence AL (181 mi), Ozark AR (182 mi), Dickson TN (183 mi), Ratcliff (187 mi), Russellville AL (188 mi), Hopkinsville KY (189 mi), West Point MS (190 mi), Exeter (193 mi).

Text me Craighead County changes

Nearest USDA-reported sale barns

  1. Ash Flat Livestock Ash Flat, AR 61 mi · sells Fridays · latest USDA report Nov 13, 2026
  2. Arkansas Cattle Auction LLC Searcy, AR 74 mi · sells Tuesdays · latest USDA report Nov 10, 2026
  3. Cleburne County Livestock Heber Springs, AR 82 mi · sells Mondays · latest USDA report Nov 9, 2026
  4. Ozarks Regional Stockyards (feeder cattle) West Plains, MO 93 mi · sells Tuesdays · latest USDA report Nov 10, 2026
  5. Trenton Regional Stockyards Trenton, TN 95 mi · sells Wednesdays · latest USDA report Nov 11, 2026

Miles are straight-line from the county center. Sale days come from the barns' recent USDA AMS reports; call the barn to confirm. All barns

Printable county brief (PDF) · Everything on one page · Nearest USDA hay reports (none for Arkansas): Missouri, Oklahoma

Common questions and nearby counties

Is Craighead County eligible for LFP in 2026?

Yes. Craighead County is on FSA's 2026 Livestock Forage Disaster Program county list, with up to 5 monthly payments for some pasture types. FSA decides each operation's eligibility; apply at your county FSA office by March 1 after the loss year.

Source: FSA LFP county file of Nov 5, 2026

What is the drought level in Craighead County this week?

On the Drought Monitor map of Nov 10, 2026, most of Craighead County was in exceptional drought (D4), and the worst part was exceptional drought (D4) on 81% of the county. 48 straight weeks with some severe drought (D2) or worse.

Source: U.S. Drought Monitor, map of Nov 10, 2026

Is there a burn ban in Craighead County?

No official statewide list to check: Cownty doesn't read an official statewide burn-ban list for Arkansas; county commissions, sheriffs and fire districts post local fire restrictions, so check your county's own notices.

What sale barns are near Craighead County?

The nearest USDA-reported sale barns: Ash Flat AR (61 mi), last report Nov 13, 2026; Searcy AR (74 mi), last report Nov 10, 2026; Heber Springs AR (82 mi), last report Nov 9, 2026.

Source: USDA AMS Market News reports

What are the upcoming FSA and farm deadlines?

Next: Nov 20, 2026: Apply for NRCS conservation cost-share (EQIP, CSP, ACEP) to be considered for 2027 money; Nov 20, 2026: Micro Farm 2027: last day to buy crop insurance. FSA program dates not posted officially are marked "confirm at source" on the calendar.

Source: official agency pages (see Calendar)

Information only; not financial or legal advice. FSA decides eligibility. Always check the linked official source.