Description
Purchase live animals for further processing or resale. Includes buyers for cattle, hogs, poultry, and other livestock at ranches, farms, and auctions. May negotiate contracts and ensure regulatory and animal welfare compliance.
- • Coordinate yard, transport, and receiving crews and ensure accurate documentation.
- • Purchase live cattle, hogs, poultry, and other livestock for processing or resale.
- • Negotiate purchase contracts and pricing with ranchers, producers, and auction markets.
- • Arrange delivery to processors, feedlots, or resale channels.
- • Arrange transportation, holding yard space, and insurance for purchased animals.
- • Review orders and forecasts to determine required species, grades, weights, and volumes.
- • Maintain transaction, traceability, and inventory records; report data to company and regulators.
- • Inspect animals for weight, conformation, grade, and signs of disease or injury to estimate value.
- • Verify and document compliance with animal identification, movement, and health certification requirements.
- • Arrange payment terms, advances, or financing with producers and auctions as needed.
- • Assess producer capacity and herd potential by reviewing genetics, feed resources, pasture conditions, and facilities.
- • Advise producers on herd management, animal welfare, and biosecurity practices to improve quality and yield.
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O*NET occupational data (work activities, skills, knowledge).
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This site includes information from O*NET by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under the CC BY 4.0 license. Career Clutch has modified some of this information for student readability. USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA.
Last reviewed: Jan 2026
