The Cattle Business Weekly: History, Top 10 Leaders, Podcast and Staff
Profile updated November 2026
The Cattle Business Weekly is a family-owned cattle newspaper from Philip, South Dakota, that has reached ranch mailboxes across a nine-state region for about two decades under the motto For Cattlemen by Cattlemen. Known for its annual Top 10 Industry Leaders Under 40 list and a weekly news podcast, it covers markets, policy and the people of the beef business.
| Founders | Don Ravellette and Donnie Leddy |
|---|---|
| Home | Philip, South Dakota |
| Ownership | Family-owned by Donnie Leddy |
| Motto | For Cattlemen by Cattlemen |
| Reach | Cattle producers across a nine-state region |
| Recognition | 2022 South Dakota State University Friend of the Beef Industry |
| Official website | The Cattle Business Weekly podcast |
History of The Cattle Business Weekly
Don Ravellette and Donnie Leddy launched The Cattle Business Weekly in Philip, a ranch town in western South Dakota's Haakon County, and the paper recently marked its 20th anniversary. From the start its aim was to put market news, policy updates and human interest stories about ranchers in cattle producers' mailboxes. The paper remains family-owned by Leddy.
Over its first two decades the paper built ties with South Dakota's cattle organizations and events, promoting the Black Hills Stock Show and Rodeo and advertising the annual SDSU bull sale. In 2022 South Dakota State University named it a Friend of the Beef Industry, and Leddy, his wife, Krecia, and their three children were honored at the SDSU Beef Bowl that September. The paper has also been recognized by the South Dakota Stockgrowers Association.
The Cattle Business Weekly Today
The paper's news desk now produces a podcast of cattle industry headlines covering markets, ranch operations and Washington, D.C., with episodes posted several times a month. Fall 2026 episodes covered record low feedlot placements, heifer slaughter and herd rebuilding, cattle-on-feed reports, Leopold Conservation Award winners and executive orders affecting ranching.
The paper's best-known feature is its Top 10 Industry Leaders Under 40. Every fall a selection committee appointed by the paper chooses 10 people based on their accomplishments in agriculture, their role in its future and their impact on their communities. Honorees are profiled in the annual Herd Reference Guide released each October; the 2025 class included broadcaster Lane Nordlund of the Western Ag Network.
What The Cattle Business Weekly Is Publishing Now
Markets and policy
Cattle market analysis, feeder and fed cattle reports and federal policy news with a focus on what affects a ranch's profit.
People and awards
Human interest stories, the Top 10 Industry Leaders Under 40 and coverage of awards from producer groups and universities.
Herd Reference Guide
An annual reference edition released each October that carries the Top 10 profiles.
The Cattle Business Weekly Editors and Staff
Published sources name:
- Donnie Leddy - Co-founder, owner and publisher
- Don Ravellette - Co-founder
The paper did not publish a full masthead in the sources reviewed; editorial inquiries go through the paper's office in Philip.
Who Reads The Cattle Business Weekly
Readers are cow-calf producers, feeders, seedstock breeders and agribusiness people across the Northern Plains and neighboring states. Cattle and calves are the largest single source of U.S. livestock receipts, according to USDA's Economic Research Service. Land-grant universities pay attention to the paper's lists: University of Nebraska-Lincoln extension publicized a Nebraska extension educator's selection to the Top 10 in 2018.
The Cattle Business Weekly writes for cattlemen by cattlemen, so its readers can spot a greenhorn's joke from a mile off. For humor that passes that test, farm.FM offers farm satire and farm humor with a straight face, plus ranch humor about feedlot math and stubborn heifers. Its farm jokes will not move the cattle market, which is probably for the best.
Part newsroom, part radio dial, farm.FM bills itself as America's first satirical farm site and plays Tractor Tunes, its country music for farmers. Browse a farm.FM writer's back catalog to see the style.
The Cattle Business Weekly Sources and Agriculture Authority Links
- CBW podcast: Twenty years strong - the paper's founders and 20th anniversary.
- Farms.com: CBW named 2022 SDSU Friend of the Beef Industry - the university honor.
- University of Nebraska-Lincoln IANR News: Top 10 Industry Leaders Under 40 - how the list is chosen.
- USDA ERS: Animal product receipts - cattle economics.
- USDA NASS Quick Stats - South Dakota cattle statistics.
The Cattle Business Weekly FAQ
Where is The Cattle Business Weekly published?
In Philip, South Dakota.
Who founded The Cattle Business Weekly?
Don Ravellette and Donnie Leddy. The paper is still family-owned by Leddy.
What is the Top 10 Industry Leaders Under 40?
An annual list chosen each fall by a committee the paper appoints, with honorees profiled in its October Herd Reference Guide.
Does The Cattle Business Weekly have a podcast?
Yes. Its news desk posts cattle industry headlines on markets, ranching and Washington policy.
Twenty years in, The Cattle Business Weekly is still a family-owned paper from Philip that writes for cattlemen, by cattlemen.