Chicago | Reuters –– Chicago Mercantile Exchange feeder cattle futures on Friday hit a record high, boosted as corn prices fell after the government’s bearish crop report, traders said. U.S. corn futures fell more than one per cent after the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s forecast for rising global supplies. Cheaper feed could ease input costs […] Read more
U.S. livestock: Cheaper corn pushes CME feeder cattle to record high
PEDv found in hogs on second SE Manitoba farm
A finisher operation in Manitoba’s livestock-intensive southeast has been confirmed as the second farm in the province to host hogs with porcine epidemic diarrhea (PED). According to the office of Manitoba’s provincial chief veterinary officer (CVO), the new case was identified while the CVO was investigating a PED-positive sample from an unnamed “high-traffic site.” The […] Read more
Higher bacon prices still to come, analyst says
CNS Canada — Rising pork prices and shrinking bacon packages have made headlines across Canada recently — but consumers should prepare to spend even more for bacon over the next few months, as processors between the farmer and the grocery store are still seen to be losing money. Western Canadian hog producers are currently experiencing […] Read more
U.S. livestock: CME hogs end mixed as funds roll into new months
Chicago | Reuters –– Chicago Mercantile Exchange hog futures closed mixed on Thursday as funds sold, or rolled, the June contract and bought deferred months, traders said. Funds trading in CME’s hogs and live cattle markets shifted June long positions further back in a procedure known as the “roll” by followers of the Standard + […] Read more
PED could cut U.S. output by seven per cent in 2014: Rabobank
Chicago | Reuters — A pig virus sweeping across farms in the U.S. could cut pork production as much as seven per cent this year, a far steeper decline than the government has forecast, according to agribusiness research firm Rabobank. Porcine epidemic diarrhea virus (PEDv) has killed about seven million baby pigs since it was […] Read more
U.S. livestock: Fallen cash prices extend CME hogs’ losses
Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange hog futures fell on Wednesday for a seventh straight session, led by lower market-ready, or cash, hog prices, traders said. The morning’s hog price in Iowa/Minnesota fell $2.41 per hundredweight (cwt) from Tuesday to $111.72, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (all figures US$). “The trade is […] Read more
Toronto’s Quality Meat Packers officially bankrupt
One of the last remnants of Toronto’s “Hogtown” past has formally gone bankrupt, in a move expected to permanently close the doors and strip out the assets at Quality Meat Packers and its Toronto Abattoirs arm. The two pork-packing and -processing companies in early April filed a notice of intention for a proposal to restructure […] Read more
EU toughens rules on imports in response to PEDv
Brussels/Paris | Reuters — European Union officials on Tuesday agreed on new rules for the treatment of imported pigs’ blood for use in animal feed, but decided against changing the rules on importing live pigs even though a deadly virus has caused major losses to the U.S. pig industry. In a statement, the European Commission […] Read more
U.S. livestock: CME feeder cattle hit all-time high as calf prices firm
Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange feeder cattle futures on Tuesday hit an all-time high, supported by firm prices for young calves, or feeder cattle, traders said. Feedlots are paying more for calves after years of drought in parts of the U.S. shrank the herd to a 63-year low. Gains in CME’s live cattle […] Read more
U.S. livestock: CME live cattle sag on profit-taking
Chicago | Reuters –– Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle finished lower on Monday, pressured by profit-taking that erased Friday’s gains pegged to steady-to-better market-ready or cash cattle prices, traders said. Monday was a day to evaluate this week’s cash cattle sales and subsequent wholesale beef prices, said Archer Financial Services broker Dennis Smith. Last Friday, […] Read more
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