Chicago | Reuters — The same week U.S. President Donald Trump announced sweeping increases on tariffs against Chinese goods, Chinese buyers dropped orders for 3,247 tonnes of U.S. pork — the biggest cancellation in more than a year, according to U.S. Department of Agriculture data released on Thursday. The cancellation came during the week ended […] Read more

China cancels U.S. pork import order as trade war drags on

New Trump aid plan for U.S. farmers to rely on direct payments
Washington | Reuters — The Trump administration’s second package of aid for U.S. farmers hit by the trade war with China is expected to have a similar structure to last year’s program, using direct payments and commodity purchases, industry sources briefed on the plan said. The U.S. Department of Agriculture is still finalizing the plan, […] Read more

PED mystery unsolved, but outbreak may have ended
Officials hopeful there will be no new cases of deadly hog virus
Reading Time: 5 minutes Alberta’s lead veterinarians are cautiously optimistic the spread of a deadly hog virus has slowed — or maybe even stopped entirely. “It’s now been eight weeks since our last case of porcine epidemic diarrhea virus (PEDv), and we’re ever hopeful that we will not be getting any more cases for the next while,” said Dr. […] Read more

Label problem caused China’s suspension of two pork shippers
Winnipeg/Ottawa | Reuters — China’s suspension of two Canadian pork exporters’ permits was due to a labeling problem, Canada’s agriculture minister said, adding that she was hopeful of it being resolved. China’s action against two Canadian pork companies, announced by Agriculture Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau on Wednesday, widened a diplomatic rift between the countries. On Thursday, […] Read more

U.S. livestock: Lean hog futures lower, live cattle follow suit
Chicago | Reuters – U.S. hog futures declined on Monday on a mix of softer cash hog prices and technical selling after a run-up to contract highs earlier this month, traders said. Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle futures followed hogs lower. The benchmark June lean hogs contract fell roughly 3 percent, settling down 2.975 cents at 93.775 […] Read more

Thai CPF to acquire Canadian pork producer HyLife for $372 million
Bangkok | Reuters – Charoen Pokphand Foods Pcl (CPF), Thailand’s largest agriculture conglomerate, said on Monday it would acquire Canadian pork producer HyLife Investments for C$498 million ($372.7 million) to expand its North American business. The acquisition would make CPF a 50.1 percent owner of HyLife, with the remainder held by its Japanese partner, Itochu […] Read more

China finds more cases of African swine fever on Hainan island
Beijing | Reuters – China has detected new cases of African swine fever in six farms across four locations in Hainan province, the agriculture ministry said on Sunday, adding to two earlier cases of the contagious disease identified in the province on Friday. The disease, which is fatal to pigs but harmless in humans, has […] Read more

China eyes U.S. poultry, pork imports in trade talks
Reuters — China would likely lift a ban on U.S. poultry as part of a trade deal and may buy more pork to meet a growing supply deficit, but it is not willing to allow a prohibited growth drug used in roughly half the U.S. hog herd, two sources with knowledge of the negotiations said. […] Read more

World Pork Expo cancelled over swine fever fears
Chicago | Reuters — The U.S. pork industry canceled its annual convention on Wednesday over concerns that international attendees could bring in an incurable hog disease at a time when U.S. farmers are already suffering from trade wars. The decision to scrap the World Pork Expo, held by the National Pork Producers Council in Des […] Read more

Quebec books new PED outbreak
A weanling operation in Quebec’s Monteregie is home to the province’s first new case of porcine epidemic diarrhea (PED) in almost four years. The provincial agriculture ministry confirmed the new case Friday, marking Quebec’s first since May 2015 and its 17th since the disease first appeared in the province in February 2014. The Monteregie, the […] Read more