Reading Time: 3 minutes Contain and pray it doesn’t spread. That sums up the approach officials are taking following the arrival of porcine epidemic diarrhea (PED) in the province. So far, tests for the PED virus at other farms, assembly yards, abattoirs, and truck washes have come back negative. However, officials also don’t know how the virus made its […] Read more
Officials continue all-out effort to prevent spread of PED
Authorities say it’s ‘good news’ that the devastating disease hasn’t spread, but don’t know how it got here
Building immunity to combat PED
There is no vaccine for the deadly virus, so controlled exposure is used to create immunity
Reading Time: < 1 minute Deliberately exposing a sow herd to the virus that causes porcine epidemic diarrhea may seem counterintuitive, but it’s the best option when a facility is infected. “The game plan is that you need to expose the sow population as quickly as possible, whenever the outbreak has occurred in the barn,” said Frank Marshall, owner of […] Read more
Alberta’s PED outbreak so far held to one spot
The probe into Alberta’s first-ever outbreak of porcine epidemic diarrhea hasn’t yet shown any paths by which the PED virus might have got to the farm — nor any new cases anywhere else in the province. The provincial government on Jan. 7 confirmed the first case of PED to appear in hogs in Alberta, at […] Read more
PED reaches Alberta — first case of deadly virus confirmed in province
Hog producers warned by pork officials it’s ‘especially critical’ to step up their biosecurity efforts
Reading Time: 3 minutes After years of successfully keeping the deadly PED virus at bay, porcine epidemic diarrhea has been found in Alberta. “The disease was found on Thursday (Jan. 3),” said Javier Bahamon, quality assurance and production manager for Alberta Pork. “It was reported by a private veterinarian to chief provincial offices at Alberta Agriculture and Forestry. Since […] Read more
PEDv arrives in Alberta hogs
Veterinary officials in Alberta are now investigating the province’s first-ever outbreak of porcine epidemic diarrhea (PED) in hogs. Alberta Pork, the province’s hog producer commission, and the provincial government on Tuesday announced an outbreak of the viral disease at what was described as a “400-head hog operation.” Javier Bahamon, quality assurance and production manager for […] Read more
Loose housing is a winning approach, says Canadian pork giant
Open sow housing is better for pigs, people, and profits, says Maple Leaf Foods executive
Reading Time: 4 minutes Many questioned whether it would work, but Maple Leaf Foods says open housing is a superior way to raise sows — and will have that system in all of its barns years before it becomes mandatory. “This is part of our vision to be the most sustainable protein company on Earth — part of that […] Read more
U.S. livestock: Cattle futures drop most since June on weaker cash market
Chicago | Reuters – Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle futures fell more than 1 percent on Friday, sagging under pressure from lower wholesale beef prices and slightly weaker trades in cash cattle markets in the southern Plains, traders said. Front-month December live cattle settled 1.975 cents lower at 114.575 cents per pound. The contract finished […] Read more
U.S. livestock: Cattle futures gain on technical buying; hogs lower
Chicago | Reuters – U.S. cattle futures were narrowly higher on Thursday, buoyed by spreading and technical buying despite a downturn in wholesale beef prices, traders and analysts said. Live cattle futures climbed for the third straight session on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange as the market continued to claw back from steep losses on Monday. […] Read more
U.S. livestock: Hog futures rebound from 2-week low on short-covering
Chicago | Reuters – Chicago Mercantile Exchange lean hog futures were mostly higher on Wednesday, rebounding from an early two-week low on support from calendar spreading and short-covering, traders and analysts said. But excessive hog supplies and increased pork production made the market vulnerable to further declines, with weaker prices for wholesale pork signaling a […] Read more
Hog market in transition, low prices now to improve later
CNS Canada – Large slaughter numbers in the United States and the resulting increase in pork supplies should weigh on the Canadian hog sector in the short-term, but the long-term outlook remains more favourable, according to an analyst. “It feels like we’re in a bit of a transition time,” said Tyler Fulton, director of risk […] Read more
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