Livestock
Ontario’s hog agency says it’s completed its transition to an open-market organization just on the provincial ag minister’s deadline for it to do so. Ontario Pork on Monday said it officially split its operations into two separate divisions, Ontario Pork Universal Services and Ontario Pork Marketing Division, by Ag Minister Carol Mitchell’s Saturday (Dec. 4) […] Read more
Ontario Pork splits marketing, farmer service wings
Funds pledged for provincial packer pilot projects
Paperwork is now available for provincially-inspected meat processors to apply to take part in pilot projects aimed at freeing up interprovincial trade in meat. The federal government on Monday pledged up to $3 million for the series of pilots as per an agreement between the federal and provincial agriculture ministers at their meeting in Saskatoon […] Read more
Maple Leaf governance under fire from shareholder
A Toronto investment management firm holding a substantial piece of Maple Leaf Foods now wants to see changes in how the food firm’s board of directors is chosen, who’s chosen and how much they’re paid. Maple Leaf’s board, however, says such matters are already under review and West Face Capital’s calls for a meeting on […] Read more
Klassen: Feeder market stays firm, looks upward
The feeder cattle market is moving to levels where buyers have “ticker shock” and are becoming overwhelmed. Earlier in fall, many feedlot operators were holding back on purchases in hopes of softer values, but we now see these buyers step forward more aggressively before year-end. This last week, we saw 5-weight steers reach $145 per […] Read more
WTO’s face-to-face hearings on COOL wrap up
More questions are still to come from the World Trade Organization’s dispute settlement panel as its final face-to-face hearings conclude on Canada’s challenge of U.S. mandatory country-of-origin labelling (COOL). The hearings ended Thursday in Geneva, Switzerland, with a month to come devoted to responding to written questions from the WTO panel, the Canadian Cattlemen’s Association […] Read more
Industrial Milk Prices Up
Reading Time: < 1 minute Canadian dairy farmers can expect about a 1.5 per cent increase in per-hectolitre revenue from industrial milk starting Feb. 1. Support prices are those at which the CDC buys and sells butter and skim milk powder to balance seasonal demand changes on the domestic market. The skim milk powder support price will rise 1.5 per […] Read more
CCIA Call Centre Hours Changed
Reading Time: < 1 minute The Canadian Cattle Identification Agency (CCIA) has adjusted call centre customer service hours effective Monday, Nov. 22, 2010 due to a low volume of calls. The new call centre hours will be Monday to Friday from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. Mountain Standard Time. Customer support for the Canadian Livestock Tracking System (CLTS) can be […] Read more
Horses 101: A Guide To Safer Riding
Reading Time: 3 minutes If you want to get along better with horses, you have to understand their anatomy and history. That’s the bottom line from a “Horses 101” seminar conducted by Muffy Knox, an educator who trains both people and horses. Her history lesson stretched back to the ancestors of modern horses, which were just 14 inches tall […] Read more
Watch For Mycotoxins In This Season’s Grain
Reading Time: 3 minutes This year’s cool, wet weather not only delayed harvest, but also produced higher than normal incidence of fusarium mould in grain. Producers are being warned that high levels of deoxynivalenol (DON), a vomitoxin, will lead to reduced feed intake and slower growth in nursery and finisher pigs. Researchers and nutritionists recommend grain samples be analyzed […] Read more
Maple Leaf Foods To Close Nova Scotia Plant
Reading Time: < 1 minute Maple Leaf Foods, one of Canada’s leading food processors, said Nov. 17 that it will close its pork plant in Berwick, Nova Scotia, at the end of April. The plant closure is the first since Maple Leaf announced in October that it plans to boost earnings by closing some plants and spending heavily to modernize […] Read more
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