Livestock
Chicago | Reuters — The U.S. beef cow herd dropped to its lowest level since 1962, U.S. Department of Agriculture data showed on Tuesday, after a severe drought raised costs for livestock feed. Ranchers increasingly sent cows to slaughter last year, instead of keeping them to reproduce, as dry weather reduced the amount of pasture […] Read more
U.S. beef cow herd falls to lowest level since 1962, USDA says
Last year saw record cull, Rabobank reports
Foothills ranchers share rules for water resiliency
Keep it simple: Riparian areas play an outsized role in vital watersheds, and caring for them isn’t complicated
Reading Time: 5 minutes The Eastern Slopes are what many people picture when they think of Alberta — a sweeping landscape of grass and rolling hills giving way to forests and ridges framed by the majesty of the Rocky Mountains. But all that beauty masks serious issues, including the considerable strain on riparian areas. Key to the effort to […] Read more
U.S. livestock: Live cattle firm on strong cash trade
Cattle inventory report due out Tuesday; CME hogs end mixed
Chicago | Reuters — U.S. live cattle futures firmed on Monday, supported by strengthening cash trade and in anticipation of the U.S. Agriculture Department’s biannual cattle inventory report, due out on Tuesday. “Historically, the cattle inventory report wouldn’t be that big of a market mover. But it is a good check in on where you’re […] Read more
CCA looks back on 90 years
Reading Time: < 1 minute The Canadian Cattle Association is celebrating its 90th anniversary with a series of videos. The initial video looks at how marketing at a new level has paid off. “We’ve become the second-largest high-quality, grain-fed beef producer in the world,” CCA executive vice-president Dennis Laycraft says in the video. “We went from producing bone-in product … […] Read more
Préval closes deal for Alberta lamb processor, feedlot
Quebec firm picks up defunct NALCO's Alberta assets
Quebec agrifood firm Préval Ag has wrapped up its deal to buy the Alberta processing and production assets of the defunct North American Lamb Co., marking Préval’s first move into the lamb sector outside its home province. As per Alberta Farmer’s report last week, Préval confirmed Monday its divisions Westfine Meats and West Excelamb are […] Read more
U.S. livestock: Hog futures drop on plentiful supplies
Live cattle steady to weak
Chicago | Reuters — U.S. hog futures eased on Friday, with ample supplies weighing on prices due to a heavy pace of slaughter this year. Live cattle futures were steady to weak in rangebound trade, with light activity in the cash market hanging over prices. February lean hog futures dropped 1.15 cents, to 75.875 cents/lb., […] Read more
U.S. livestock: Hog futures up off lowest since December 2021
Cattle futures down with cash markets
Chicago | Reuters — U.S. hog futures rose on Thursday as strength in cash markets and rising export demand sparked a round of bargain buying after prices hit their lowest in more than a year. But weakness in the cash markets weighed on cattle futures. The U.S. Agriculture Department said on Thursday morning that export […] Read more
Saskatchewan holds Crown grazing rents at last year’s levels
Also, leaseholders on drought-downgraded land eligible for rate cut
Cattle producers leasing Crown land for grazing in Saskatchewan won’t see a rate hike this year and may be eligible for a significant rate cut. The provincial government announced Wednesday it has frozen the rates charged to producers who lease Crown grazing land in 2023 at their 2022 level. The freeze will apply to all […] Read more
U.S. livestock: Hog futures hit lowest since late 2021
Ballooning supplies an issue; cattle futures mixed
Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange hog futures fell to their lowest in more than a year on Wednesday, with plentiful supplies and weak export demand weighing on prices, traders said. Cattle futures were mixed, with nearby contracts easing while deferred contracts firmed on concerns about low animal weight. February lean hog futures ended […] Read more
Alberta lamb sector gets boost as Quebec powerhouse moves in
Fast-growing Préval Ag buys troubled Innisfail processing plant and major lamb feedlot
Reading Time: 3 minutes A Quebec company that is an emerging powerhouse in the meat sector has struck a deal to purchase the Alberta lamb processing plant and large feedlot of the defunct North American Lamb Company. “They seem to run a fair-sized conglomerate of businesses related to agriculture and the livestock industry,” said Neil Narfason, an official with […] Read more
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