Livestock
Compared to last week, western Canadian feeder cattle sold $4-$6 lower on average. Feedlot operators backed away from the markets due to stronger feed grain prices and weakness south of the border. Certain regions of the U.S. Midwest and southern Plains have experienced adverse weather, which caused U.S. feeder cattle prices to experience a week-over-week […] Read more
Klassen: Feeder market experiences softer demand
Doing the math on a straw-grain ration for pregnant cows
You need to ensure the mothers-to-be are getting what they need
Reading Time: 3 minutes Feeding a straw-grain ration to pregnant cows is a viable option, but you’ve got to do the math. The first step is to test the quality of the feed, but determining what type of supplements or mineral product must also be done, said provincial beef and forage specialist Barry Yaremcio. “It is often a point […] Read more
U.S. livestock: Live cattle, lean hogs mostly lower
Chicago | Reuters — U.S. livestock futures were mostly lower on Monday, with both live cattle and lean hogs succumbing to pressure from technical selling and expectations for weaker cash prices, traders and analysts said. Prices for each eased amid a lack of fresh fundamental news to propel gains. Hogs had climbed last week, lifted […] Read more
Premises ID system proves its worth
Reading Time: < 1 minute Alberta’s Premises Identification System is 10 years old and now contains more than 43,000 premises, which provides a way of linking livestock and poultry to specific pieces of land, or premises. This information can be critical in notifying livestock owners in relation to an outbreak, natural or other disaster. The notification process was used during […] Read more
U.S. livestock: CME lean hogs rebound
Chicago | Reuters — U.S. lean hog futures closed out the week on a positive note on Friday as hopes for a pickup in pork sales to China fueled speculative buying that lifted prices more than one per cent and reversed the prior session’s losses. The market remains focused on trade talks between the U.S. […] Read more
U.S. investigators question shareholders of Brazil’s JBS
Brasilia | Reuters –– U.S. investigators this week visited Brazil to question shareholders of J+F Investimentos, the holding company that controls meatpacker JBS SA, as part of an existing plea deal, Brazilian prosecutors said on Friday in a statement. U.S. authorities have been investigating the companies controlled by J+F since their largest shareholders — brothers […] Read more
Review your biosecurity measures, says CCA
Reading Time: < 1 minute In the wake of a recent case of bovine tuberculosis, the Canadian Cattlemen’s Association is encouraging producers to review their biosecurity protocols on preventing and limiting the spread of the disease. In October, the case was detected at an Alberta slaughter plant and the carcass was confirmed to be from a cow from B.C. The […] Read more
U.S. livestock: Lean hogs drop on trade worry after Huawei arrest
Chicago | Reuters — U.S. lean hog futures fell for the third time in four sessions on Thursday on worries about rising U.S.-China trade tensions following the arrest of a Chinese executive in Canada, but the market clawed back most of the losses by the close. After optimism that trade talks last weekend between Washington […] Read more
U.S. livestock: Lean hogs rebound on demand hopes, pork margins
Chicago | Reuters — U.S. lean hog futures rebounded on Wednesday after two sessions of declines as improving meat packer margins and hopes for more pork sales to China buoyed the market. Traders are anticipating more pork sales to China following surprise sales to the world’s largest hog and pork market last week. Washington and […] Read more
Livestock producers and vets need to communicate in the new VCPR world
The days when you could just phone a vet and ask for a prescription are now done and dusted
Reading Time: 5 minutes Producers, do you have a Veterinarian-Client-Patient Relationship? As of Dec. 1, all antimicrobials used in animals will require a prescription from a registered veterinarian — and vets can only write a prescription if the four conditions that define a Veterinarian-Client-Patient Relationship (VCPR) are met. Some producers may be wary of this new set of regulations, […] Read more