Livestock
Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange February lean hogs on Tuesday scored a fresh contract high, and deferred months scored new monthly tops, led by brisk wholesale pork demand cash price optimism, said traders. February hogs ended 1.025 cents/lb. higher at 72.375 cents, and hit a new contract high of 72.8 cents (all figures […] Read more
U.S. livestock: CME hog futures again reach new highs
JBS shares slump as prosecutors target controlling holder
Sao Paulo | Reuters –– Shares in JBS SA, the world’s biggest beef exporter, tumbled on Tuesday after prosecutors demanded that Joesley Batista step aside as head of JBS controlling shareholder J+F Investimentos SA. Common shares fell as much as 6.2 per cent to 11.29 reais (C$4.76) in early trading before paring losses to 11.85 […] Read more
Pizza chains expand antibiotic-free meat market
Canadian pizza chains Pizza Nova and Pizza Pizza are both staking out further space in the chain dining market for meats from livestock raised without antibiotics. Toronto-based Pizza Pizza on Jan. 23 announced it would source all chicken products on its menu from birds raised without the use of antibiotics, effective immediately. The company’s pledge […] Read more
U.S. livestock: Cash, pork prices boost CME hogs to new highs
Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange lean hog February futures scored a fresh contract high and deferred contracts scored monthly highs on Monday, fuelled by firmer cash and wholesale pork values, said traders. February hogs ended 1.025 cents/lb. higher at 71.35 cents, and hit a new contract high of 71.425 cents. April ended 0.975 […] Read more
Klassen: Feeder cattle markets digest USDA inventory report
Western Canadian feeder cattle markets traded $5 higher to as much as $10 lower compared to week-ago levels. The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Cattle on Feed report, along with U.S. inventory data, confirmed larger beef supplies in upcoming months, which set a negative sentiment amongst feedlot operators. Auction markets experienced variable price ranges on similar-weight […] Read more
Keeping land in grass has a side benefit
Young beef producers need affordable access to grassland 
if the industry is going to grow
Reading Time: 2 minutes The beef industry has been struggling to retain and attract new producers while the average age of farmers, at 54, keeps creeping up. The next generation of cattle producers might be looking for something different. The Canadian Roundtable for Sustainable Beef (CRSB) released the National Beef Sustainability Assessment and Strategy this fall. The industry garnered […] Read more
More BSE tests, no BSE seen in 2016
Canadian beef cattle producers handed over more samples in 2016 than in 2015 to be tested for BSE, turning up zero cases of the brain-wasting disease. The Canadian Cattlemen’s Association on Monday reported 27,346 samples were submitted to the national BSE surveillance program in 2016 — up four per cent from 26,285 in 2015, but […] Read more
Tyson reveals subpoena linked to alleged price fixing
Reuters — Tyson Foods disclosed on Monday it has received a subpoena from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission following allegations it conspired with rivals for years to fix chicken prices. The chicken sector, which is dominated by a handful of large meat companies, has come under increased scrutiny over the past year as customers […] Read more
Canada reintroduces bison to Banff National Park
Calgary | Reuters — Parks Canada has reintroduced a herd of plains bison to the country’s oldest national park in Banff, Alta., officials said on Monday, more than 130 years after the iconic North American animal last grazed the eastern slopes of the Canadian Rockies. The conservation team moved 16 bison from a protected herd […] Read more
Quebec’s winter trails to remain open as tax reform halted
Snowmobile trails going through farmland owned by members of Quebec’s Union des producteurs agricoles (UPA) will remain open as the province hits the brakes on changes to its farmland property tax credit plan. UPA members had recently pledged to revoke previously-permitted access to their land for snowmobile trails starting Monday (Feb. 6) in a dispute […] Read more