Livestock
Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle futures closed higher on Wednesday for a third day in a row, following the morning’s wholesale beef price upswing and initial cash price strength, traders said. February live cattle closed 0.7 cent/lb. higher at 120.275 cents, and April closed up 0.4 cent to 119.4 cents (all […] Read more
U.S. livestock: CME live cattle up for third straight day
Bid to raise beef checkoff ‘on hold’
Alberta Beef Producers supports raising national levy to $2.50 a head, but wants to sort out provincial checkoff first
Reading Time: 3 minutes [UPDATED Jan. 24, 2017] The national cattle checkoff is set to rise in most parts of the country this year — but a hike in Alberta is “on hold” for now. The $1 mandatory checkoff, applied to every head of cattle that goes to market, generates about $7.5 million annually. The funds are used to […] Read more
U.S. livestock: Cash prices boost live cattle to 10-month high
Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange nearby live cattle contracts on Tuesday climbed to their highest level in 10 months after investors digested last week’s better-than-expected cash prices, traders said. February live cattle closed 1.05 cents/lb. higher at 119.575 cents, and April up 1.075 cents, to 119 cents. “It was a good cash market […] Read more
Klassen: Feeder cattle prices lukewarm on mixed factors
Western Canadian feeder cattle markets were steady to $2 higher compared to week-ago levels. All weight classes experienced lukewarm buying interest, despite improving margins in the feedlot sector. Most auction barns experienced minimal numbers; cow-calf producers are holding back on sales hoping for stronger values and extreme cold temperatures hindered cattle movement, especially in the […] Read more
Ontario dairy sector optimistic with expanding demand
Ontario’s dairy industry is in a period of unprecedented growth, with over 15 per cent more quota going to dairy farmers in less than two years. There are almost certainly more quota increases to come, in order to increase milk production to displace significant volumes of butter now being imported. “It’s an absolutely great time […] Read more
U.S. livestock: Live cattle rally on fund buying, cash optimism
Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle futures gained about one per cent on Friday, rallying from losses in the previous session on the back of investment fund buying and optimism for higher prices in U.S. Plains cash cattle markets, traders said. Feeder cattle prices rose while lean hogs were mostly higher, underpinned […] Read more
More bovine TB quarantines still expected
Tracking an outbreak of bovine tuberculosis through southeastern Alberta and southwestern Saskatchewan is still expected to lead to more quarantines of more Prairie cattle ranches, though no new controls have been imposed since before Christmas. As of Wednesday, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency reported no new cases of bovine TB in its investigation, beyond the […] Read more
New provincial VBP+ co-ordinator hired in Alberta
Reading Time: < 1 minute Melissa Downing is the new provincial co-ordinator for the Verified Beef Production Plus program. Downing is an agrologist, and she and her husband raise cattle near Metiskow in east-central Alberta. This is a pivotal time in the beef industry and VBP+ “has the potential to establish Canada as a leader in sustainable verification and result […] Read more
U.S. livestock: Cattle ease on technical selling
Chicago | Reuters — U.S. cattle futures fell more than one per cent on Thursday, extending losses to the second straight session on a technical sell-off as wholesale beef prices also continued to lose ground, traders and analysts said. Lean hogs were mixed at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, with some front-month hog futures contracts rising […] Read more
EU-Canada trade deal clears further hurdles in Europe
Brussels | Reuters — A planned EU-Canada free trade deal received backing from a committee of the European Parliament and Germany’s top court on Thursday, increasing its chances of entering force later this year. The European Union and Canada signed the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) in October, but only after opposition from a […] Read more