Livestock
U.S. live cattle and hog futures fell on Monday as a steep drop in corn futures had investors worried lower feed grain costs would cause producers to fatten more animals and that would pressure livestock prices, analysts and traders said. Live cattle at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange dropped more than one per cent. "Funds were […] Read more
Big drop in corn pulls down U.S. live cattle, hogs
Klassen: Delayed yearling run enhances feeder market
Western Canadian feeder cattle prices were steady to $2 per hundredweight higher last week. The main yearling run has been delayed by approximately three weeks because of favourable pasture conditions and plentiful forage. Therefore, feedlot operators are bidding more aggressively for the smaller available supplies. Lighter-weight feeder cattle had a mixed tone. The grain harvest […] Read more
West marshaling feed for Hay East program
Organizers are setting up a website and toll-free number to co-ordinate donations of hay from Western Canada for use by livestock producers in need in parched regions of Ontario and Quebec. The program, dubbed “Hay East” after the 2002 “Hay West” program that saw forages shipped to the Prairies from Eastern Canada, is co-chaired by […] Read more
U.S. hogs at one-week high despite huge slaughter
U.S. hog futures jumped to a one-week high on Friday, gaining for the week for the first time since mid-July, on ideas that the downtrend in cash prices may be about over. The higher hog market occurred despite this week’s hog slaughter being largest in four and a half years. Gains were most pronounced in […] Read more
Russia re-opens to B.C. breeding cattle
Far-eastern regions of Russia are expected to show interest in breeding cattle from British Columbia now that Russia has re-opened its ports to Canada’s westernmost province. The Canadian government announced Wednesday that Russia has lifted its ban on B.C. breeding cattle, allowing for "immediate" exports. That move, the government said, could be worth up to […] Read more
Profit-taking pulls U.S. live cattle from six-month highs
U.S. live cattle futures posted modest losses on Thursday after profit taking in a technically overbought market pulled contracts from a fresh six-month high, analysts and traders said. Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) live cattle investors were also nervous about next week’s cash cattle price direction after stronger-than-expected cash values late Wednesday pushed October futures to […] Read more
Moose-country station records livestock-country movements
CHOKE POINT West Hawk Lake, Manitoba is the sole zone reporting point in the country because of its ideal location
Reading Time: 3 minutes The tree-covered resort area at West Hawk Lake on the edge of the Canadian Shield on the Manitoba-Ontario border doesn’t look much like livestock country, but it’s a key location in the event of an animal disease outbreak in North America. It owes that designation to an industry wake-up call after the European foot-and-mouth outbreak […] Read morePullet producers hope to join supply management
Reading Time: 2 minutes The last sector of Canada’s chicken and turkey industry not currently under a supply management system has submitted an application to join the flock. “It’s the last frontier,” said Andy DeWeerd, chairman of the Pullet Growers of Canada. Nearly two years in the making, the application was submitted to the Farm Products Council of Canada […] Read more
Which comes first? The egg, of course
Reading Time: 2 minutes In this chicken-and-egg situation, it’s clear which comes first, but those who produce the first step in the broiler industry don’t get that much attention. “We don’t direct market to a consumer, so I think that’s why people don’t really think of us,” says Nancy Robinson, assistant manager of the Alberta Hatching Egg Producers (AHEP), a […] Read more
Heady lamb market falls to earth
Reading Time: 2 minutes What goes up must come down, and while the lamb market is no exception, no one in the industry was prepared for just how fast or hard it would crash. “In the last three weeks it went from $1.75/lb to $1.35,” Howard Paulsen, Zone 1 director for Alberta Lamb Producers said earlier this month. “I didn’t […] Read more
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