Livestock
Reading Time: 3 minutes Livestock movement tracking is taking a common sense approach by better utilizing Alberta’s livestock manifest. Livestock Identification Services (LIS), the non-profit, industry-owned company that carries out livestock identification and inspection services in Alberta, is in the final stages of developing and testing an electronic livestock manifest. If all goes as planned, livestock producers will be […] Read more
Big technology leap will be first in North America
Biofuel proponent says burning manure is now viable technology
Reading Time: 2 minutes Is burning your manure better than spreading it or investing in anaerobic digestion? The technology suitable for any livestock operation now exists to combust manure in order to generate power. A company called EcoCombustion Energy Systems says it has solved two problems that have hindered previous efforts to burn manure — handling the high percentage […] Read more
N.B. names new deputy ag minister
In an amalgamation affecting several other departments, New Brunswick has named a new top bureaucrat for the agriculture file. Robert Rioux, who’s currently assistant deputy minister for Business New Brunswick, will be the province’s deputy minister for agriculture, aquaculture and fisheries, effective March 15. He replaces Jean-Marc Dupuis, who moves to fill a retirement vacancy […] Read more
‘Unseasonably strong’ meat costs bite Maple Leaf’s Q4
Canada’s iconic lunch meat maker Maple Leaf Foods has booked a tough fourth fiscal quarter due to "unseasonably strong raw material costs" in its prepared meats business. Those costs, combined with "short-term" higher operating costs in the company’s bakery business and lower pork and poultry processing margins compared to year-ago highs, led to "lower relative […] Read more
CFIA lays charges over cattle shipments to U.S.
Three cattle operations and a veterinarian in western Manitoba have been charged for allegedly failing to accurately record ages of cattle shipped to the United States. Lisa Gauthier, a spokesperson for the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, said in an email that the charges under the Health of Animals Act and Regulations were approved by prosecutors […] Read more
Azerbaijan opens ports to live Canadian cattle
Increased interest from Azeri cattle breeders in Canadian genetics has led Azerbaijan to open its ports to live Canadian cattle, the federal government reports. Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz and International Trade Minister Ed Fast on Wednesday announced that the eastern European country — which has never allowed market access for Canadian cattle — has agreed […] Read more
Burger processor in receivership
Citing rising costs it couldn’t pass on to its customers, a major manufacturer of frozen beef burgers with plants in Saskatoon and St. Catharines, Ont. is in receivership. Burlington, Ont.-based New Food Classics, which supplied private-label burgers and other products to retailers and wholesalers including Loblaw, Wal-Mart and Sysco Canada, filed for creditor protection in […] Read more
Klassen: Feeder cattle ratchet higher
Feeder cattle in Western Canada were $2-$3 per hundredweight higher for the second week in a row. Strength in the deferred live cattle futures, along with stronger beef wholesale prices, set a positive tone to the feeder market. In central Alberta, a small group of red Angus-cross steers weighing 608 pounds sold for $170/cwt; large-frame […] Read more
Olymel out as potential partner for Colbex plant
Quebec poultry and pork packing giant Olymel has decided to walk away from talks aimed at a possible partnership stake in a major producer-owned cull cow slaughter facility. The company decided last week to call a halt to discussions with the provincial government and the Federation des producteurs de bovins du Quebec, owner of the […] Read more
Peru re-opens ports to live Canadian cattle
Certification is "immediately" available for exports of live beef and dairy cattle and genetics from Canada to free trade partner Peru. The federal government announced Tuesday that negotiations on a health certificate for exports of cattle born after Aug. 1, 2007 have reached a "successful conclusion," allowing exports to resume immediately. Peru, which has had […] Read more
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