Livestock
Quebec meat packer Olymel has served layoff notices to all the remaining staff at a poultry plant where operations were already cut in half last summer. The company said Friday it will “continue the restructuring of operations begun last year” at the further processing and pre-packaging plant in the Iberville district of St-Jean-sur-Richelieu, southeast of […] Read more
Olymel to shut pared-back Que. chicken plant
Hog inventory up from year-earlier level
Canada’s hog inventories as of April 1 totalled 11.81 million head — up from 11.65 million during the same time a year ago, but down slightly from 11.895 million during the quarter ending Jan. 1. According to new Statistics Canada data, hog inventories were up in all major hog-producing provinces except Quebec and Alberta, where […] Read more
Que. cheesemaker expanding to handle Kraft snacks
A Saguenay-area cheesemaker has picked up public funding toward a new $4.1 million production line to make Amooza Twist cheese snacks for Kraft Canada. Fromagerie Boivin, a family-owned firm at La Baie, about 20 km southeast of Chicoutimi, will get a $540,000 repayable contribution from Quebec’s provincial economic development ministry and another $25,000 from the […] Read more
Cattle tracking won’t slow sale process: Alta. study
Alberta’s current traceability platform can be used at cattle auction markets without much or any effect on the rate at which cattle are unloaded or sold, the province reports. The provincial ag department on Tuesday released data from its 10-month Alberta Auction Market Pilot Project, run at six markets in the province between October 2009 […] Read more
Ont. cow-calf producers to scale up calf clubs
Ontario’s cattle producers have picked up public funding for a project to put the concept of the calf club to work on a larger scale. The Ontario Cattlemen’s Association (OCA), backed by federal/provincial Growing Forward funding through the province’s not-for-profit Agricultural Management Institute (AMI), plans to expand the calf club idea for its members to […] Read more
Klassen: Feeder cattle grinding lower
Feeder cattle prices in Western Canada continue to grind lower due to softer slaughter values and rising feedgrain prices. Alberta fed cattle dropped $2 to $4 last week, with steers trading in the range of $108.50 to $111. On Monday (April 25), cattle in Texas traded at $117, down from $119 late last week. The […] Read more
U.S. Prices Bring In More Mexican Cattle
Reading Time: < 1 minute High U.S. cattle prices and a drought have had a record number of Mexican cattle coming into the U.S., according to analysts and USDA data. Government data show 412,252 Mexican feeder cattle have been imported year to date, up 38 per cent from 299,192 a year earlier. The latest total is the most in at […] Read more
Resistant Bacteria In U.S. Meats
Reading Time: < 1 minute Meat found on U.S. grocery store shelves often contains high levels of bacteria, with more than half resistant to multiple types of antibiotics, a study said. The meat is still safe to eat but consumers should take precautions especially in handling and cooking, the chief researcher for the study said. The Translational Genomics Research Institute […] Read more
Act Early And Fast On Hoof Problems
Reading Time: 3 minutes It’s a cliché, but prevention really is the best cure for hoof problems, says an Ontario veterinarian who specializes in bovine foot care. And at the top of Gerald Cramer’s prevention list is preventing foot rot and digital dermatitis by ensuring feet are comfortable, clean, regularly trimmed and evaluated. In particular, producers need to make […] Read more
Summer Brings A Reduction In Fertility In Breeding Pigs
Reading Time: 3 minutes It’s difficult to think about seasonal infertility, which is associated with hot weather and declining day length, when we are still in the grip of winter. However, some things can be done well in advance to mitigate its effects and which require a certain amount of planning ahead. So it’s certainly not too early to […] Read more
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