Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) feeder cattle futures rebounded on Tuesday as traders hoped that feed costs will remain under pressure following news U.S. buyers are importing corn from South America. Both live cattle and lean hog futures also rose amid a rally in the U.S. stock market and forecasts of warming […] Read more

U.S. livestock: Warming weather, easing feed costs spur rallies

Brazil halts beef exports to China after atypical BSE case
Sao Paulo | Reuters — Brazil has temporarily halted beef exports to China following an atypical case of BSE in leading farm state Mato Grosso, the agriculture ministry said on Monday. China, Brazil’s largest beef importer by sales, spent US$1.5 billion on Brazilian beef last year, totaling 322,400 tonnes or almost 20 per cent of […] Read more

Brazil reports atypical BSE case
Sao Paulo | Reuters — The Brazilian government reported on Friday a case of atypical bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) in an animal in Mato Grosso state, according to a statement from the country’s agriculture ministry. The ministry said the case of BSE, also known as mad cow disease, was detected in a 17-year-old cow. It […] Read more

Japan now accepting Canadian OTM beef
The last of Japan’s BSE-related restrictions on Canadian beef are lifted as of last Friday, with the Japanese government’s agreement to allow beef from Canadian cattle over 30 months of age (OTMs). Citing industry estimates, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada said the added access announced Tuesday could mean an increase of up to 20 per cent […] Read more

U.S. livestock: Live cattle rise as Japan drops U.S. beef import curbs
Chicago | Reuters — U.S. live cattle futures on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) closed higher on Friday, buoyed by news that Japan will eliminate long-held restrictions on U.S. beef imports, traders said. The agreement reopens full beef trade after Japan in 2003 banned U.S. beef over concerns about bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), which roiled […] Read more

Japan opens doors to full access of U.S. beef imports
Washington | Reuters — Japan has agreed to eliminate its long-held restrictions on U.S. beef imports, opening full access to U.S. cattle products after more than 15 years, the head of the U.S. Department of Agriculture said in a statement on Friday. “The new terms, which take effect immediately, allow U.S. products from all cattle, […] Read more

Stage set for upgrading Canada’s BSE status
Surveillance has highest numbers in five years, country eligible to apply for ‘negligible risk’ status
Reading Time: 2 minutes Canada’s BSE surveillance effort saw the highest number of tests in five years, setting the stage for an application to have its risk status for bovine spongiform encephalopathy upgraded to “negligible.” There were 30,949 samples, mostly submitted by deadstock collection operators, tested in 2018, the Canadian Cattlemen’s Association said in its e-newsletter. None tested positive […] Read more

Japan considers scrapping age limit on U.S. beef imports
Tokyo | Reuters — Japan is considering scrapping import restrictions on U.S. beef purchases that were put in place after the first case of BSE in the U.S. in 2003, local media reported on Thursday. Both the Nikkei business daily and Mainichi newspaper said officials are discussing removing the curbs that currently only allow beef […] Read more

Scotland identifies ‘classical’ BSE case
London | Reuters — Scotland’s government said on Thursday that a case of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) had been discovered on a farm in Aberdeenshire, the first in Britain since 2015. A quarantine area has been put in place around the farm while inspectors try to identify the origin of the disease. “I have activated […] Read more

Canadian cattle’s access to Philippines restored
The regulatory path has been cleared to resume exports of live Canadian cattle to the Philippines, reopening a market worth an estimated $8 million per year. The federal government on Monday announced the resumed export clearance, along with new market access for Canadian sheep and goat genetics exports to both Indonesia and the Philippines. The […] Read more