Reading Time: < 1 minute Canfax is undertaking an initiative to develop baseline cost-of-production statistics. The Canadian Cow-Calf Cost of Production Network will host 26 producer focus groups (each consisting of five to six producers in each) across Canada in 2020-21. Scenarios will be developed of what future farms could look like utilizing the Five Per Cent Rule approach of […] Read more
Cow-calf producers needed for cost-of-production initiative
Not bad feels pretty good for cattle producers this year
It’s far from a banner year but given how things started, 2019 has been better than expected
Reading Time: 3 minutes This year has probably gone better than most cattle producers in Alberta expected. “We started out dry and in a drought, and conditions were a concern early in the year,” said Brian Perillat, manager and senior analyst with CanFax. “But we worked through it and we’ve come full circle. “We’ve got really ample feed supplies […] Read more
Rules of thumb when pricing cattle
Reading Time: < 1 minute ‘Multiply the price of a steer calf times two, and that is the price you can afford to pay for a cow.’ Does this rule of thumb still hold true? That and other common sayings in the cattle biz are the subject of a new fact sheet by Canfax. “Rules of thumb can help evaluate […] Read more
Cattle prices are expected to be good this year — but not 2017 good
There will be more beef on the market but a robust economy should keep demand strong
Reading Time: 3 minutes Cattle producers hit it out of the park in 2017 — but this year is going to be a completely different ball game. “Last year, we saw some pretty big home runs, and I don’t really anticipate that for this year,” said Brian Perillat, manager and senior analyst at Canfax. “Small wins might be all […] Read more
There’s lots of money being left on the packing plant floor
Quality defects exceed $60 per head and reducing those losses will boost the bottom line for producers, says expert
Reading Time: 3 minutes National Beef Quality audits prove that Canadian beef is pretty darn good. But they also show that producers could be putting more money in their wallets by reducing defects that show up at the packing plant, says Mark Klassen, director of technical services with the Canadian Cattlemen’s Association. The last audit, conducted in 2010-11, found […] Read more
Canada’s cattle herd has stubbornly refused to grow
High prices made expansion expensive and falling prices have folks nervous — but young producers like Clay and Jesse Williams see only opportunity
Reading Time: 5 minutes Canada’s cattle herd has been poised for expansion for the last two years, but declining cattle prices have put those expansion plans on hold. “The July 1 inventory showed that we were completely steady with beef cow numbers,” said Brenna Grant, manager of Canfax Research Services. “We did have an increase in beef heifers for […] Read more
Consumers want sustainable beef, but defining that may be murky
CNS Canada –– McDonald’s plans on using sustainable beef by 2016, and intends on sourcing at least part of it from Canadian producers. The fast food giant’s latest step toward sustainability is to define what exactly that means. Defining sustainability is important, according to a beef brand officer, because in some cases it’s something consumers […] Read more
Building the herd: The downside of strong cattle prices
Cattle prices are expected to remain strong into 2016, but what does that mean for replacement cattle next year?
Reading Time: 4 minutes Next year could see continued strong or even stronger cattle prices — and that’s a double-edged sword for producers who’ve reduced their herds this year and plan to buy replacements in 2016. Producers in prescribed drought regions who have reduced their breeding stock by at least 15 per cent can tap into the Federal Livestock […] Read more
TMX turning to cattle sales
Reuters — TMX Group, operator of Canada’s TSX stock exchange, hopes to rope a piece of the $90 billion North America cattle sector, and said Tuesday it would offer the continent’s first online sales platform of its kind. The expansion into a new business comes weeks after the TMX completed a six-month operations review, which […] Read more
Devilish dollar: What’s good for producers may mean more pain for packers
Cargill and JBS plants in Alberta need more cattle, but a low dollar makes it harder to get them and also has some negatives for feedlots
Reading Time: 4 minutes A low dollar means double trouble for Alberta’s big packers — and puts stress on feedlots, too. “In 2015, with smaller cattle numbers and bigger exports, we’re going to see some pressure on our packing plants and feedlots to stay better utilized,” said Brian Perillat, senior analyst and manager with CanFax. Despite its shrinking herd, […] Read more
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