Expiration day for CME’s February 2023 live cattle contract, with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages. (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: Cattle futures strong

Lean hog futures close mixed

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle futures ended firm on Tuesday, with the front-month contract hitting its highest in more than eight years as tight supplies continued to underpin the market. Hog futures ended mixed. Expectations for strong cash prices for the next few months due to tight supplies supported cattle futures. […] Read more

With the high prices and profitability in the cattle market right now, this may be your perfect time to sign up.

Now’s the time for a second look a cattle price insurance, says expert

Livestock Price Insurance and AgriStability make sense to enter when cattle prices are up

Reading Time: 4 minutes Glacier FarmMedia – Livestock Price Insurance has never looked better for cattle producers, says a farm management specialist. Cattle prices have risen steadily over the past 12 months and are approaching the highs seen in 2014 and 2015, said Ben Hamm, an official with Manitoba Agriculture. “We saw some significant profitability in 2014-2015,” Hamm said […] Read more


CME April 2023 live cattle with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages. (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: Cattle futures dip on profit-taking

Chicago lean hog futures also fall

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle futures eased on Monday, with a mild round of profit-taking pulling prices from eight-year highs. But concerns about tight supplies limited the selling. Hog futures also were weaker, pressured by a government report that showed robust stocks of pork. Thinly traded February live cattle futures dipped […] Read more

CME April 2023 live cattle with Bollinger bands (20,2). (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: CME live cattle consolidate after hitting new contract high

Chicago lean hogs end lower

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle futures consolidated on Friday after setting a string on contract highs recently, while lean hog futures eased. The cattle market looks ripe for a correction after futures rose this month on tightening U.S. supplies, brokers said. However, cattle inventories look even smaller than expected as ranchers […] Read more


CME April 2023 live cattle with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages. (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: CME cattle set high on Brazil halting beef exports to China

April hogs close lower, June up

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle futures reached a contract high on Thursday amid hopes that Chinese importers will buy more U.S. beef after rival supplier Brazil suspended shipments to China, analysts said. Brazil said it would halt beef exports to China, the main destination for its overseas shipments, after confirming a […] Read more

CME April 2023 lean hogs with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages. (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: CME hog futures sag as pork prices retreat

February live cattle up, April down

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange lean hog futures closed lower on Wednesday, retreating from six-week highs set a day earlier as wholesale pork prices backed down after spiking higher early in the week. Live cattle futures closed mixed, underpinned by surging beef prices. At the CME, April hogs settled down 2.55 cents at […] Read more


A microscope-level view of damaged brain tissue from a cow infected with BSE. (USDA photo via U.S. Food and Drug Administration)

Brazil to halt beef exports to China after BSE case

Indications point to 'atypical' case

Sao Paulo | Reuters — Brazil’s beef exports to China will be halted starting Thursday after a case of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) was confirmed in the northern state of Para, the country’s agriculture and livestock ministry said on Wednesday. The suspension is part of an animal health pact previously agreed between China and Brazil […] Read more

Heifer exodus a year ago means smaller calf crop coming

Heifer exodus a year ago means smaller calf crop coming

The number of heifers being sold jumped substantially in the first half of 2022

Reading Time: < 1 minute More heifers went to market last year. “Alberta beef producers retained fewer breeding heifers for replacement in 2022, suggesting expansion is not in the immediate future,” said provincial livestock economist Ann Boyda. “The Canfax Cattle on Feed reports show a 9.4 per cent increase in heifer placement in feedlots in 2022 compared to 2021. Heifer […] Read more


CME April 2023 live cattle with Bollinger bands (20,2). (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: Cattle, hog futures climb

Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) cattle and hog futures came out of their U.S. Presidents Day break trading higher, with front-month live cattle posting eight-year highs. CME February 2023 live cattle touched 164.975 cents/lb. in Tuesday’s trade before closing at 164.75 cents, up 1.175 cents from Friday’s close and the highest close for the front-month contract […] Read more

New training for feedlot workers

New training for feedlot workers

Reading Time: < 1 minute The Alberta Cattle Feeders’ Association has created a series of training videos for feedlot employees. The short videos, made by feedlot veterinarian Dr. Joyce Van Donkersgoed, are meant to supplement training provided by herd health veterinarians and nutritionists. “Without well-trained and competent feedlot processors and pen riders, it is hard to effectively manage animal health […] Read more