London/Wellington | Reuters — Britain and New Zealand have reached agreement in principle on a free trade deal designed to reduce tariffs, improve services trade, and take London one step closer to membership in a broader trans-Pacific trade agreement. Prime ministers Boris Johnson and Jacinda Ardern sealed the deal in a Zoom call on Wednesday […] Read more
Britain, New Zealand strike free trade deal
Lamb prices on a tear
Reading Time: < 1 minute Lamb prices have been trading at record levels, says a provincial livestock market analyst. In the first four months of the year, market lambs were fetching an average of $283, up 11 per cent from a year ago and 24 per cent more than the five-year average, said Jason Wood. “Demand for lamb products has […] Read more
China targets pork self-sufficiency rate of 95 per cent
Imported beef increasing in market share
Beijing | Reuters — China is aiming to produce 95 per cent of its pork at home, according to a cabinet document outlining plans for its livestock sector, underscoring a goal to quickly rebuild its huge pig herd after a major disease epidemic. The document, released on Sunday, comes amid a heightened focus on food […] Read more
Major veal processor launches new brand, non-GMO label
Quebec veal, lamb and beef processor Delimax-Montpak is set to launch a new consumer brand across Canada featuring what it bills as the only GMO-free milk-fed veal on the market. The company said Tuesday it expected to have the new brand — Fontaine Family, named for the company’s founding family — available via “most major […] Read more
More lamb being imported into Canada
Reading Time: < 1 minute More lamb is being imported because there’s less Canadian product coming to market, says a provincial livestock market analyst. While slaughter rates in federally inspected plants in Western Canada are up nearly 13 per cent this year, they’re down in Eastern Canada as well as in provincial plants in both the East and the West. […] Read more
There’s opportunity in the lamb sector but only for some
CEO of North American Lamb Company says the future belongs to those who offer consistency
Reading Time: 3 minutes Gary Alexander delivered a message at the Alberta Lamb Producers annual meeting that many didn’t want to hear. “I will tell you right now that the sheep business, in my opinion, is a dysfunctional and declining business and I’m not saying that solely about the Canadian business,” said Alexander, president and CEO of the North […] Read more
Merger a game changer for the Canadian lamb sector
New company will produce lambs year round — and that could transform the Canadian sector
Reading Time: 4 minutes A merger of two major players in the Canadian lamb sector is designed to be a game changer for the industry. The deal brings together the country’s largest processor of federally inspected lamb (and also a major feeder) and one of the biggest sheep-farming operations in North America. North American Lamb Company will control lamb […] Read more
New meat products hit the spot for lamb producers
Reading Time: 3 minutes An Alberta processor is putting a face to the farmers behind a new line of lamb products. SunGold Specialty Meats’ Lamb Tonight line of meats began selling at Sobeys, Safeway, and Thrifty Foods stores across Canada earlier this summer. It features 10 ready-to-cook lamb products, including lamb burgers, sausages, meatballs, kabobs, and seasoned ground lamb. […] Read more
Alberta Lamb Producers to quit national federation
The move follows Ontario’s decision to quit, which left the national group representing less than half of Canadian production
Reading Time: < 1 minute Alberta Lamb Producers is pulling out of the Canadian Sheep Federation, saying the national body can “no longer effectively represent the sheep industry.” The move, effective Oct. 20, comes on the heels of the Ontario Sheep Marketing Agency’s decision to withdraw its membership. Ontario accounts for 30 per cent of the national flock, followed by […] Read more
Packed agenda at sheep symposium
Reading Time: < 1 minute The Value of Health is the theme of the Alberta Sheep Symposium on Oct. 15-17 in Red Deer. Among the topics at the biannual conference are managing healthy flocks, improving long-term profitability; benefits from grazing; how sheep behaviour impacts lambing; what impact internal parasites have on health and productivity; how drug resistance will change your […] Read more
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