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

U.S. livestock: December hogs limit-down on pork prices, macroeconomic fears

Cattle futures follow hogs, equities lower

Chicago | Reuters — Lean hog futures on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange tumbled on Thursday as a drop in wholesale pork prices coupled with worries about the global economy sparked a round of profit-taking, analysts said. Livestock futures, grains and Wall Street equity markets all declined on Thursday as the U.S. dollar set a six-month […] Read more

Champion Commercial Female from the Summer Synergy/National Junior Speckle Park Show.

Speckle Park Association finds synergy

Purely Purebred, news from the September 2023 issue of Canadian Cattlemen

The Canadian Speckle Park Association held its Summer Synergy/National Junior Speckle Park Show July 10-15 at Olds, Alta. Brandon Callis judged the purebred show, and Kasey Phillips judged the commercial show. Ag Plus Design and Photography captured the show.  The Champion Commercial Female was exhibited by Amy Fradette. Heidi Fradette took home the Reserve Commercial […] Read more


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

U.S. livestock: CME cattle end firm, consolidate below recent highs

Hogs up on discount to cash price index

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle futures closed higher on Wednesday as the market consolidated just below life-of-contract highs touched a day earlier. Tightening U.S. cattle supplies remain a supportive backdrop to the market, but fresh bullish news was lacking, traders said. Wholesale beef prices fell, extending a seasonal slide dating from […] Read more



L to R: Tom DeWaal, Canadian Angus Association president; Kate Nielsen; Aleida Morrison; Tristan Tober; Jason Frey, Canadian Angus Foundation board member; Belinda Wagner, Canadian Angus Foundation executive director.

News from the Canadian Angus Association

Purely Purebred, news from the September 2023 issue of Canadian Cattlemen

The annual Canadian Angus Foundation Building the Legacy fundraiser auction, held at the conclusion of the Canadian Angus Association Annual National Convention in Saskatoon, Sask., raised more than $129,000 for programming.  The sale had five feature lots, including: The high-selling embryo donation was a package of two embryos from the Liebreich family, Merit Cattle Co. […] Read more



(HiltonFoods.com video screengrab)

U.K. firm to process meats in Canada for Walmart

Plant would be Hilton Foods' first in North America

A British-based firm processing proteins for the retail and foodservice sectors plans to set up shop somewhere in Eastern Canada, after reaching a deal to supply meat products to Walmart’s Canadian grocery business. Hilton Food Group announced Thursday it plans to open a new manufacturing plant in that region to supply Walmart Supercentres in Canada […] Read more

CME October 2023 lean hogs with 10-, 50- and 100-day moving averages. (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: Chicago hogs turn upward

Cattle futures down on day

Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) lean hog futures turned solidly upward Tuesday, a day after most trading months except October booked declines. October lean hogs closed Tuesday at 84.85 cents/lb., up 1.6 cents from Monday, while December closed at 76.25 cents, up 1.825 cents on the day (all figures US$). October hogs had dipped below 82 […] Read more


Colby Hollman took home Supreme Purebred Champion Female with DL Jen-Ty Hot Stuff 550H with her heifer calf BNHC Hot Damn 2L at side.

Junior Gelbvieh members gather in Swift Current

Purely Purebred, news from the September 2023 issue of Canadian Cattlemen

The Canadian National Junior Gelbvieh show was held in Swift Current, Sask., from July 27-29. Fifty-one juniors participated in a range of activities and showed 70 head of Gelbvieh and Gelbvieh-influenced cattle. Activities included Cow Camp for the five and under participants, team grooming, “Talkin’ the Block”, 3-D art displays, “Keep and Cull” judging, showmanship, […] Read more

Livestock nutritionist John McKinnon examines three scenarios at how byproduct feeds can be used in cattle feeding programs.

Using byproduct feeds to influence profitability of backgrounded calves

Nutrition with John McKinnon

In my last column, I wrote about some of the challenges facing producers who background cattle, both from a marketing and production perspective. Concerning marketing, emphasis was placed on differences between custom and owner-operated businesses. From a production perspective, both knowledge of cost of production and identifying goals of the nutrition program were stressed. Concerning […] Read more