Fed cattle prices hold steady, beef production below year-ago levels

Fed cattle prices hold steady, beef production below year-ago levels

The Markets with Deb McMillin, from the November 2023 issue of Canadian Cattlemen

Fed cattle The fed price in Western Canada has held mostly steady as supplies have been ample but manageable with adequate fall demand. Slaughter capacity limited upside as additional cows took up some of the available hook space. Recently, the fed steer average has stayed between $390/cwt and $391/cwt.  The mid-October average is right at […] Read more

Cowboy on Horse During Cattle Roundup

Comment: Fall run, beef demand and retail prices

Fall sales were off to a strong start when I penned this column last month, with 300-lb. to 400-lb. steers fetching over $5 per pound in some cases. Deb McMillin noted record-high feeder prices in The Markets, with 550-lb. steers averaging $401.79. Where they’re at by the time you’re reading this remains to be seen […] Read more


CME February 2024 live cattle with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages. (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: Cattle futures set June lows at CME

Lean hog futures touch contract lows

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle futures hit their lowest levels since June on Tuesday, as the market continued to digest larger-than-expected U.S. supply numbers. The market stabilized, however, after the February contract on Monday tumbled by the exchange-imposed daily trading limit. Trading limits for live cattle will revert back to the […] Read more

Data has shown that the farm share of the retail beef dollar dropped to 41 per cent in 2022.

Data shows retail share of beef dollar growing

High retail prices have made consumers question why beef is so expensive. A joint project between BetterCart Analytics and the Saskatchewan Stock Growers Association aims to provide some answers.  The project looked at pricing data in 39 different cities and a variety of different retailers within Canada. Melanie Morrison, CEO and founder of BetterCart Analytics, […] Read more


Beef demand weakens

Beef demand weakens

Prime Cuts with Steve Kay

I have followed the U.S. and global beef markets for the past 35 years. But all those years didn’t stop me from being blindsided by a sudden and pronounced weakness in beef demand in the U.S. during September. Only a few weeks earlier, I had opined in this column and in my own newsletter that […] Read more

A producer places syringe guns in a cooler to regulate the vaccine’s temperature.

AUDIO: Tips on vaccine placement in cattle

Vacinnating and treating livestock is a given for any beef operation. In this interview, Erika Stewart, the VBP+ coordinator for Saskatchewan, shares tips for choosing an injection site, giving multiple injections to the same animal and maintaining your vaccine’s effectiveness. For more resources on beef cattle health, visit our Herd Health page.


(Photo courtesy Canada Beef Inc.)

Klassen: Feeder market vulnerable to weakness

Placements higher than expected

Compared to last week, western Canadian yearling markets traded $3-$5 on either side of unchanged. Prices for 800-plus-lb. yearlings were firm in Manitoba but softened in western regions. Calf prices were relatively unchanged from week-ago levels. There were larger volumes of calves on offer with many auction barns holding feature sales. The increase in supplies […] Read more

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

U.S. livestock: CME cattle sink to June lows

Lean hogs set contract lows

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange cattle futures plunged to four-month lows on Monday under pressure from bigger-than-expected placements into U.S. feedlots last month. Lean hog futures set contract lows. The U.S. Department of Agriculture, in a monthly report issued after trading ended on Friday, said placements of cattle in feedlots during September totaled […] Read more


“I’m hoping to not be the first generation and the last generation of ranchers at Difficulty Ranch. My kids are very involved in the environmental aspects, they ask lots of questions.” – Sean LaBrie.

Retired police officer finds passion in ranching

PEOPLE: Sean LaBrie found a second career as a rancher, and a zeal for restoring the land on his Didsbury-area ranch

When Sean LaBrie started his career with the Calgary Police Service, he likely didn’t realize that by the time he retired he’d be on a ranch an hour outside of the city, raising cattle on 640 acres. At that point in his life, cattle were barely more than a passing thought. Now, they’re his way […] Read more