CME October lean hogs (candlesticks) with 20-day moving average (pink line), CME lean hog index (black line), CME August 2021 lean hogs (brown O/H/L/C) and CME October 2021 live cattle (dark red line). (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: CME lean hogs firm on strong pork demand

October live cattle follow beef prices lower

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange lean hog futures gained on Tuesday on short-covering and continued firmness in the wholesale pork market, traders said. “August seems like its anchored by what’s going on in the cutout,” said Altin Kalo, economist at Steiner Consulting Group. “They’ve been surprised by the strength in the pork cutout.” […] Read more

“Half of our cattle goes south, and when that (COOL) happened, it really reduced the amount of packer capacity for Canadian cattle.” – Melanie Wowk.

Country-of-origin labelling discussion re-emerges in U.S.

Some American ranchers are ‘making a lot of noise’ but odds of a return to COOL law seem slim

Glacier FarmMedia – Mandatory country-of-origin labelling (COOL) is gone, but there’s a new effort by American beef producers wanting to bring it back. “It’s still hugely on our radar,” said Alberta Beef Producers chair Melanie Wowk. “When COOL was first instituted in 2003, it was costing us about $600 million a year, so I think […] Read more



CME August 2021 feeder cattle (candlesticks) with Bollinger bands (20,2). (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: CME feeder cattle firm on tighter supplies

October hogs down on supply expectations

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange feeder cattle futures climbed on Monday, as supplies tightened in the northern U.S. Plains, traders said. “You’ve got a lot of empty yards,” said Scott Varilek, broker at Kooima Kooima Varilek Trading Inc. “We don’t have a lot of large supplies, large runs. You’re going to have to […] Read more


CME October 2021 lean hogs (candlesticks) with Bollinger (20,2) bands. (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: Firm cash markets lift hog futures

Cattle futures extend slide

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange lean hog futures closed higher on Friday as firm U.S. cash markets and rising pork prices underscored tight hog supplies, analysts said. News of the first confirmed cases of African swine fever in farmed pigs in Germany added support, raising uncertainty about pork export flows. However, exports of […] Read more



CME August 2021 live cattle (candlesticks) with Bollinger bands (20,2) and October 2021 live cattle (dark red line). (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: CME live cattle drift lower

Lean hog futures end mixed

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle futures drifted lower on Thursday in lacklustre trade, with disappointing weekly export sales data and softening wholesale beef cutout prices adding pressure, analysts said. “The fact that the cutout on beef has been drifting lower just doesn’t give the market a lot of confidence that packers […] Read more

History: William Melnyk’s Story

Reprinted from the June 1953 issue of Canadian Cattlemen

William Melnyk’s StoryBy Grant MacEwan ‘When the judging was completed at the big Edmonton Spring Show last month, no name among the scores of livestock exhibitors was more conspicuous than that of Melnyk. One Melnyk entry won the grand championship in Shorthorn bulls; a Melnyk calf was champion in the baby beef section and reserve […] Read more


CME August 2021 feeder cattle (candlesticks) with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages (pink, dark red and black lines). (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: CME feeder cattle fall on corn rally

CME lean hogs end lower

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle futures closed lower Wednesday, led by weakness in feeder cattle futures and profit-taking after a near two-week high, traders said. CME feeder futures set the tone, falling one per cent as corn futures jumped on worries about dry U.S. weather, a move that signaled higher costs […] Read more

Farmer and Grainews columnist Toban Dyck inspects wheat on July 6, 2021 near Winkler, Man., where hot and dry weather has led to thin, uneven stands. (Photo: Reuters/Rod Nickel)

Saskatchewan raises salvage threshold for parched crops

Stock watering program also boosted; APAS, Tories' ag critic had called for more drought aid

Saskatchewan’s provincial crop insurance agency is raising the yield threshold at which drought-damaged crops can be grazed, baled for greenfeed or cut for silage with no penalty on future coverage. Saskatchewan Crop Insurance Corp. said Wednesday it would double the “low yield appraisal” threshold values on cereal or pulse crop acres put to feed. SCIC […] Read more