Cow-calf
U.S. livestock: Cattle futures weaken on technical setback
Hog futures up ahead of USDA data
Chicago | Reuters — U.S. live cattle futures eased on Monday, setting back on some mild technical selling after three days of gains, while hog futures edged higher, traders said. Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) February live cattle futures settled 0.2 cent lower at 114.65 cents/lb. (all figures US$). The contract hit its highest since Nov. […] Read more
News from the Canadian Gelbvieh Association
Purely Purebred with Mike Millar: News from the December 2020 issue of Canadian Cattlemen
The Canadian Gelbvieh Association is excited to announce that it will be organizing its first replacement heifer performance program at Olds College in Alberta to start February 2021. The objectives of the program will be to collect performance data through GrowSafe beef, docility scoring and reproductive efficiency data. If interested or for more information, please […] Read more
U.S. livestock: Cattle futures firm as cash market rebound seen
Hog report expected to show smaller herd
Chicago | Reuters — U.S. live cattle futures rose for the third day in a row on Friday, on expectations that the cash market would rebound from recent lows in the coming days. Traders also viewed a government report that showed cattle placements during November were down sharply from a year earlier as bullish. “The […] Read more
Dittmer: A framework and the lack of patience
Free Market Reflections with Steve Dittmer
NCBA’s task force subgroup on cash marketing released a proposal, A Voluntary Framework to Achieve Robust Price Discovery in the Fed Cattle Market, in October. The framework delineates both minor and major triggers, with weeks where either the negotiated trade or the packer participation does not meet their obligated targets designated as minor triggers. Three […] Read more
U.S. livestock: Cattle futures firm
Hogs weak despite big pork exports
Chicago | Reuters — U.S. cattle futures rose to a two-week high on Thursday, their second straight day of gains, on technical buying, traders said. Hog futures were weaker despite signs of strong pork exports and firm demand from China. Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) February live cattle futures settled up 0.675 cent at 114.45 cents/lb. […] Read more
Guelph beef plant idled against COVID-19 outbreak
Cattle set-aside plan en route, BFO says
Agrifood giant Cargill is temporarily halting production at its beef processing plant at Guelph, Ont. in the wake of a significant COVID-19 outbreak among employees. The company announced it would “begin the process to temporarily idle” the Dunlop Drive plant effective Thursday (Dec. 17). “This was a difficult decision for our team who are operating […] Read more
Weighing the value of permanent and portable livestock handling facilities
Functional equipment makes it easier to practice good stockmanship and keep people safe, whether the facilities are portable or stationary
For some cattle producers, the choice of permanent or portable handling facilities is never considered. Feedlots and grow yards require a permanent infrastructure due to the number of cattle worked daily in a specific location. Sizeable cow-calf owners also require a structure to handle both the larger cows and the smaller calves. But with operation […] Read more
U.S. livestock: Cattle futures firm despite weak cash markets
Hogs down on technical selling
Chicago | Reuters — U.S. cattle futures firmed on Wednesday, shrugging off weakness in the cash market in anticipation of tightening supplies in the coming months, traders said. Hog futures eased on a round of technical selling. Traders were expecting a U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) report on Friday to show an 8.6 per cent […] Read more
Pandemic-battered beef industry may still be in for a rough ride
While Cargill has improved its pandemic protocols, the union representing plant workers wants to see more changes as they head into contract negotiations this winter
Cargill’s Canadian meat plants have made some progress in rebounding from the initial effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, but a possible strike in the new year may pose a major setback for the company and the beef industry. “The company has to fix the structural problems that led to the outbreak,” says Michael Hughes, the […] Read more
Klassen: Feeder cattle market volatility continues
Compared to last week, western Canadian feeder cattle markets traded $3 lower to $3 higher. Prices were generally steady to $3 higher on Friday after the U.S. Department of Agriculture lowered its estimate for second-quarter beef production by 125 million lbs. in Thursday’s world agricultural supply and demand estimates (WASDE). Fed and feeder cattle futures […] Read more