Chicago | Reuters — Capping yet another day of volatile livestock trading, Chicago Mercantile Exchange hogs closed down Thursday, recovering somewhat after prices went limit-down midday in response to ongoing uncertainty over the impact of a deadly swine virus on the nation’s hog herd. In contrast, fears over tight beef and cattle supplies in the […] Read more
U.S. livestock: Supply issues send CME hogs plummeting, cattle soaring
U.S. livestock: CME hogs close lower on bearish hog data
Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange hogs closed lower on Monday, recovering somewhat from a limit-down open in response to a recent bearish USDA hog report. CME feeder and live cattle were also lower, with feeders pressed by a jump in Chicago Board of Trade corn prices after the government forecast U.S. farmers would […] Read more
U.S. cattle deaths linked to Zilmax far exceed maker’s reports, study finds
Reuters — The number of U.S. cattle deaths that may be linked to the Merck and Co. feed additive Zilmax are much higher than the figures reported by the drug company to the federal government, according to a research study published Wednesday. The findings by researchers from Texas Tech University and Kansas State University show […] Read more
Tyson demands better treatment of hogs by its suppliers
Tyson Foods, the second-largest pork producer in the U.S., said Thursday it will require more humane animal treatment by farmers that raise its pigs — and will keep a closer eye on all of its hog suppliers in North America. Tyson said it will be rolling out more third-party inspections this year of sow farms […] Read more
Lost hooves, dead cattle before Merck halted Zilmax sales
The U.S. beef industry’s dependence on the muscle-building drug Zilmax began unraveling here, on a sweltering summer day, in the dusty cattle pens outside a Tyson Foods slaughterhouse in southeastern Washington state. As cattle trailers that had traveled up to four hours in 95 F (35 C) heat began to unload, 15 heifers and steers […] Read more
U.S. universities monitor pig virus during gov’t shutdown
As the federal government shutdown stretches into its second week, veterinary labs at U.S. universities are stepping into a data gap to collect information and publish updates about an outbreak of a swine virus deadly to young pigs, according to the American Association of Swine Veterinarians. The University of Minnesota’s diagnostic lab staff last week […] Read more
U.S. hog report does little to calm PEDv fears
U.S. data showing a surprisingly large late-summer hog herd has done little to quell fears in rural America that a virus deadly to baby piglets could spread. The U.S. livestock industry was anxiously awaiting Friday’s release of the Agriculture Department’s quarterly hogs and pigs report on the nation’s swine inventory over the past three months, […] Read more
Activist fund lines up rival buyers for pork giant Smithfield
Activist hedge fund Starboard Value LP said it is working with investors interested in paying “substantially” more for Smithfield Foods than the price China’s Shuanghui International Holdings had agreed to. Starboard, a New York-based fund that holds a 5.7 per cent stake in Smithfield, said in a letter to the company’s shareholders on Tuesday that […] Read more
Zilmax halt fuels demand for rival cattle feed product
Merck’s decision to suspend sales of its Zilmax cattle feed additive has caused such a surge in demand for rival Eli Lilly’s Optaflexx that Lilly is telling some new customers it cannot immediately supply them, customers told Reuters. Zilmax became the focus of attention in the livestock industry after Tyson Foods saidn Aug. 7 it […] Read more
Merck rolls out new training program for Zilmax customers
As questions about the health effects of Merck’s Zilmax feed additive intensified in North America’s beef industry, the pharmaceuticals giant on Tuesday unveiled a program to retrain and certify beef producers in administering the weight-adding drug to cattle. The news comes a week after Tyson Foods declared it would stop accepting beef from Zilmax-fed cattle […] Read more
Canadian Cattlemen Presents: Depth of Field
