There is no shortage of beef industry conferences, workshops and meetings for Canadian beef producers to attend throughout the year. These have included the Canfax forum, the Canada Beef forum, Cattlemen’s Young Leaders forums, industry golf tournaments, tours, national, provincial and breed association meetings, the International Livestock Congress, and many more. Although they are valuable […] Read more
Bov-Innovation: Putting Theory into Practice
Research on the Record with Reynold Bergen
Winter transport studied for cattle welfare, beef quality
A 2007 transportation benchmarking study led by Dr. Karen Schwartzkopf-Genswein of Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada’s Lethbridge Research Station surveyed over 9,000 loads and close to half a million cattle trucked to, from and within Alberta over an 18-month period. That study reported that over 99.9 per cent of the cattle arrived at their destination with […] Read more
Dry-chilling beef carcasses (and two other things)
The muscle tissues of healthy animals are essentially free of bacteria until carcasses are skinned. At that point, it is impossible to eliminate the transfer of bacteria from the hide and the environment to the meat. Many of those bacteria are harmless, but some can cause meat to spoil faster. Others, like verotoxigenic E. coli […] Read more
Beef: A nutritious part of a sustainable diet
Research on the Record with Reynold Bergen
In July 2014, a well-respected journal called Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences published a report that criticized meat production in general, and beef production in general, on the basis of their environmental footprints (“Land, irrigation, water, greenhouse gas, and reactive nitrogen burdens of meat, eggs, and dairy production in the United States,” PNAS […] Read more
Genetic editing and cattle
Research on the Record with Reynold Bergen
The new year brings some new requirements under Canada’s Code of Practice for the Care and Handling of Beef Cattle. Effective January 1, 2016, Canadian beef producers are required to use pain control, in consultation with your veterinarian, to mitigate pain associated with dehorning calves after horn bud attachment (two to three months of age) […] Read more
The environmental hoofprint of Canada’s beef industry
Research on the Record with Reynold Bergen
Our industry is maligned for producing greenhouse gas. Practically every living organism produces greenhouse gas, even plants, but cattle produce more than other livestock because rumen bacteria produce methane as they digest feed. Additional greenhouse gas comes from manure (methane and nitrous oxide) and fossil fuel use (carbon dioxide). However, like the industry’s “water footprint,” […] Read more
Performance-improving product approvals for livestock
Research on the Record with Reynold Bergen
Last month’s column summarized a North Dakota State University research project where young female pigs were fed burgers made from tofu or beef from naturally raised or implanted cattle to see whether they reached puberty sooner. They didn’t. That is no surprise, because researchers, pharmaceutical companies and government regulators invest a lot of time, effort […] Read more
Animal Health: Be skeptical about linking BLV with cancer in humans
News Roundup from the December 2015 issue of Canadian Cattlemen
Bovine leukemia virus (BLV or leukosis) is a bovine retrovirus that targets lymphocytes (white blood cells). It is present in many parts of the world, including Canada, the United States, and Eastern Europe. Infection with the virus usually doesn’t present with clinical signs, but around 30 per cent of the infected animals experience an abnormal […] Read more
These little piggies ate a quarter-pounder a day
Research on the Record with Reynold Bergen
Does eating beef from implanted cattle cause young girls to reach puberty sooner? Hormonal growth promotants have been used in beef cattle for a long time. The newest one (trenbolone acetate) has been around for nearly 35 years, while implants containing estradiol have been around for 60 years. Growth promotants improve growth rates and feed […] Read more
Blame it on the rain, not the beef industry
Research on the Record with Reynold Bergen
This summer has seen unusual rainfall patterns, low river levels and drought in large parts of Western Canada and the Western States. Some people blame water shortages on the beef industry and are ready to answer the question, “how much water does beef production use?” Unfortunately, these answers are often wrong, highly misleading and based […] Read more
Canadian Cattlemen Presents: Depth of Field
