CME April 2022 live cattle (candlesticks) with Bollinger bands (20,2). (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: CME cattle, hogs firm amid market uncertainty

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange cattle futures climbed on Monday as traders attempted to make sense of changing trade restrictions and allowances. “The market’s trying to sort out all these trade protection measures,” said Alan Brugler, president of Brugler Marketing. “Everybody seems to want imports, and nobody wants to export anything.” CME April […] Read more



CME June 2022 lean hogs (candlesticks) with Bollinger bands (20,2). (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: CME hogs, cattle rise as grain markets stabilize

Bargain buying supports cattle

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange hog futures rose on Friday, supported by technical buying, traders said. Cattle futures also were firm, bouncing back from two days of declines on some end-of-week bargain hunting. Signs of stability in the grain and soy markets after wild volatility since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine added support to […] Read more

CME April 2022 live cattle (candlesticks) with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages (pink, brown and black lines). (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: Cattle down on cash weakness, technical selling

Chicago lean hogs mixed

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange cattle futures fell on Thursday, with weakness in the cash markets pressuring futures, traders said. Some follow-through selling in cattle also was noted after sharp declines on Wednesday, Pork futures were mixed, with the most-active April contract falling after a government report showed a sharp drop in exports […] Read more


“We are by nature resilient and innovative.” – Rick Strankman, Altario, Alta.

Drought dilemmas detail struggles, triumphs

A cattle producer “community coffee shop” discussion from across the Prairies

If there had been a cattle producer’s “word of the year” for 2021, it likely would have been “drought.” Beef producers across the Prairies probably muttered that word daily and vexed about the situation hourly. The condition it describes is inescapable, but just how did producers deal with it? Feed – and water Peter Schwenk, […] Read more

(File photo by Dave Bedard)

Maple Leaf to further consolidate Ontario poultry packing

Schomberg, Ont. plant to close by end of 2023

Maple Leaf Foods’ ongoing plan to consolidate its fresh poultry processing at London, Ont. now also includes the work from two more existing plants it owns north of Toronto. Maple Leaf said Wednesday that in “pursuing further optimization opportunities,” it will shift poultry volumes now processed at Bradford and nearby Schomberg to the new London […] Read more


A view of the pig heart used in the transplant, before its removal from the pig, on Jan. 7, 2022. (Medschool.umaryland.edu)

U.S. man with transplanted GM pig heart dies, hospital says

Reuters — A 57-year-old man with terminal heart disease who made history as the first person to receive a genetically modified pig’s heart died Tuesday afternoon at the University of Maryland Medical Center (UMMC), the hospital said. David Bennett received the transplant on Jan 7. His condition began deteriorating several days ago, the hospital said […] Read more

CME May 2022 feeder cattle (candlesticks) with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages (pink, brown and black lines). (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: CME futures slide on U.S., global economic fears

Inflation 'starting to spook' consumers

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle and lean hog futures fell sharply on Wednesday, as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine continued to fuel worries about the health of global and domestic economies, traders said. The livestock market also followed a slump in grain and oilseed futures, which continued to be rattled by global […] Read more


Photo: File

Klassen: Surge in feed grain prices shocks feeder cattle market

Compared to last week, western Canadian yearling markets traded $3-$5 lower on average. Feeder cattle weighing 650 to 800 lbs. were relatively unchanged to $3 lower. Calves under 650 lbs. were steady to $4-$6 lower in Alberta, unchanged in Saskatchewan and $3-$5 higher in Manitoba. Fleshier yearlings and calves were heavily discounted last week with […] Read more

CME April 2022 live cattle (candlesticks) with 20-, 100- and 200-day moving averages (pink, brown and dark red lines). (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: CME cattle firm, hogs rebound

Hogs up off lowest since Feb. 4

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle futures rose on a round of technical buying on Tuesday after snapping an eight-session losing streak on Monday, traders said. Hog futures rallied on a bargain-buying bounce after sinking to their lowest in more than a month and feeder cattle futures also were firm. CME April […] Read more