CME December 2021 lean hogs (candlesticks) with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages (pink, red and black lines). (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: CME hogs surge on bullish USDA data

Chicago cattle futures sag

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) lean hog futures soared on Monday, with the most-active December contract rising its daily limit after a quarterly U.S. Department of Agriculture report showed a smaller-than-expected U.S. hog herd. CME October lean hogs settled up 2.975 cents at 90.25 cents/lb., and the December contract rose its daily […] Read more



Checking cattle in a Canadian feedlot. Bovine respiratory disease remains the most common disease affecting feedlot cattle.

New nasal spray may provide relief from BRD

By focusing on the microbiome in the respiratory system, a new startup hopes to control shipping fever without antibiotics

Research into a promising alternative to antibiotics that prevents and treats bovine respiratory disease (BRD) has investors and the beef industry buzzing. “My interest is to understand how the microbiome influences the animal’s overall health and response to disease,” says Dr. Christopher Belnap, co-founder and CEO of Resilient Biotics, based in North Carolina. The Microbiology […] Read more

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

U.S. livestock: CME hogs rise, live cattle slip ahead of USDA reports

Cattle on feed top trade estimates

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) lean hog futures climbed on Friday, largely supported by positioning ahead of a key hog inventory report issued by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) after the close, analysts said. Higher cash pork prices and the still-wide discount of futures to cash hog prices were also supportive. […] Read more


CME October 2021 lean hogs (candlesticks) with 20-day moving average (dark red line) and cash lean hog index (pink line). (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: CME lean hogs firm on China’s herd restrictions

Cattle mixed to lower ahead of report

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) lean hog futures firmed on Thursday, after China lowered its sow herd targets in an effort to ensure supply and stabilize prices. China’s ministry of agriculture and rural affairs said the target for its sow herd was now around 41 million head for 2021-2025 and should be […] Read more

An information label is seen on packaging for a CO2 cylinder for a fizzy drinks machine in Manchester, Britain on Sept. 20, 2021. (Photo: Reuters)/Phil Noble)

Britain tells its food industry to prepare for CO2 price shock

U.K. pays fertilizer maker CF Industries to reopen plants

London | Reuters — Britain warned its food producers on Wednesday to prepare for a 400 per cent rise in carbon dioxide prices after extending emergency state support to avert a shortage of poultry and meat triggered by soaring costs of wholesale natural gas. Natural gas prices have spiked this year as economies reopened from […] Read more


Bovine Expert Tracking and Surveillance, or BETSY, can identify cattle from almost any angle and at considerable distance, the company says, and there are plans to enable the system to read RFID tags.

Biometrics and artificial intelligence may be coming to a ranch near you

Companies are developing emerging technology to identify cattle, track health, growth and behaviour, and analyze data

Like the facial recognition technology now used on smartphones, a new livestock identification technology is using artificial intelligence to keep tabs on cattle. Created by Canadian company OneCup AI, Bovine Expert Tracking and Surveillance, or BETSY, uses artificial intelligence to identify and monitor cattle through facial recognition technology. Mokah Shmigelsky, founder of OneCup AI, grew […] Read more

CME October 2021 live cattle (candlesticks) with Bollinger bands (20,2). (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: CME live cattle follow packer demand down

Lean hog futures also lower

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle futures fell on Tuesday, pressured by weak cash cattle trade as packer demand remains light, analysts said. “The lack of bids is daunting,” said Joe Kooima, commodity broker at Kooima Kooima Varilek Trading Inc. Kooima noted packers have enough cattle purchased on negotiated contracts to meet […] Read more


VIDEO: Testing the quality of livestock water

VIDEO: Testing the quality of livestock water

Do you have confidence in the water supply your livestock is drinking? Drought conditions this season not only put a lot of stress on pastures and hay crops, but also the quality of water in dugouts. At this past summer’s Ag in Motion, Catherine Lang with Saskatchewan Agriculture talked about what hazards producers should be […] Read more

(Photo courtesy Canada Beef Inc.)

Klassen: Finishing feedlot demand drives yearlings higher

Compared to last week, western Canadian yearlings traded $2 lower to as much as $5 higher. Strength was once again noted in southern Alberta where heavier yearlings recorded a fresh 52-week high. Calves were relatively unchanged from week-ago levels. Larger groups of quality weaned genetics traded as much $5 above average values. Feather-lite bawlers under […] Read more