
Livestock

U.S. livestock: Cattle futures rally late in session on technical buying
Hogs down on technical selling
Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) cattle futures saw a choppy day of trading on Wednesday, before rallying later in the session on short-covering and technical buying, traders said. December live cattle futures dipped below its 200-day moving average of $177.50 before bouncing up (all figures US$). January 2024 feeder cattle futures also […] Read more

Living Lab integrates Indigenous perspective into ag research
First Nations communities are working with several ag and environmental organizations on a Living Lab in north-central Saskatchewan
Anthony Johnston dreams of Indigenous people returning to agriculture on Indigenous lands. He remembers a time when family farms were a part of Indigenous communities. He reflects on how the buffalo were key to of a way of life for his ancestors on the Prairies. Standing at the front of the room at the International […] Read more

U.S. livestock: Cattle futures sink to May lows
CME December hogs continue higher
Chicago | Reuters — U.S. cattle futures sank to their lowest prices since May on Tuesday on fund liquidation and profit-taking, traders said. Follow-through selling pressured the markets after losses on Monday, along with softer boxed beef prices, traders said. The U.S. Department of Agriculture priced choice cuts of beef at $300.38/cwt, down $1.34 from […] Read more

Klassen: Buyers contemplate feeder market prices
In adverse weather, sale results vary
Compared to last week, western Canadian yearling markets traded $3-$5/cwt lower on average although limited numbers made the market hard to define. Calf markets traded $4-$8/cwt on either side of unchanged. It appeared that 700-plus-lb. calves were up $4 to as much as $8. The variation in the price structure was due to the adverse […] Read more

U.S. livestock: CME cattle slide on concerns over beef demand
Chicago December lean hogs settle higher
Chicago | Reuters — Live cattle futures dropped to their lowest level in more than a week at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange on Monday on concerns about the risk for easing demand for U.S. beef. Feeder cattle futures also declined, while lean hog futures ended higher. Lower-than-expected cash cattle prices last week contributed to uncertainty […] Read more

Unpacking an oat silage feed report
Understanding results and applying the information from a feed test is key to developing balanced rations
You’ve collected representative samples of feed and sent them for analysis. Interpreting the results and building a balanced ration is the next step. (see ‘Certificate of Analysis’ report example at bottom) Moisture and dry matter: Moisture represents the amount of water present in a feed sample. Dry matter is what remains after water is removed. Moisture […] Read more

U.S. livestock: CME hog, cattle futures down on profit-taking
Cash hog values seen softer
Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) hog futures closed lower on Friday, retreating on a round of profit-taking after the benchmark December contract rose to its highest level in a month. Soft cash hog values, weaker wholesale pork prices and a large weekly hog slaughter added to bearish sentiment. “We’ve had a pretty […] Read more

Demystifying near-infrared spectroscopy
Unpacking how this technology works and how it can used to analyze forage, feed and feces
The composition of feeds, forages and feces has traditionally been determined using wet chemistry methods, often referred to as the gold standard. However, the trade-off for this level of accuracy is often a high cost and a long turnaround time to perform the analysis. In that time, the nutrient profile of forages in grazing systems […] Read more

U.S. livestock: CME cattle, hogs soar as U.S. Fed piques investors’ risk appetite
Beef, pork export sales above four-week average
Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) cattle and hog futures rose on Thursday following broad strength in Wall Street equities, crude oil and other commodities, as investors’ risk appetite increased a day after the U.S. Federal Reserve kept benchmark interest rates on hold. “The emphasis is really from the ‘risk-on’ macro play, driven […] Read more

Researchers hope hybrid rye silage can help plug feed gap
With less ergot risk than conventional rye, hybrid rye may be a good option for some cattle feeders
Frank Zhang says when he talks to his colleagues about silage, they all are familiar with barley silage — but none are familiar with rye silage. “It’s very rare to find people using the rye silage,” Zhang says. “But thinking about the environment changing, just like the drought this year … this might provide an […] Read more