CME June 2020 live cattle with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages. (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: Live cattle sag as wholesale beef prices retreat

Slaughter counts rising 'much faster than anticipated'

Chicago | Reuters — U.S. live cattle futures fell on Tuesday, with the August contract hitting its lowest in nearly a month as the U.S. slaughter pace picked up, sending more beef into retail channels, traders said. Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) June live cattle settled down three cents at 95.3 cents/lb., while most-active August ended […] Read more

CME July 2020 lean hogs with 20- and 50-day moving averages. (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: Lean hogs lower on China trade worries

CME live cattle close lower

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) lean hog futures fell Monday on worries that deteriorating relations between the United States and China, the world’s biggest pork importer, could inhibit U.S. pork sales to the Asian nation, traders said. China told state-owned firms to halt purchases of soybeans and pork from the United States, […] Read more


CME August 2020 live cattle with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages. (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: Cattle futures end lower ahead of weekend

CME lean hogs mostly up

Chicago | Reuters — U.S. live cattle futures retreated on Friday in a profit-taking and technical selling setback ahead of the weekend amid weakening beef prices and concerns about lower-than-normal summer demand as much of the economy remains partially closed. Lean hog futures clawed back earlier losses to end mostly higher as an early drop […] Read more

When to calve?

When to calve?

From the Ground Up with Steve Kenyon

Seeing as though I am calving out a custom herd of cows right now, that seems like a good topic for this month. I know there are lots of different points of view on the best time to calve. It is not for me to say who is right and who is wrong because every […] Read more


(Photo courtesy Canada Beef Inc.)

Klassen: Feeder cattle markets reflect mixed tone

U.S. corn offered into southern Alberta

Compared to the previous week, western Canadian yearling prices were $2-$4 higher on average while calves traded unchanged to as much as $8 lower. Larger feedlot operations were actively bidding for 800-plus-lb. feeders across the Prairies due to the limited supply. Lower volumes were available this past week which was supportive for the market. Southern […] Read more

The Dycks funnel cows and calves down an alley to a split, where calves go under a half-gate.

Bringing water and cattle together

This ranching family has created water hubs in their pastures to support rotational grazing

Sometimes a western Canadian rancher is faced with two things that just don’t seem to mesh or come together. It can become an “If the mountain will not come to Muhammad, then Muhammad must go the mountain” type of scenario. For Perry Dyck, owner and operator of Triangle D Land and Cattle Ltd. of Hanley, […] Read more


Plants at Delta 9 Cannabis’ indoor production facility in Winnipeg. (Dave Bedard photo)

Legalization lifts Canada’s net farm income in 2019

Livestock receipts up, unsmokeable crop receipts lower

A significant year-over-year increase Canada booked last year in realized net farm income rests mainly on 2019’s status as the country’s first full year in the recreational cannabis market. Statistics Canada on Tuesday released full-year data on farm income, pegging Canada’s realized net farm income for 2019 at $4.9 billion — a 10.4 per cent […] Read more

CME August 2020 feeder cattle with 10-, 20- and 100-day moving averages. (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: Cattle, hog futures follow equities higher

August feeder cattle close limit-up

Chicago | Reuters — U.S. cattle and hog futures rallied on Tuesday in tandem with rising stock markets as optimism about developing coronavirus vaccines and the revival of business activity buoyed livestock markets battered by the coronavirus pandemic. Supportive cattle and meat supply data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture late last week showing accelerated […] Read more


Weekly slaughter levels lowest in decades

Weekly slaughter levels lowest in decades

The Markets with Deb McMillin, from the June 2020 issue of Canadian Cattlemen

Fed cattle This spring, weekly slaughter levels were nearly 60 per cent lower than a year ago and the lowest recorded since 1973. From mid-March to the first week of May, the cash market dropped $50.56/cwt to reach a low of $107.00/cwt. Although volumes are light, losses on cattle sold into this lower-cash market are […] Read more

JT Volk Premonition.

Canadian-bred Simmental bull wins big in U.S.

Purely Purebred with Mike Millar: News about you from the May 2020 issue of Canadian Cattlemen

One thing that never ceases to amaze me is the role that Canadian beef genetics play in North America and the world. A case in point is the black Simmental bull JT Volk Premonition 113E that was named Reserve Grand Champion at the 2020 National Western Stock Show in Denver back in January. Bred by […] Read more