Reading Time: 2 minutes Compared to last week, western Canadian feeder cattle markets traded steady to $5 lower on average. Small volumes were available last week, which distorted the price structure. Many feedlot hands will rotate holidays through July; therefore, feedlot operators don’t want to bring in fresh replacements with a skeleton staff. Recent rains across Saskatchewan and Alberta […] Read more
Klassen: Feeder market enters summer doldrums
Feed weekly outlook: Prices fall with rain
Reading Time: < 1 minute Feed grain prices for Lethbridge’s feedlot alley took a tumble after parts of the Prairies received some much-needed rain. Jim Beusekom, president of Market Place Commodities in Lethbridge, said barley and wheat prices recently dropped. Barley was around $285-$290 per tonne in the area, down about $10 from the week ending June 21. Wheat was […] Read more
Canada says bogus certificates being used to smuggle meat into China
Reading Time: 2 minutes Ottawa | Reuters — Unknown actors are using bogus certificates to smuggle Canadian meat into China, Trade Minister Jim Carr said on Wednesday, a day after Beijing halted beef and pork imports citing falsified paperwork. China, which has already blocked imports of Canadian canola seed and product from three pork plants, said on Tuesday it […] Read more
P.E.I. to manage deadstock removal
Reading Time: < 1 minute Prince Edward Island’s latest provincial operating budget calls for its agriculture and land department to directly manage removal of deadstock for dairy and beef cattle producers. Finance Minister Darlene Compton’s 2019-20 operating budget, presented Tuesday, said the province will take over management of the deadstock contract “to reduce the administrative burden placed on the dairy […] Read more
Klassen: Fed cattle bounce supports yearling market
Reading Time: 2 minutes Compared to last week, western Canadian yearling prices were relatively unchanged while calf values were extremely variable. In Alberta, calf prices were holding value but in Saskatchewan and Manitoba, feeder cattle under 650 lbs. were $3 to as much as $8 lower in some cases. Recent rains in Saskatchewan have come too late and auction […] Read more
Klassen: Feeder market shrugs off feed grain rally
Reading Time: 2 minutes Compared to last week, western Canadian feeder cattle prices were $2-$5 higher on average. Noted strength was in the 700-plus-lb. categories, which spilt over into the lighter calves. Quality groups of yearlings were limited and the scarcity fear factor had a grip on the market. The U.S. Department of Agriculture lowered its fourth-quarter beef production […] Read more
Brazil lifts suspension of beef exports to China
Reading Time: < 1 minute Sao Paulo | Reuters — Brazil’s government said Thursday it has lifted a suspension of beef exports to China after dealing with an atypical case of BSE, sending shares of Marfrig Global Foods, Minerva and other Brazilian meatpackers soaring. The suspension had been in effect since June 3 after a case was reported in a […] Read more
Klassen: Feeder cattle demand softens
Reading Time: 2 minutes Compared to last week, western Canadian yearling prices were $2-$4 lower on average while calves were down $3-$5 depending on the region. Weakness in the fed cattle market continues to spill over into the feeder complex, as margins drift further into red ink. Alberta packers were buying fed cattle in the range of $245-$246 delivered […] Read more
Klassen: Feeder market absorbs double-edged sword
Reading Time: 2 minutes Compared to last week, western Canadian feeder cattle markets traded $3 to as much as $6 lower. The feed grains market is writing the story for the feeder market. August feeder cattle futures lost $10 this past week and U.S. cash feeder prices were also down US$4-$6 compared to seven days earlier. Ideas are that […] Read more
Brazil halts beef exports to China after atypical BSE case
Reading Time: < 1 minute Sao Paulo | Reuters — Brazil has temporarily halted beef exports to China following an atypical case of BSE in leading farm state Mato Grosso, the agriculture ministry said on Monday. China, Brazil’s largest beef importer by sales, spent US$1.5 billion on Brazilian beef last year, totaling 322,400 tonnes or almost 20 per cent of […] Read more
A message from April Stewart, Country Guide's Associate Editor
