(Photo courtesy Canada Beef Inc.)

Klassen: Feeder cattle supplies remain snug

Feedlots expect significantly cheaper barley come harvest

Reading Time: 2 minutes Compared to last week, western Canadian feeder cattle markets traded $3-$4 on either side of unchanged. Premium low-flesh yearlings were one off bids $15-$20 above average. Cattle buyers commented that there were larger volumes of fleshier yearlings. Cattle with heavier butter levels were discounted from our listed values by $5 to as much as $10. […] Read more

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Prairie cash wheat: Bids drop sharply

U.S. wheat futures well down on week

Reading Time: 2 minutes MarketsFarm — Spring wheat bids in Western Canada dropped sharply lower during the last week of April, as a selloff in U.S. futures more than offset any support from a weaker Canadian dollar. Average Canada Western Red Spring (CWRS, 13.5 per cent protein) wheat prices were down by $25.90-$27.50 per tonne across the Prairies, according […] Read more


(Scott Bauer photo courtesy ARS/USDA)

Avian flu outbreaks climb in Quebec poultry

Thirteen outbreaks reported in province so far in April

Reading Time: 2 minutes After a relatively quiet March with just one outbreak of highly pathogenic avian influenza in domestic poultry, Quebec has turned up 13 outbreaks so far this month. The Canadian Food Inspection Agency in April has reported detections of high-path avian flu at 13 sites in that province, including: three commercial barns in the regional county […] Read more

Photo: Canada Beef

Klassen: Positive feeding margins lift feeder complex

Futures continue percolating higher

Reading Time: 2 minutes Compared to last week, western Canadian yearlings traded steady to $5/cwt higher. Feeders in the 650- to 800-lb. category appeared to jump $4/cwt to as much as $8/cwt in some cases. Calves under 650 lbs. were up $5-$10/cwt. Alberta packers were buying fed cattle in southern Alberta on a live basis at $222/cwt f.o.b. the […] Read more


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Prairie cash wheat: Red wheats up slightly on week

Prairie durum values down on week

Reading Time: 2 minutes MarketsFarm — Despite adverse weather conditions in both Canada and the U.S., as well as poor growing conditions south of the border, western Canadian wheat bids saw slight increases for the week ended Thursday. A spring snowstorm descended on eastern Saskatchewan, western Manitoba and North Dakota on Wednesday and Thursday, with some parts seeing up […] Read more

(Photo courtesy Canada Beef Inc.)

Feed weekly outlook: Quiet times appear to be ahead

Significant weather event would maybe move prices

Reading Time: < 1 minute MarketsFarm — As feed grain prices on the Canadian Prairies remain relatively stable, the market appear to be “moving to a quiet summer,” according to Brandon Motz of CorNine Commodities at Lacombe, Alta. “Demand remains neutral to weak, and farmers are holding on to their grain that’s left in the bin,” Motz explained, noting feedlots […] Read more


File photo of a pea crop south of Ethelton, Sask. on Aug. 1, 2019. (Dave Bedard photo)

Pulse weekly outlook: Peas heading in different directions

Export demand seen down for yellows

Reading Time: < 1 minute MarketsFarm — Prices for green and yellow peas have been starting to move further apart, according to Levon Sargsyan, grain broker with Johnston’s Grain at Welwyn, Sask. Sargsyan pointed out that prices for yellow peas have been slipping back recently. “Export demand has dropped overseas, so that’s been pushing the yellow pea prices down. The […] Read more

(Photo courtesy Canada Beef Inc.)

Klassen: Feeder market factors in lower barley prices

Strength in deferred live cattle futures also supportive

Reading Time: 2 minutes Compared to last week, western Canadian yearlings over 800 lbs. jumped $4 to as much as $10 in some cases. Steers in the 700- to 800-lb. category appeared to be up $10-$12 while similar-weight heifers were up $8-$10. Calves under 700 lbs. were up $10-$20. The feeder market was hard to define in some cases. […] Read more


File photo of a southern Alberta field as spring approaches. (BrendanHunter/iStock/Getty Images)

Prairie soil moisture picture growing clearer

Alberta driest; Saskatchewan variable; Manitoba mostly OK

Reading Time: 6 minutes It’s a variable soil moisture picture on the Prairies as seeding season draws nearer. The east has enough moisture — and in some cases too much. And it gets progressively drier toward the west, with portions of Alberta nearing critical condition, according to one weather watcher. Bruce Burnett, weather and markets director for the MarketsFarm […] Read more

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Prairie cash wheat: Stronger loonie sends bids down

U.S. wheat futures also down on week

Reading Time: 2 minutes MarketsFarm — A rising Canadian dollar helped lower western Canadian wheat bids for the week ended Thursday despite an array of supportive factors. As the central and southern U.S. Plains deal with severe drought in winter wheat-growing areas, a large snowpack in the northern Plains threatens to delay spring wheat seeding by a few weeks. […] Read more