Reading Time: 2 minutes Compared to last week, western Canadian yearling prices were down $3-$6 on average while calf values dropped $5 to as much as $10 in some cases. Most auction barns held feature yearling sales last week; there were small groups of calves available but the market was quite variable and hard to define in the lighter […] Read more
Klassen: Strong Canadian dollar weighs on feeder market
Klassen: Feeder cattle market stabilizes
Reading Time: 2 minutes After the recent rally, cattle buyers noted that price spreads between weight categories came back in line with traditional levels this week. Shorter-keep yearlings were steady to $4 weaker compared to seven days earlier; mid-weight cattle from 700 to 800 lbs. were relatively unchanged while feeders under 700 lbs. were $4 to $8 higher. On […] Read more
Klassen: Feeder cattle prices surge
Reading Time: 2 minutes Western Canadian feeder cattle prices once again traded $3-$5 above week-ago levels, with shorter-keep quality cattle as much as $8 higher. Historically strong feeding margins, along with triple-digit gains in the futures market from Wednesday through Friday, set the positive tone. Feedlots that were holding back on purchases finally stepped forward, pushing the market to […] Read more
Klassen: Feedlot operators aggressively bid up feeders
Reading Time: 2 minutes Western Canadian feeder cattle continued the upward trend trading $5 to $8 above week-ago levels on average with higher quality feeders as much as $12 higher. Alberta packers were buying cattle near $177 on a live basis, which is about $35 above breakeven pen closeouts. Ongoing strength in the fed cattle market set a positive […] Read more
Klassen: Renewed confidence lifts feeder cattle market
Reading Time: 2 minutes Western Canadian feeder cattle markets traded $3-$5 above week-ago levels on average; stronger buying interest was noted on short-keep cattle with prices quoted $5 to as much as $8 higher. Feedlot operators stepped forward more aggressively with ideas that yearling supplies will dwindle over the next month. Quality cattle are starting to thin out at […] Read more
JBS weighs suspending U.S. IPO
Reading Time: 2 minutes Sao Paulo | Reuters — Brazil’s JBS SA, the world’s biggest meatpacking company, will decide in coming days whether to suspend listing its overseas operations after a corruption scandal, newspaper Folha de S. Paulo said Monday. A person involved in the deal told Reuters last week JBS had no intention of delaying the US$1 billion […] Read more
Klassen: Feeder cattle drop on cautious feedlot demand
Reading Time: 2 minutes Western Canadian feeder cattle markets traded $3 to as much as $8 below week-ago levels as feedlot managers anticipate growing beef supplies during the late spring and summer. Heavier weight categories absorbed the brunt of the selling pressure, with backgrounding operators liquidating fall-placed calves. Certain groups of higher-quality heifers held value with the purpose of […] Read more
Klassen: Tenacious feeder market softens on supply forecasts
Reading Time: 2 minutes Western Canadian feeder cattle prices traded steady to as much as $5 lower over the past week. Early in the week, buyers incorporated a risk discount due to the extremely cold temperatures, especially in the Eastern prairie regions. By Thursday, markets were factoring in the larger beef supply forecasts from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, […] Read more
Klassen: Winter conditions weigh on feeder market
Reading Time: 2 minutes Western Canadian feeder cattle prices traded steady to $3 lower compared to seven days earlier. The market tends to soften during the first major snowstorm each year, but the established risk discount was not as severe as in past years. Notwithstanding the cold temperatures and adverse weather conditions, feedlot operators continued to step forward fairly […] Read more
Mentorships get real
Today’s mentorships are more relevant than ever, with a focus that includes business management, risk analysis, employee motivation and much more
Reading Time: 7 minutes On the traditional family farm, parents, grandparents and other family members have always been the mentors for those who follow, and agriculture today owes a tremendous debt to them for having trained generation after generation of new farmers. But today is also different. Canada’s farms are more complex than ever, and they’re only getting more […] Read more
A message from April Stewart, Country Guide's Associate Editor
