Photo: File

U.S. livestock: CME cattle soar as cash markets firm

Chicago | Reuters – Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle futures jumped on Thursday, buoyed by rising cash cattle prices and a government inventory report confirming that the total number of U.S. cattle fell to a 73-year low. CME April live cattle futures LCJ24 settled up 2.475 cents at 183.175 cents per pound, nearing Monday’s 2-1/2-month high of



Any two, three, four or five per cent that you can get in terms of efficiency, in terms of productivity, will help on the bottom line, because there’s a multiplicative effect when it comes to lowering your costs...” – J.P. Gervais, Farm Credit Canada.

Economic hurdles ahead for farmers

FCC projects sliding revenue fortunes, maintains long-term optimism

A prominent Canadian ag lender is projecting a 4.8 per cent decline in farm cash receipts in 2024, thanks in part to a softening market. Consequently, its leading economist is urging producers to find any way to save money. “In this environment, I do think that management skills are absolutely critical,” said J.P. Gervais, vice-president


Cattle moving in greater numbers

Cattle moving in greater numbers

Trend expected to continue through February

While there was not much change in cattle prices at the Killarney Auction Mart at its Jan. 22 sale, the number of head sold was slightly more than triple the previous week. There were 1,255 cattle auctioned on Jan. 22, compared to 410 the previous Monday. “Some of those yearlings bought last summer are starting



VIDEO: Livestock traceability innovation takes top prize

VIDEO: Livestock traceability innovation takes top prize

CleanTrace is a low-cost livestock tag that could be a replacement for common RFID tags. Its patented heat release technology allows it to be reused and are a ‘low-cost, low-burden’ option for producers. Coupled with a process that laser prints a marking onto the carcass, CleanTrace’s award-winning innovation showcased at Manitoba Ag Days earlier in

A microscope-level view of damaged brain tissue from a cow infected with BSE. (USDA photo via U.S. Food and Drug Administration)

More BSE-era trade irritants may soon disappear

The Canadian Cattle Association continues to work on resolving specified risk material and U.S. cattle holdback issues

Two remaining irritants from the BSE crisis could soon go by the wayside. The United States has had to segregate a much smaller list of specified risk materials (SRMs) than Canada, which has resulted in more competitive challenges for beef processors. The loss of small and medium-sized processing has been significant, said Dennis Laycraft, executive