The number of African swine fever (ASF) cases found in wild boar in Germany has now reached 480, Germany’s Agriculture Ministry said on January 8, continuing an outbreak of the disease among wild animals which halted German pork exports to Asia. The cases have occurred since the first outbreak in September 2020 and were in
Germany finds more African swine fever in wild boar, cases reach 480
U.S. livestock: Cattle, hog futures fall as corn rises
U.S. beef, pork export sales both up on week
Chicago | Reuters — CME feeder cattle futures fell on Thursday, retreating back toward a three-month low on prospects for increased input costs for livestock operators due to surging corn prices. “It is the rising feed costs,” said Alan Brugler, president of Brugler Marketing + Management. “With the corn being up another 10 cents today,
Grain aflatoxins lead to U.S. pet food recalls, dog deaths
Pet food maker expands recall after more than 70 dogs die, 80 sickened
Reuters — Midwestern Pet Foods is expanding a recall to include several more products sold under its Sportmix brand and other labels after at least 70 dogs died and 80 others are known to have become ill, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration said Tuesday. The food was found to have potentially unsafe levels of
U.S. livestock: Hog, live cattle futures mixed on feed cost concerns
Bargain buying lifts March feeders
Chicago | Reuters — Nearby U.S. hog and live cattle futures weakened on Wednesday, weighed down by prospects for rising feed costs due to higher prices for corn, soybeans and wheat. But the livestock futures market was strong for many deferred contracts as traders expressed concerns about supplies tightening by the end of the year.
Taiwan lawmakers approve imports of additive-fed U.S. pork
Taiwan’s parliament has approved measures that pave the way for imports of U.S. pork containing a leanness-enhancing additive, despite objections by the main opposition Kuomintang (KMT) party which says the move is a health risk. President Tsai Ing-wen’s decision in August to permit imports of U.S. pork containing ractopamine, banned in the European Union and
U.S. Supreme Court agrees to hear biofuel waiver case
Reuters — The U.S. Supreme Court on Friday agreed to review a lower court ruling that severely limited the government’s powers to exempt small refineries from the nation’s biofuels law, rekindling a long-running dispute between the oil and corn industries. The decision came after appeals by refining companies that argued the 10th Circuit Court’s decision
China building world’s largest seed bank
Larger facility a bid to boost food security
Beijing | Reuters — China will complete a new national crop germplasm bank this year, the agriculture minister said Wednesday, to boost the country’s capacity to develop new crop varieties and enhance food security. The bank has a designed capacity of 1.5 million copies, almost four times the existing one, and will be the world’s
Orders soar for Brazil pig-tending robot
Robots make feeding more efficient, but might also make pigs more relaxed by playing classical music
Sao Paulo – Orders for a Brazilian pig-feeding robot, which plays classical music while dispensing meals, soared this year as farmers strove to cut costs amid the COVID-19 pandemic. The machine uses linear feeders which dispense the exact amount of feed needed for each meal. As it works, it plays classical music, which the company
EU top court upholds curb on animal slaughter, angering Jewish groups
The EU’s top court on Dec. 17 upheld a Belgian law requiring animals to be stunned before slaughter, rejecting challenges from Jewish and Muslim groups and opening the way for other countries to bring in similar restrictions. Animals rights activists welcomed the ruling that limited some religious rites, but Israel’s ambassador to Belgium and Luxembourg,
Little scope for EU to take wheat export business from Russia
Tight wheat supplies in the European Union will limit its scope to win more export business this season after Russia’s decision to impose a wheat export tax, consultancy Strategie Grains said on Dec. 17. Moscow will apply a 25-euros- (US$30.57-) per-tonne tax on wheat exports from Feb. 15 until the end of the marketing season