Most of Manitoba’s eight cattle auctions were in business during the week of Sept. 2-8, with cattle trickling in at some of the facilities — the exception being Ste. Rose Auction Mart, which on Sept. 8 sold 1,389 head. That equalled two-thirds of the week’s cattle.
“The numbers aren’t really substantial yet. Nobody wants to be in the first sale,” said Tyler Slawinski, auctioneer for the Gladstone and Ashern Auction Marts. He said numbers will quickly pick up as the fall run approaches.
Elsewhere, Heartland Livestock Services’ auctions at Brandon and Virden tallied 167 and 313 cattle, respectively, while Ashern’s first sale of the fall attracted 124 head and the Grunthal Livestock Auction Mart sold 78. Gladstone took the week off after its Aug. 30 sale and Killarney Auction Mart is scheduled to resume Sept. 12. Winnipeg Livestock Sales had yet to report its Sept. 2 numbers by press time.
Read Also
Canola market sees up and down week
Canola futures endured a topsy-turvy week ended July 17, 2025, with most ICE contracts seeing net gains of about C$15 per tonne.
Slawinski said prices have been all right, but noticed nice prices in the eastern provinces and to the west as well.
“I’ve been telling producers we’re going have to see some quality cattle coming in,” he said, adding the cattle sold since most auctions resumed business have been “pretty decent.”
Lower feed grain prices are one source of relief for the Manitoba cattle industry, Slawinski said. Feed barley has dropped 25 cents per bushel over the last month, at $6.42-$6.50/bu., according to Prairie Ag Hotwire. Feed wheat has given up 34 cents, at $9.23/bu.
“It all comes down to how much can the buyers pay for cattle,” said Slawinski.
Thin profit margins over the last few years led some producers to leave the business, but most remain optimistic, he said.
There were some price improvements over the week, including heavy feeder steers. For the week ended Sept. 2 they averaged $211-$229 per hundredweight, while on Sept. 9 they fetched $223-$237/cwt. Heavy feeder heifers also saw prices rise a little, from $192.50-$209/cwt the previous week to $204-$223 this week.
Lighter feeder steer prices eased, at $252-$270/cwt. last week to $240-$259 this week. As for lighter feeder heifers, they stayed at $206-$227/cwt.
