Prairie cattle prices will remain strong going into the fall run, asserts one cattle markets expert.
Anne Wasko, a market analyst for Gateway Livestock Exchange in Taber, Alta., said while the feeder cattle market remains quiet, prices should be comparable or better than those of last season. The main catalyst is an ongoing contraction in the North American cattle herd, she said.
“That’s certainly been a strong feature. We’ve seen North American cattle numbers declining for the last number of years. This continues to show up in overall supply. This year’s supply is smaller than last year’s and next year’s supplies will be smaller than this year’s.”
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Manitoba cattle prices, Nov. 4
Manitoba cattle sale prices for the week of Oct. 28 to Nov. 4, 2025.
Wasko said declines in feed grain and forage prices have contributed to lower costs of production and supported calf and feeder prices. As for slaughter cattle, prices are off their June highs, but not by a lot.
“In June, the high was in the low $260s (per hundredweight) for Alberta fat cattle. (On Aug. 1), the Canfax average was at $257,” Wasko said.
“It’s a little bit off the highs, but certainly has not seen a drastic downside that we see often in the summer run … On the non-fed side, the cow slaughter continues to be smaller than a year ago.”
The Canadian dollar losing ground to the United States greenback will be a boon for U.S. cattle buyers going into the fall run. At the same time, there will be plenty of market activity within Canada.
“I would anticipate at this point in time, given the weakness of the Canadian dollar, that our U.S. buyers continue to be active in all fronts of cattle. I also expect west and east movement to be strong and competitive. That’s going to be a strong supporting factor with good demand from all directions,” Wasko added.
An earlier fall run doesn’t appear to be in the cards this year, she suggested. However, declines in the number of cattle going through the rings will keep prices strong.
“From a price perspective, calf prices decline as we get into the heat of the run in October. That’s up for debate this year, given how we’re looking at a small calf supply and how strong the demand is to fill the feedlot pens. All indications are looking at strong calf price dollars above what we were last year.”
Winnipeg Livestock Sales and Grunthal Livestock Auction Mart were the only two cattle auction sites in Manitoba to host regular sales last week, held on July 26 and 30, respectively.
