COOL Leads To Branded Products

The mandatory country-of-origin labelling (COOL) requirements that now overshadow Canadian beef in U. S. retail meat cases are being leveraged in some regional-level stores to build “unique” store brands. The Beef Information Centre, a marketing and communications arm of the Canadian Cattlemen’s Association, said in a release Jan. 15 it has been working with U.

Killarney Slaughterhouse Reopening For Business

Nearly a year after fire seriously damaged Killarney’s government-licensed abattoir and closed it down, the facility is once again preparing to open for business. Killarney Meats, which previously operated under the ownership of butcher Brian Bernard, was sold a few months after a late-night fire erupted in the slaughterhouse coffee room during a frigid January


Taiwan Seeks Talks With U. S. After Banning Beef

The U. S. National Cattlemen’s Beef Association said it was “outrageous” for Taiwan to suggest U. S. beef posed risks. Taiwan, eager to mend trade ties with the U. S. a day after overturning part of a deal to import U. S. beef products, said Jan. 6 it would seek to reopen talks with its



Caramel Toffee Squares

RECIPE SWAP By the time you read this, the holidays will have begun and the flurry of preparations near their end. Or, perhaps you haven’t been quite so busy getting ready this year. Many resolve to make Christmas a quieter, more serene occasion, buying less, and even doing less, in order to make more time

Where’s The Beef (Profits)?

Alberta rancher Iain Aitken recently had a cull cow custom processed to highlight the inequity of profit distribution in the beef production chain. The cow that would only have brought $340 at auction yielded $1,233 of hamburger and stew meat when valued at local store prices. Although cull cows are older animals being removed from


Buying Meat From A Virtual Store

“It’s not just putting up a store and hoping they’ll come.” – ADAM DOOLEY, KEYSTONE PROCESSORS What’s the first thing you do to get a beef roast in the oven? You head for the computer. Manitoba’s newest beef packer has an online meat store providing consumers with home delivery of beef and bison cuts. Keystone

In Brief… – for Nov. 12, 2009

Tainted hamburger: An outbreak of foodborne illness, linked to 157:H7 E. coli bacteria in ground beef in the U. S. has sickened 28 people and caused at least one death, the U. S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Nov. 2. Fairbank Farms of Ashville, New York, recalled 545,699 lbs. of ground beef products


The Fundamental Challenge For The Beef Industry

Excerpts from an opinion published in the Oct. 12 issue of Alberta Farmer Express. The Beef Industry Alliance (BIA) is made up of Alberta Cattle Feeders Association, Western Stock Growers Association, Canadian Legacy Partners, Border Beef and the Alberta Feeders Association. It says several other organizations across Western Canada are expected to join soon. In