CME December 2020 live cattle with Bollinger (20,2) bands. (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: Cattle futures sag on fears for economy, beef demand

Firm cash hog values support hog futures

Chicago | Reuters — Live cattle futures on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange eased on Friday, following as global financial markets fell after U.S. President Donald Trump tested positive for the coronavirus, adding to investor uncertainty. Disappointing U.S. job growth numbers heightened worries about consumer demand for beef, at a time when retailers are starting to […] Read more

New Brunswick’s new agriculture minister, Margaret Johnson. (Facebook)

Rookie MLA named New Brunswick ag minister

Blaine Higgs' Tories sworn in as majority government

A politically-active retired New Brunswick schoolteacher is the province’s new minister for agriculture, aquaculture and fisheries. Premier Blaine Higgs, whose new Progressive Conservative cabinet was sworn in Tuesday in Fredericton, appointed Margaret Johnson, the newly elected MLA for the northwestern electoral district of Carleton-Victoria, to handle the ag and fisheries files. In last month’s provincial […] Read more


CME December 2020 live cattle (candlesticks) with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages and October 2020 live cattle (purple line). (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: Nearby cattle futures lower on profit-taking

Chicago lean hogs end mixed

Chicago | Reuters — U.S. live cattle futures closed mixed on Thursday with nearby contracts drifting lower on profit-taking a day after the benchmark December contract touched a six-week high, analysts said. Commodity funds hold a net long position in Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) live cattle futures, leaving the market vulnerable to bouts of long […] Read more

CME November 2020 feeder cattle with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages. (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: Cattle futures slip as feed grain prices soar

Firm cash prices support CME hogs

Chicago | Reuters — U.S. live cattle futures retreated on Wednesday after the December contract hit its highest price in more than a month, while feeder cattle futures slumped as prices surged for grain used as animal feed. The rally in U.S. grain futures prices hung over cattle markets because livestock producers will be more […] Read more






CME October 2020 live cattle with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages. (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: Cattle futures up on cash market optimism

Wholesale pork values support October hogs

Chicago | Reuters — U.S. live cattle futures closed firm on Monday, rallying after a sharply lower open as strong packer margins raised expectations for higher cash cattle trade this week, analysts said. Average beef packer margins rose to $320.18 per head, from $313.25 on Friday, according to livestock marketing advisory service HedgersEdge.com (all figures […] Read more


(Jenifoto/iStock/Getty Images)

Feds pondering more self-reliance in Canada’s food

'Even if we are already in a good position, we can always do better,' Bibeau says

Agriculture Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau is looking for ways to make Canada’s food supply more autonomous. In an interview Thursday, Bibeau pointed to her minority Liberal government’s pledge in the throne speech to further support the food value chain. That could mean a review of food infrastructure across the country, according to Bibeau. Specifics aren’t yet […] Read more

File photo of Agriculture Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau speaking to media in Winnipeg in March 2019. (Dave Bedard photo)

Canada not benefiting from CETA, Bibeau says

Ex-premiers write to Ottawa with critique of EU's continued trade barriers

Canada is not benefiting from the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) with the European Union (EU), federal Agriculture Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau grants. Expected to spur $1.5 billion in new agri-food exports, the free trade deal has fallen short of those targets since its implementation in 2017. In a letter Monday to Prime Minister Justin […] Read more