(Geralyn Wichers file photo)

Klassen: Canadian feeder buyers ignore weaker futures market

U.S. feedlot placements up four per cent

For the week ending Nov. 18, western Canadian feeder cattle prices traded $3-$5/cwt on either side of unchanged compared to seven days earlier. Buyers appeared to shrug off the weaker futures market and the defensive tone from a week earlier evaporated. Eastern Prairie markets were firm, with larger packages of quality cattle trading a solid […] Read more

CME January 2024 feeder cattle with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages. (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: Feeder cattle top one-week high

Traders digest U.S. cattle placements data; December hogs lower

Chicago | Reuters — U.S. feeder cattle futures and deferred live cattle futures finished higher on Monday after the government reported placements in feedlots were lower than analysts expected last month. The U.S. Department of Agriculture, in monthly data issued after the close of trading on Friday, said producers placed 3.8 per cent more cattle […] Read more


File photo of cattle on pasture northeast of Calgary. (James_Gabbert/iStock/Getty Images)

Report aims to show animal agriculture’s interconnections

CAPI hopes to broaden policymakers' perspective

A new report for the Canadian Agri-Food Policy Institute seeks to educate policymakers about the impact of animal agriculture on economic, social and environmental levels. The report, titled Forces Impacting Animal Agriculture In Canada: A Synthesis, delves into the issues surrounding cattle, dairy and poultry production in the country and how it is interconnected within […] Read more

As many cattle come home from summer pasture with poor mineral status, it is important they receive the proper vitamins and minerals during the winter feeding.

Minerals take centre stage in winter ration for beef cows

Prepare a well-balanced blend and make sure they eat it

As a beef nutritionist, I take a practical approach to formulating overwinter cattle minerals: complement macro-minerals of a nearly all-forage gestating cow diet, meet the gestation cows’ trace mineral and vitamin requirements and put it into a package that most cows will easily consume at a constant daily rate. In this way, I have done […] Read more


CME February 2024 live cattle with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages. (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: CME cattle rise ahead of bullish data

December lean hogs lower

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle and feeder cattle futures ended higher on Friday as livestock traders adjusted positions in the markets. After the close of trading, the U.S. Department of Agriculture issued monthly data that showed producers placed 3.8 per cent more cattle into feedlots in October than a year earlier, […] Read more




‘So what if cows eject a bit of methane out both ends. What in the name of common sense do climate alarmists think the 60-million-plus buffalo did when they roamed freely on the open Plains up until the late 1800s?’ – Les Henry.

Les Henry: Sequestering carbon with grass crops

The amount sequestered in the soil is significant

Carbon dioxide (CO2) in the atmosphere and organic matter (carbon) in our soils are topics of great current interest. Two big questions that take up much ink these days are: 1) how can we emit less CO2 with farming practices and 2) how can we sequester more carbon (C) in our soils to maintain high […] Read more


(WPohlDesign/iStock/Getty Images)

U.S. livestock: Short-covering boosts CME cattle after recent decline

The U.S. hog market traded sideways on Tuesday

Chicago | Reuters — Short-covering lifted Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle and feeder futures on Tuesday, analysts said, extending a recovery from springtime lows reached last week. The markets were due to rise after recent fund liquidation and technical selling left the market oversold, analysts said. “The main thing is some short-covering here,” said Austin […] Read more

File photo of cattle in an Alberta feedlot. (Geralyn Wichers photo)

Klassen: Cash feeder prices soften on futures market uncertainty

Supplies are higher than expected as consumers reign in spending

The live and feeder cattle futures appear to be incorporating a risk discount due to the uncertainty in demand. Consumers are pulling in the reigns on spending. Interest rates are at 40 year highs and inflation remains elevated. Larger supplies and lower demand results in lower prices.