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

U.S. livestock: Live cattle firm on economic optimism

CME lean hogs close mostly higher

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle futures firmed for a second day on Thursday on technical buying and optimism that the U.S. economy may be on the upswing, analysts said. However, gains in nearby contracts trailed those in deferred months as a backlog of market-ready cattle and falling wholesale beef prices hung […] Read more

CME June 2020 lean hogs with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages. (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: Nearby lean hog futures slide as slaughter rebounds

CME live cattle up on bargain buying

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange nearby lean hog futures hit a six-week low on Wednesday as the U.S. slaughter pace continued to recover, generating pork supplies that pressured wholesale prices and packer margins, traders said. CME June lean hogs ended down their daily limit of 3.75 cents, at 48.65 cents/lb., while most-active July […] Read more


(Dk_photos/iStock/Getty Images)

Pork packer considering Moose Jaw’s ex-beef plant

Donald's Fine Foods announces 'feasibility study'

A potential buyer’s study could soon show whether a former beef packing plant in southern Saskatchewan has the bones to support a pork processing operation for cull sows. Richmond, B.C.-based Donald’s Fine Foods, which since 2010 has operated the Thunder Creek Pork hog plant at Moose Jaw, announced last week it plans to run a […] Read more

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

U.S. livestock: Live cattle sag as wholesale beef prices retreat

Slaughter counts rising 'much faster than anticipated'

Chicago | Reuters — U.S. live cattle futures fell on Tuesday, with the August contract hitting its lowest in nearly a month as the U.S. slaughter pace picked up, sending more beef into retail channels, traders said. Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) June live cattle settled down three cents at 95.3 cents/lb., while most-active August ended […] Read more


CME July 2020 lean hogs with 20- and 50-day moving averages. (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: Lean hogs lower on China trade worries

CME live cattle close lower

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) lean hog futures fell Monday on worries that deteriorating relations between the United States and China, the world’s biggest pork importer, could inhibit U.S. pork sales to the Asian nation, traders said. China told state-owned firms to halt purchases of soybeans and pork from the United States, […] Read more

(Gassen/iStock/Getty Images)

China tells state firms to halt purchases of major U.S. farm products

Purchases of soybeans, pork, corn, cotton on hold

Beijing/Singapore | Reuters –– China has told state-owned firms to halt purchases of soybeans and pork from the United States, two people familiar with the matter said, after Washington said it would eliminate special treatment for Hong Kong to punish Beijing. Large-volume state purchases of U.S. corn and cotton have also been put on hold, […] Read more


(PorcOlymel.com)

Olymel pork plant workers take slaughter into OT

Over 800 volunteered for added shifts with charitable twist, packer says

Workers at three Olymel hog slaughter plants in Quebec volunteered for overtime shifts over the weekend to help clear the province’s backlog of market-weight hogs, the company said Saturday. Sollio’s meat packing arm said over 800 workers at its slaughter plants at Yamachiche and St-Esprit and the former F. Menard plant it now owns at […] Read more

File photo of a small greenhouse operation in Quebec. (ManonAllard/E+/Getty Images)

New pilot program for agri-food labour welcomed

Meat processors, greenhouse and mushroom growers, livestock producers get first crack at program

Ottawa — Federal officials hope a new pilot program will help stabilize ongoing labour issues in certain sectors of the agri-food value chain, while also providing citizenship to some foreign workers. Critics, however, contend more support is needed. “This pilot will help to ensure that farmers and processors have the much-needed skills, experience and labour […] Read more


A video screengrab from the ‘It’s Good, Canada’ campaign. (ItsGoodCanada.ca)

Two national campaigns launched for food supply chains

It's good, one campaign says, but could the sector have done better, another asks

Ottawa — The Canadian Centre for Food Integrity is launching a new campaign to inform consumers on how the food system works. “It’s Good, Canada” will share personal stories of Canadians working across the food supply chain and provide information about farming, transportation, processing, retail and production on its website. “It’s natural for Canadians to […] Read more

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

U.S. livestock: Cattle futures end lower ahead of weekend

CME lean hogs mostly up

Chicago | Reuters — U.S. live cattle futures retreated on Friday in a profit-taking and technical selling setback ahead of the weekend amid weakening beef prices and concerns about lower-than-normal summer demand as much of the economy remains partially closed. Lean hog futures clawed back earlier losses to end mostly higher as an early drop […] Read more