(Photo courtesy Canada Beef Inc.)

U.S. livestock: Cattle limit down after bearish USDA report

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange cattle futures tumbled about two per cent on Monday after government data on Friday showed bigger-than-expected placements of cattle on feed in August. Most-active CME December live cattle dropped by the daily price limit of three cents to finish at 114.425 cents per pound, reversing from Friday’s 1-1/2 […] Read more




(Gloria Solano-Aguilar photo courtesy ARS/USDA)

U.S. livestock: CME October hogs fall to contract low

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange October lean hog futures fell sharply to a contract low on Thursday, weighed down by a months-long decline in cash prices and abundant supplies, traders said. Deferred hog futures contracts as well as most live cattle and feeder cattle contracts also eased on technical selling and profit-taking. Traders […] Read more


Everyone enjoys seeing wildlife, but they can have a negative impact on farming and ranching operations.

Managing wildlife/agriculture conflicts

Animal Health: Proper compensation part of the solution

There have been many articles written on the escalating conflict between wildlife and agriculture (both livestock and grain production) in certain areas of Canada. Our governments struggle to find balanced management options. The most recent survey (2014) on wildlife damage by Alberta Beef Producers (ABP) and the Miistakis Institute shows a high percentage of farms […] Read more

James Allum, shown here at a winter carnival in Winnipeg’s Fort Garry district, is the new agriculture critic for Manitoba’s opposition NDP. (YourManitoba.ca)

Manitoba NDP names new ag critic

Manitoba’s former education minister has been pressed into service as the new agriculture critic for the provincial legislature’s official opposition. Wab Kinew, who was elected Saturday as the leader of the opposition New Democrats, on Thursday named James Allum, the MLA for the Winnipeg riding of Fort Garry-Riverview, as the critic for agriculture. Allum will […] Read more


(Photo courtesy Canada Beef Inc.)

U.S. livestock: Live cattle surge on cash optimism, technical buying

Chicago | Reuters –– Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle futures notched their biggest gains in 11 months on Wednesday, boosted by optimism for higher cash cattle prices and technical buying, traders and analysts said. Higher cattle sales at a weekly online auction helped to trigger the rally. Feeder cattle and lean hog futures also were […] Read more

(Staff photo)

Taking aim at food waste, companies plan simplified expiration labels

New York | Thomson Reuters Foundation — Some of the world’s largest consumer goods companies, including Kellogg and Wal-Mart, said on Wednesday they will simplify food expiration labels in an effort to eliminate confusion that contributes to food waste. Standardized labeling will use a single expiration date on perishable items and a single quality indicator […] Read more