Wheat in progress west of Pathlow, Sask. on Aug. 1, 2022. (Dave Bedard photo)

Crop, livestock prices offset reduced marketings in 2022

StatCan data on farm cash receipts tracks recovery off 2021 drought

New full-year data on Canada’s farm cash receipts in calendar 2022 show how increased commodity prices last year more than offset the drop in quantities sold. Statistics Canada on Tuesday released figures showing Canadian farm cash receipts in 2022 at $94.9 billion, up 14.1 per cent from 2021, including crop receipts of $53.9 billion (also […] Read more

Expiration day for CME’s February 2023 live cattle contract, with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages. (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: Cattle futures strong

Lean hog futures close mixed

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle futures ended firm on Tuesday, with the front-month contract hitting its highest in more than eight years as tight supplies continued to underpin the market. Hog futures ended mixed. Expectations for strong cash prices for the next few months due to tight supplies supported cattle futures. […] Read more


CME April 2023 live cattle with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages. (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: Cattle futures dip on profit-taking

Chicago lean hog futures also fall

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle futures eased on Monday, with a mild round of profit-taking pulling prices from eight-year highs. But concerns about tight supplies limited the selling. Hog futures also were weaker, pressured by a government report that showed robust stocks of pork. Thinly traded February live cattle futures dipped […] Read more

A composite satellite view of Hurricane Fiona nearing Nova Scotia at about 6 p.m. local time on Sept. 23, 2022. (U.S. National Hurricane Center image, NOAA.gov)

Nova Scotia to bridge Fiona funding gap for farmers

Provincial program offering up to $400K per farm

Nova Scotia farmers who didn’t qualify for federal disaster financial assistance (DFA) in the wake of Hurricane Fiona last September may be able to get in on a new provincial program instead. The province on Thursday announced $3 million for what it calls the Fiona Agriculture Response Gap Funding program, offering up to $400,000 for […] Read more


CME April 2023 live cattle with Bollinger bands (20,2). (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: CME live cattle consolidate after hitting new contract high

Chicago lean hogs end lower

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle futures consolidated on Friday after setting a string on contract highs recently, while lean hog futures eased. The cattle market looks ripe for a correction after futures rose this month on tightening U.S. supplies, brokers said. However, cattle inventories look even smaller than expected as ranchers […] Read more

(Olymel video screengrab via YouTube)

Sollio books deeper loss for 2022

Olymel's fresh pork business takes biggest hit

Domestic and international market-moving events have dragged hard on the year-end bottom line for Sollio Cooperative Group, particularly in its fresh pork business. Quebec-based Sollio — which operates the ag input and farm service business Sollio Agriculture, meat packer Olymel and hardware retailer BMR — on Thursday reported full-year revenues of $8.876 billion for its […] Read more


CME April 2023 live cattle with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages. (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: CME cattle set high on Brazil halting beef exports to China

April hogs close lower, June up

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle futures reached a contract high on Thursday amid hopes that Chinese importers will buy more U.S. beef after rival supplier Brazil suspended shipments to China, analysts said. Brazil said it would halt beef exports to China, the main destination for its overseas shipments, after confirming a […] Read more

CME April 2023 lean hogs with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages. (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: CME hog futures sag as pork prices retreat

February live cattle up, April down

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange lean hog futures closed lower on Wednesday, retreating from six-week highs set a day earlier as wholesale pork prices backed down after spiking higher early in the week. Live cattle futures closed mixed, underpinned by surging beef prices. At the CME, April hogs settled down 2.55 cents at […] Read more


CME April 2023 live cattle with Bollinger bands (20,2). (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: Cattle, hog futures climb

Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) cattle and hog futures came out of their U.S. Presidents Day break trading higher, with front-month live cattle posting eight-year highs. CME February 2023 live cattle touched 164.975 cents/lb. in Tuesday’s trade before closing at 164.75 cents, up 1.175 cents from Friday’s close and the highest close for the front-month contract […] Read more

CME April 2023 live cattle with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages. (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: CME live cattle post near-eight-year highs

Firming cash prices support February, April live cattle; hogs lower

Chicago | Reuters — Benchmark live cattle futures on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange set life-of-contract highs on Friday and the front contract hit its highest since 2015 as shrinking cattle supplies lifted cash prices, traders said. Market-ready cattle traded in southern Plains cash markets at $160-$162 per hundredweight (cwt), traders said, steady to $2 higher […] Read more