CME July 2022 lean hogs (candlesticks) with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages (pink, brown and dark red lines). (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: CME lean hogs extend recovery from recent slide

Live cattle, feeder cattle lower

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange lean hog futures rose for a third consecutive session on Tuesday as the market continued to recover from oversold conditions, traders said. Live cattle and feeder cattle futures ended lower. Short-covering helped propel hog futures higher following recent declines, said Matt Wiegand, commodity broker for FuturesOne. The market […] Read more

(DimaSobko/iStock/Getty Images)

U.S. eyes baby formula imports amid nationwide shortage

About 40 per cent of formula products out of stock in U.S.

Washington | Reuters — U.S. health regulators will announce action on baby formula imports as soon as Monday to address a nationwide shortage that has left parents scrambling to feed their babies, the Food and Drug Administration’s chief said. FDA commissioner Robert Califf provided no details, but President Joe Biden said last week he was […] Read more


CME August 2022 live cattle (candlesticks) with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages (pink, dark red and black lines). (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: CME live cattle futures bounce from losses

Chicago lean hogs also rebound; August feeder cattle lower

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle futures ended higher on Monday in a rebound from recent losses, while feeder cattle futures stumbled under pressure from rising costs for grains used for livestock feed. Live cattle were technically oversold and due for a bounce, brokers said. Futures were also due to rally because […] Read more



A low-flying bald eagle off the shore of Vancouver Island’s Comox Valley. (SkyF/iStock/Getty Images)

High-path avian flu reaches Vancouver Island

Saskatchewan extends ag fair ban for birds; B.C. restarts lab testing; FCC to offer flexibility

North America’s latest round of highly pathogenic avian influenza outbreaks has now made its way from one end of Canada clear to the other. The Canadian Food Inspection Agency on Tuesday confirmed Canada’s westernmost case ever of high-path avian flu in domestic birds, finding an H5N1 virus in a small-scale poultry flock in the Regional […] Read more

(DimaSobko/iStock/Getty Images)

Biden says U.S. baby formula shortage to ease in weeks

Shortage follows major Similac recall in February

Washington | Reuters — The U.S. baby formula shortage should improve dramatically in coming weeks, President Joe Biden and top officials said on Friday as the administration scrambled to reverse a shortfall that hits lower-income Americans particularly hard. The U.S. is working with manufacturers to allow more importation of baby formula, Biden told reporters in […] Read more


CME June 2022 lean hogs (candlesticks) with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages (pink, brown and black lines). (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: CME lean hogs bounce after recent losses

June live cattle, August feeder cattle up

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange lean hog futures rebounded on Friday after dropping a day earlier to their lowest prices since January. The market was due for a bounce following a recent slide that was driven by concerns about weakening U.S. demand and technical selling, analysts said. The most-active June hogs contract ended […] Read more

CME June 2022 live cattle (candlesticks) with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages (pink, brown and black lines). (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: CME cattle, hogs weaken amid demand concerns

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange livestock futures fell on Thursday, as high meat prices are threatening U.S. demand, analysts said. Concerns that inflation could remain elevated for longer than anticipated weighed on the markets because higher prices could reduce meat sales, analysts said. Traders also watched a rise in prices for grain used […] Read more


Cow-calf producers should be aggressive and stock up on light weight calves.

U.S. feeder cattle supplies to tighten

Market Update with Jerry Klassen: Canadian calves will be in demand as U.S. feeder numbers could be down by nearly one million head by late 2022

Alberta packers were buying fed cattle on a dressed basis in the range of $274-$276 during the third week of April. The Alberta fed market has been relatively flat over the past month. We mentioned in earlier issues that Alberta is contending with a severe backlog of market-ready supplies due to the year-over-year increase in […] Read more

Alberta’s Advanced Education Minister Demetrios Nicolaides announces funding for the University of Calgary’s faculty of veterinary medicine on May 10, 2022 at the university’s Spyhill campus. (Government of Alberta video screengrab via YouTube)

More funds put up to boost Calgary vet school enrolment

Funding added for more staff, materials on top of infrastructure money

The University of Calgary’s faculty of veterinary medicine, fresh off a major capital funding boost in February’s provincial budget, now gets another $8.4 million over three years to help expand enrolment. “This targeted enrolment funding will go towards hiring on more faculty/staff to teach the increased number of students,” Sam Blackett, press secretary for Advanced […] Read more