CME December 2021 lean hogs (candlesticks) with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages (pink, dark red and black lines). (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: CME hog futures up on slaughter speed plan

December live cattle touch two-month high, end lower

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange lean hog futures rose on Wednesday after the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) said it will allow nine pork processing plants to apply to operate faster line speeds under a pilot program. The announcement eased concerns that slower processing speeds had slowed meatpackers’ demand for pigs to slaughter, […] Read more

Mink

B.C. calling halt to mink farming

Live mink on farms to be banned in 2023

British Columbia’s remaining mink farmers are “devastated” by the province’s proposal to phase out their industry over risks related to COVID-19. The province announced Friday it’s starting the process toward a permanent ban on mink farming — beginning with a ban on mink breeding, followed by a ban on live mink on farms by April […] Read more


CME December 2021 live cattle (candlesticks) with Bollinger bands (20,2). (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: USDA lifts estimates for beef production, cattle prices

December live cattle up, lean hogs lower

Chicago | Reuters — The U.S. Department of Agriculture on Tuesday raised its forecast for beef production and cattle prices in 2021 and 2022 due to strong demand and heavier livestock. Robust sales of U.S. beef to domestic consumers and overseas buyers have helped support Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) cattle futures. USDA, in a monthly […] Read more



CME December 2021 live cattle (candlesticks) with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages (pink, dark red and black lines). (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: CME live cattle at two-month high on strong beef demand

December hogs follow pork lower

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle futures reached a two-month high on Monday amid expectations for solid demand for beef, traders said. Gains in cash cattle prices last week helped support futures, traders said. Meat packers killed an estimated 121,000 cattle at U.S. slaughtering plants on Monday, unchanged from a week ago, […] Read more

Chicks atop images from a genetic map of a chicken. (Peggy Greb photo courtesy ARS/USDA)

EU’s bird flu outbreaks reach Poland

Country's outbreaks hit farms totalling 650,000 birds

Paris | Reuters — Poland has reported several outbreaks of highly pathogenic H5N1 bird flu at poultry farms with flocks totalling nearly 650,000 birds, the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE) said on Monday. Poland is the European Union’s largest poultry producer. Five outbreaks, of which four were at fattening turkey farms and one at […] Read more


Photo: Thinkstock

U.S. livestock: Live cattle end higher, lean hogs eases

Chicago | Reuters – Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle futures finished higher on Friday and gained about 1 percent for the week, helped by solid export demand, traders said. Demand from China has been particularly strong, fueled by the appetites of a growing Chinese middle class and diplomatic tensions with rival supplier Australia. The U.S. […] Read more

(iStock/Getty Images)

U.S. livestock: Lean hogs climb on strong exports

Chicago | Reuters – Chicago Mercantile Exchange lean hog futures climbed to their highest in nearly two weeks on Thursday, supported by strong weekly export sales and tighter supplies of market-ready hogs, analysts said. “Hog numbers are still running below last year. If that continues to tighten up, I think that boosts the back months […] Read more


The Canadian calf crop has been relatively flat over the past four years.

Understanding the feeder cattle market

Market Update: A major rally in the calf market is expected next spring

I’ve received many inquiries from producers about the feeder cattle market. Many cow-calf operators don’t understand the overall supply and demand factors for analyzing the feeder market. Sometimes I hear comments such as “just because there is more supply, why should the price go down?” Secondly, these producers often complain that there is not enough […] Read more

Photo: File

U.S. livestock: Live cattle firms on stronger cash, wholesale market

Chicago | Reuters – Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle futures firmed on Wednesday, underpinned by stronger cash trade as packers pull more cattle forward, while wholesale beef prices added support, analysts said. “It does seem like the packers have picked up the production for cattle lately,” said Doug Houghton, technical analyst at Brock Capital Management. […] Read more