Livestock

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau visited Alberta yesterday, as raging wildfires prompted mass evacuations, where meteorologists expect virtually no rain for 10 days or so. The widespread blazes have marked an intense start to wildfire season in Alberta, forcing more than 30,000 people out of their homes at one point and shuttering at least 319,000 barrels of oil […]

Saskatchewan feeder cattle prices were mostly higher—but total sales were lower last week, according to statistics released by Canfax. 7,445 head were sold —-down about 5,000 from the previous week . . . but three thousand more than the same week one year ago.Four of the six steer weight categories had higher bids . . […]

Poultry farms in Quebec are grappling with higher-than-expected outbreaks of avian flu as 20 locations in the province are considered actively infected. Alberta had the next highest number of infected sites with 11, followed by British Columbia with eight.  More than 7.6-million birds in Canada have either died or been euthanized due to the flu […]

Alberta’s Agriculture Minister is warning the province’s farming and ranching community that livestock rescue may not be possible as rising temperatures in the coming days are expected to spread already-devastating wildfires.  Nate Horner says anyone with concerns about animals should contact municipal officials first. Mounting frustration over the province’s response to the wildfire situation has […]

The U.S. Supreme Court has preserved a California law banning the sale of pork in America’s most-populous state from pigs kept in tightly confined spaces. That rejects an industry challenge claiming that the voter-backed animal welfare measure impermissibly regulates out-of-state farmers. The measure, approved by voters as a 2018 ballot initiative called Proposition 12, bars sales […]

Quebec’s agriculture department says it has seized 38 cattle from the central Quebec farm that was home to a group of fugitive cows that escaped last summer and went on the run for months. A spokesman for the agriculture department, says the cattle were seized after a recent inspection found the safety and well-being of some of […]

A piece of legislation that would provide farmers with carbon tax relief is in front of Canadian senators. Bill C-234, which exempts on-farm fuels like propane and natural gas used in grain drying and barn heating from the federal carbon tax, had its first reading in the senate on March 30th and the second reading […]

Maple Leaf Foods reported a loss in its first quarter compared with a profit a year ago as it faced a difficult pork market, cost inflation and higher startup expenses. The company says it lost 57.7 million dollars, or 48 cents per share for the quarter ended March 31st, compared with a profit of 13.7 million […]

A Chinese ban on Canadian beef that industry officials expected would be short-lived remains in place seventeen months later. Dennis Laycraft of the Canadian Cattle Association says he doesn’t know why China continues to block imports from Canadian beef processing plants. China imposed restrictions on Canadian beef after a case of atypical B-S-E was found […]

Saskatchewan cattle producers are keeping a close eye on the wildfire situation in the province, as well as to what’s happening in Alberta. CEO of the Saskatchewan Cattlemen’s Association Grant McLellan says they will be prepared should the situation take a turn for the worst. Right now he is cautiously optimistic about the current situation […]