Heartland Livestock Services plans to expand, buying facilities to handle 100,000 head of cattle per year, according to the company’s general manager.
“The most likely area for our expansion will be the province of Alberta,” said John LaClare, speaking at the recent annual meeting of Manitoba Pool Elevators in Winnipeg.
Manitoba Pool owns 10.2 percent of the company, and Saskatchewan Wheat Pool owns the rest.
LaClare said the company must broaden its revenue base by investing in beef feeding or packaging operations.
The company had a net operating profit of $550,400 in 1995, largely due to dramatic declines in the cattle industry.
Read Also
Alberta researcher helps unlock the economics of farming
Lethbridge Polytechnic researcher helping agriculture producers with decision-making tools in economic feasibility
“There were just fewer cattle moving through the system and at lower value,” explained LaClare in an interview following his address to delegates.
Given the hard times in cattle, the company was happy it still earned a profit, he added.
Animals handled
Heartland handled close to 775,000 head of cattle and calves, 900 sheep, 10,700 hogs and 4,600 horses. It also assembled 40,700 hogs for marketing agencies in Manitoba and Saskatchewan.
LaClare told delegates that presorted live satellite television sales are one of the company’s most popular marketing programs.
Consignments to the sales represented more than a third of the company’s total handlings, LaClare said.
The company had total revenues of $14.8 million, and expenses of $14.1 million, leaving earnings from operations of $746,000.
Earnings in 1994 were $714,000.
But an equity loss because of consolidated losses in a feedlot and ethanol plant partly owned by Heartland pushed the net operating profit down to $550,400, LaClare explained.
Like feedlots across the Prairies, Pound-Maker Agventures at Lanigan, Sask. was challenged with low prices for its product.
The feedlot sold 40,000 cattle, up from 33,600 the previous year and produced 12 million litres of ethanol.
LaClare said the company expects to do better this year.
“We’re off to an excellent start,” he said. “We’re ahead of budget.
Fall deliveries were good, cattle prices are starting to recover, and the market is more optimistic, LaClare said.
