REGINA – Nolind Ward crossed the Canadian border with something that few people do these days: cattle.
He and North Dakota Galloway breeder Harley Blegen are the first to bring purebred American cattle to Canadian Western Agribition since the finding of BSE in Canada in 2003.
Canadian cattle cannot be shipped to the United States unless destined for slaughter, so the four animals the two American breeders brought to Regina for the show are not allowed to return home.
“That’s OK. This whole border closure has nothing to do with the cattle industry and everything to do with politics. I thought it was high time somebody made a bit of a stand on it,” said Ward. He, like Blegen, qualified to enter a bull in Agribition’s RBC Supreme Beef Challenge after winning his breed classification at a show in Billings, Montana, earlier this year.
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“Canada has the best purebred cattle in the world. We’ve cut off our noses to spite our faces by keeping the border closed to Canadian cattle. This is one big market, always has been and right now it’s just a bunch of little men keeping it shut. No science. No economics. Just ignorance and politics,” said Ward.
Blegen said he presold his Galloway bull to an Alberta breeder and would also sell a heifer he brought to Agribition.
“I sold Galloway cattle at Agribition years ago. Because I sold them in Regina, those bloodlines are now spread around the world. That didn’t happen with other events. The world comes here to buy cattle,” he said.
“I figured it was time to remind folks up here we don’t have horns. The border needs to open so we can all just put this bit of politics behind us,” he said.
More than 400 international buyers attend Agribition annually and Ward said he wished he was able to buy breeding stock to take back home.
However, he added that due to five years of drought, he probably would not have been in the market this year to expand his herd of 250 purebred Angus cows.
“I sold off my commercial herd because it’s so dry. But I do own cattle up here in Alberta and I’m hoping that within the next year to at least have the option of taking some home with me. Provided we get some rain.”
Ward took home $8,200 for the bull he sold during the event.
