Fed prices ease higher
Western Canadian fed cattle prices continue to rise incrementally, closing the week ending July 25 within $3 per hundredweight of the highs set in June.
Alberta fed steers were up $0.43 per cwt. from the previous week to finish the week at $299.16 per cwt.
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Fed heifer prices moved $0.59 per cwt. higher, ending the week at $296.47 per cwt.
Dressed sales and bids were reported in the range of $490-$503 per cwt. delivered, with the majority bringing $500 per cwt. delivered. Cattle that traded were scheduled for delivery from mid-August to early September.
Some cattle were purchased flat with no heavyweight carcass discounts, but this was not common, and other cash sales had heavyweight carcass discounts at 1,050 pounds.
While buying interest was shown by all western Canadian packers, competition was reportedly mixed.
Reduced operating hours at the western Canadian packers have continued into the summer, and lighter slaughter rates remain a concern. This time of year is usually when packers add Saturday shifts to accommodate higher slaughter rates.
Alberta fed prices have been at a discount of $30 per cwt. against the U.S. market over the last couple of weeks.
Interest from U.S. packers has been limited on the Western Canadian cash market, even with historically weak basis levels.
In Ontario, dressed sales were reported at $530 per cwt. delivery, fully steady with the previous week. Cattle that traded were scheduled for delivery on the weeks of Aug. 4 and Aug. 11.
Non-fed prices mixed
Cull cows sold through commercial auction marts closed the week ending July 25 steady to $3 per cwt. stronger than the previous week.
Railgrade cows also traded fully steady, while butcher bull and feeder cow prices were down by $1-$4 per cwt.
D2 and D3 cows in Ontario were steady to $1 per cwt. softer than the previous week.
After being at a significant discount during the first half of 2025, Ontario D2 cow prices have moved over the last few weeks to be on par with the Alberta market.
Year-to-date Canadian cow slaughter is six per cent below 2024 and 11 per cent below the five-year average. Regardless, slaughter volumes remain 13 per cent above the low set in 2015.
Western Canadian cow slaughter is 11 per cent below last year and 13 per cent below the five-year average.
In Eastern Canada, cow slaughter is nine per cent above last year’s levels as a result of the 2024 work strike at Cargill, but it’s down six per cent from the five-year average.
Feeder market remains strong
Western Canadian feeder cattle prices continue to impress, even with lighter volumes selling through auction facilities during the week ending July 25.
Steers weighing between 600 and 900 lb. brought $8.36-$11.88 per cwt. more than the previous week.
Heifers weighing between 700 and 900 lb. traded $3.83-$11.10 per cwt. stronger.
In Alberta, auction volumes were 22,091 head, up 41 per cent from this time last year. Electronic sales accounted for 78 per cent of these sales, at 17,260 head, making it the second-largest volume in the last decade.
The nearby feeder cattle contract closed on July 25 at $331.37 per cwt., $25.35 per cwt. higher than at the start of July.
For the week ending July 12, Canadian feeder cattle exports to the U.S. for the week ending July 12 were 1,736 head, 34 per cent below last year’s volumes.
Year-to-date exports are 88,122 head, down two per cent from 2024. This has been trailing since the second half of June.
Cutouts continue to decline
U.S. cut-out prices continued to ease lower during the week ending July 25, with Choice cutouts down $5 per cwt. from the previous week . Select prices were down by almost $7 per cwt.
Despite this, Choice cutout prices are $55 per cwt. higher than this time last year, while Select prices are up by $50 per cwt. from 2024.
The Choice-to-Select spread is about $21 per cwt., up $5 per cwt. from last year.
