Livestock Management
* November placements down 11% from a year ago * Dec. 1 feedlot cattle at 100% of year ago * Marketings in November up 4% from a year ago * Report called bullish for CME live cattle futures By Theopolis Waters CHICAGO, Dec 18 (Reuters) – Cattle movement into U.S. feedlots in November fell 11 […] Read more
Livestock Management
U.S. November feedlot cattle placements slump to record low
CME live cattle futures rally by 3-cent limit before report
CHICAGO, Dec 18 (Reuters) – Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle futures settled up by their 3-cents per lb price limit on Friday, driven by short-covering and technical buying, traders said. Investors tweaked positions ahead of Friday’s U.S. Department of Agriculture monthly Cattle-On-Feed report at 2 p.m. CST (2000 GMT). Spot December ended at 120.150 cents, […] Read more
Wildlife pains cattle industry
Escalating confrontations with bears, wolves and coyotes have frustrated many Alberta livestock producers. Compensation packages need to be improved and better management is needed because too often ranchers and farmers bear the costs of problem wildlife, delegates said during Alberta Beef Producers’ annual meeting in Calgary Dec. 7-9. “We are hosts to the oil companies […] Read more
Time to cull, not skimp on feed: forage expert
Producers with feed shortages are advised to get rid of older or open cows and those with physical limitations
ROCKY MOUNTAIN HOUSE, Alta. — Extra planning is needed to control costs and keep cows healthy when feed is in short supply. “If you skimp and don’t do things right on the feeding program now, it could affect the cows next year and the year after,” said forage specialist Barry Yaremcio of Alberta Agriculture. Drought […] Read moreNew initiative focuses on forage research, environmental stewardship
A multi-level agreement to revitalize forage research and education has been reached in Alberta. The Alberta Beef, Forage and Grazing Centre agreement is a five year deal between Alberta Beef Producers, Agriculture Canada and Alberta Agriculture. ABP is providing $25,000 a year for this initiative, funds permitting, while both levels of government will offer personnel […] Read more
Theory blames major human infectious disease on agriculture
A small subset of human in-fections diseases are classified as “crowd diseases.” These include smallpox, measles, plague, tuberculosis, flu and whooping cough. Crowd diseases have similar characteristics, including an acute clinical course with easy transmission between people and two possible outcomes: recovery with establishment of long-term immunity or death. To avoid snuffing itself out, this […] Read more
Focus on beef exports not water efficient: expert
Exporting food like potatoes or beans is more economical than growing forage to convert into meat, says professor
It’s all about water when it comes to food production, and putting Alberta’s supply into beef production is not an efficient use, says a University of British Columbia professor. Hans Schreier, professor emeritus in the land and food systems faculty, said it takes 15,000 litres of water to produce one kilogram of beef. “If we […] Read moreCattle group tackles budget issue
Alberta Beef Producers delegates have voted to bring back a mandatory service charge. A resolution called for the organization to push the provincial government to allow a $2 non-refundable checkoff, of which 60 cents would be placed in a restricted fund for marketing, research and collaboration. Delegates also voted to increase the national levy to […] Read more
Family stuck on farm show
REGINA — Lee Wirgau has attended every Canadian Western Agribition since 1994. When he and his wife Cynthia married 16 years ago, they kept up the tradition of packing up children, homework, tack boxes and a string of cattle to participate in the week-long event at Regina. They are like many family teams at Agribition […] Read more
Teens form partnership
REGINA — It can be difficult to encourage young people to continue farming, but one family has banded together as teenagers to form their own cattle company. Ryley, Nicole and Curtis Bielecki of Paradise Hill, Sask., formed RCN Livestock in 2012 while they were in high school with the goal of competing against the adults […] Read more
