Livestock Management
EDMONTON – Murray Jacobson was a young veterinary medicine student in 1967 when the first Simmental cattle set foot on Canadian soil. Forty years later, the president of the Canadian Simmental Association is a proud supporter of the Swiss breed that helped change the look of the North American beef industry. “They were more of […] Read more
Livestock Management
Simmental changes benefit producers
Long-time Alta. breeders disperse herd
CASTOR, Alta. – During 66 years of raising registered Herefords, Walter and Allan Blume withstood cattle cycles, hard winters, droughts, grasshoppers and BSE. But they could not fight time. With the children gone and no one interested in taking over the ranch, they decided to disperse their herd, offering more than 200 females carrying the […] Read more
More beef trade expected but COOL looms
STRATHMORE, Alta. – Canadian cattle producers have been eagerly anticipating an open border with the United States for four and a half years but if country of origin labelling legislation passes in the U.S., trade could be awkward again. The U.S. Department of Agriculture rule published last month would allow all Canadian cattle born after […] Read more
Hog producer suggests quota system
VERMILION, Alta. – An Alberta hog producer wants his colleagues to consider supply management as a way to stabilize their industry. Don Gulayec, who operates a 900 sow farrow-to-wean hog operation near Derwent, Alta., told a recent Alberta Pork regional meeting that producers need to look at all options to save their industry. “When you […] Read more
New drug targets shipping fever
Excede is the latest antibiotic offering from Pfizer Animal Health targeted at bovine respiratory disease. BRD, or shipping fever, costs the North American cattle industry more than half a billion dollars annually and has been the target of drug makers for years. The disease causes higher levels of illness and death and ties up feedlot […] Read more
Farmfair cuts sales
EDMONTON – Farmfair International cancelled four breed sales this year – Shorthorn, Hereford, Salers and Charolais -because of a lack of interest and as a cost cutting measure. Len Poholka, a Horned Hereford breeder from Breton, Alta., said a letter was mailed to participants asking if they wanted to hold a sale, but only three […] Read more
No escaping cattle woes
STRATHMORE, Alta. – Tough times in the cattle business are a BSE hangover and there seems to be no relief from the headache, cattle producers say. Low cattle prices, a strong currency, high priced feed grain and unexpected costs from new BSE related regulations are taking a toll. Cattle markets follow an economic cycle of […] Read more
Lloydminster sale draws from two provinces
LLOYDMINSTER, Sask. – If livestock shows were cattle, the Stockade Roundup would be the one that every purebred producer in Lloydminster’s border region would bid on. In tough times and in good, the event draws local commercial cattle producers from a 250 kilometre radius, and that brings in the purebred breeders. “This show isn’t the […] Read more
Breeders welcome open border
The expected opening of the U.S. border to Canadian cattle Nov. 19 is breeding optimism among purebred cattle producers. As he gave a show calf a buzz cut at last week’s Livestock Expo in Brandon, Chad Levesque of Chopper K Red Angus in Carnduff, Sask., said American customers bought 10 percent of his farm’s bulls, […] Read more
Feds ignore livestock sector woes
A significant slice of Canada’s beef and hog sectors will disappear within months if the federal government does not provide subsidies, says Liberal agriculture critic Wayne Easter. But last week, the government gave no indication help is coming, other than promising that existing business risk management programs will not expire March 31, 2008, without a […] Read more
