REGINA – Commercial cattle set the stage for a successful Canadian Western Agribition this year.
Moved to the front of the event, the show drew record crowds, the highest quality animals in years and a 29 percent increase in total sales.
Jumping from $695,408 last year to $809,388 this year, North America’s largest indoor commercial sale not only set records but spread some needed optimism throughout Western Canada’s cattle industry.
“All fall, bidding would stop on bred heifers at around $1,200. We saw animals bringing $1,475 at Agribition … . I expect that trend will continue and the best heifers are going to continue breaking the $1,200 mark now,” said Wayne Bircham, a Piapot, Sask., commercial cattle producer. Bircham judged the replacement heifer class at the sale.
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Limousin cross cattle were strong, taking all but one of the nine feeder heifer classes and placing nearly as well in feeder steers.
“Any of the animals have to be well muscled. It is part of the packers’ demand for AAA beef and you won’t get that without the genetics and this show held a great variety of those,” said Barry Bieleny, a Killam, Alta., order buyer and commercial cattle grower.
Bieleny wandered the cattle pens as a judge during the feeder events. He reminded growers in his comments that satisfying an increasing American demand for the Canadian animals, through the U.S. export links of XL Foods/Cargill and Lakeside/IBP, means that American consumer preferences are affecting Canadian breeding.
British invasion
On the replacement side of the show and sale, the British breeds finished first as a cross in all but one of the 15 bred heifer classes. The open replacement heifer category was a sweep for the British breeds, indicating the returning strength of the bloodlines to the feeder industry.
“Anybody looking to start a new commercial herd in Western Canada could have put together one of the best herds in the country just from buying at the sale this year. … The quality was the best I’ve ever seen at one sale,” said Ralph McGregor, a commercial producer from Iron River, Alta.
The change in scheduling of the commercial cattle show and sale to the start of the week kept some producers away this year, said a few of the event participants.
“They’ll be here next year though. It was one heck of sale,” said McGregor.
