MOOSE JAW, Sask. – A unique new drive-through receiving area at Western Canadian Beef Packers is making life easier for producers who want to deliver their own cattle to the plant.
Cattle producers will no longer have to back their trailers into a small receiving area and their worries about getting stuck in mud or snow will also come to an end, said Willis Cunningham, senior cattle buyer.
Under the new system, producers pull onto a paved pad next to a set of pens. A gate is opened and the cattle are sorted into the pens as they come off the truck.
Read Also
Petition launched over grazing lease controversy
Battle continues between the need for generation of tax revenue from irrigation and the preservation of native grasslands in southern Alberta rural municipality.
“This is faster and more humane,” Cunningham said. “(The cattle) don’t have to go around so many corners.”
And it’s easier on the drivers, he said.
“A lot of people can’t back up a trailer all that well.”
The biggest advantage of the new system is reduced unloading time.
Producers with small trucks and trailers don’t have to wait in line behind large semi-trailer loads because they aren’t using the same area.
The Moose Jaw plant opened in 1975 with a slaughter capacity of 320 head per day. It’s now processing 700 per day.
The plant accepts producer loads of cattle Monday to Thursday from 6:30 a.m. to 10:30 p.m. and Friday until noon.
Since the drive-through was opened in late October, more people are taking advantage of the convenience, Cunningham said. A survey of producers as they leave the facility has yielded only positive comments.
“The guys are looking for convenience,” he said. “It doesn’t cost them anything to bring them here, and we weigh them, confirm ownership with a brand inspector and process them.”
The plant has made some policy changes. It no longer slaughters:
- Bulls weighing more than 1,800 pounds.
- Cattle weighing less than 800 lb.
- Animals with cancer eyes where the diameter is three inches or larger.
As well, all downers must be secured with a rope in order to be stunned safely.
Producers should supply their own ropes, said Cunningham.
