Opinions vary on whether Manitoba cattle are being discriminated
against by buyers because of bovine tuberculosis.
The entire province was classed as TB accredited earlier this year.
That means the disease prevalence is low, but it is a lower rating than
TB-free. Breeding stock leaving the province for the United States must
be tested for the disease.
The zoning prompted fears that Manitoba cattle would be penalized in
the sales ring, particularly females.
One cattle producer at Grandview, Man., said she and her husband were
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quoted 95 cents a pound on their heifers when they consulted a buyer on
Sept. 4. That was 21 cents lower than the prices quoted for steers.
The price spread is higher than it was a year ago when Manitoba cattle
started coming off pasture. The Grandview producer suspects the stigma
attached to bovine TB was at least part of the reason.
Unlike heifers, steers do not have to undergo TB tests before being
shipped to the U.S., which means there is less cost and work involved
with exporting them.
Larry Schweitzer, a feedlot manager at Hamiota, Man., and a district
director for the Manitoba Cattle Producers Association, said it
appeared last week that heifer calves in Manitoba were “under a little
pressure.”
The price spread between heifers and steers in Manitoba was higher than
in Saskatchewan. However, he also said that it is too early to start
reading much into the prices.
“The tale will be told in the next three weeks when the harvest gets
done and guys start bringing their calves to market.”
Murray Couch, an order buyer in Winnipeg, said buyers are adjusting
their price on heifers to offset the expense of testing them before
shipping to the U.S. Aside from that expense, he does not think
Manitoba cattle are being discriminated against.
Couch and others in the cattle buying industry said there are other
market forces at play this year that will affect what Manitoba
producers get for their livestock.
Feed costs are up this fall, and it typically costs more to fatten
heifers than steers. That encourages feedlots to favour steers.
Because of the drought on the western Prairies and the financial
malaise of feedlots there, there is less demand this fall from
Saskatchewan and Alberta for Manitoba cattle.
At the same time, there is more demand from the U.S. However, Americans
have never been keen on buying heifer calves in the fall from Manitoba
and Saskatchewan because of uncertainty about whether they might have
been bred on pasture in the summer, said Rick Wright, branch manager of
Heartland Livestock Services in Brandon, owned by Nilsson Bros. Inc.
Bred heifers can be a headache for feedlots. In Manitoba and
Saskatchewan, there generally is no requirement that heifers be
pregnancy checked before they go to auction.
“No doubt the TB thing has been an issue, but it’s not a major issue
right now,” Wright said.
