Despite criticism from the farm community, the number of items on A&W's menu that require specific animal care practices on farms is growing. After moving to beef raised without the use of growth promotants and eggs from hens fed vegetarian diets without animal by-products, the fast food chain announced Monday that it has switched to... Read More
Category: Livestock
The World Trade Organization has ruled against the United States once again in the ongoing dispute over American country of origin meat labeling (COOL) rules. Implemented in 2008, the Canadian government says COOL is costing Canadian cattle and hog producers a billion dollars per year. Legal Fight Against COOL Remains Alive, With WTO Ruling Coming... Read More
The volatility of the market is always a gut wrencher. The fundamentals of the beef market are still strong but the evidence of a correction this week was according to some very warranted. In this weeks Beef Market Udpate, Anne Wasko and Shaun Haney discuss this correction and the signs for the future. Additionally, Anne... Read More
Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz and International Trade Minister Ed Fast were in Ottawa today to announce an expansion to Canadian beef and livestock producer export opportunities. Negotiations in Qatar have resulted in its approval of all beef imports from Canada, a significant step in a market that could reach $2 million annually, according to industry... Read More
Early care and feeding frequency of dairy calves leaves a lasting impression on your herd. Just how significant feeding frequency is on eventual productivity of your dairy cows may surprise you, however. In this interview filmed at the 2014 World Dairy Expo, Donald Sockett, of the Wisconsin Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory, University of Wisconsin-Madison, summarizes a... Read More
Gay Lea Foods Co-operative Limited has reached an agreement to purchase Hewitt's Dairy, effective November 1, 2014. Hewitt's, a family-owned and -operated processor in Hagersville, Ontario, has been in the dairy industry for over 125 years, and offers a complete line of goat milk products, including organic goat milk in glass bottles and fresh organic... Read More
With the immense drop in fat cash cattle being sold on a weekly basis the reporting of sale data has changed. A high majority of fat cattle in Canada are being sold through forward contracting or formula (grid systems). Canfax is responsible to collect data from willing producers and report back information to the industry... Read More
As a proud farmer, I love answering questions, discussing issues and listening to concerns about everything agriculture, food and all of the connections in between. Sometimes though, some of those conversations have me thinking for weeks. Case in point: a simple enough question from a young woman left me trying to sort out a tremendously... Read More
The federal government has announced a $7.5 million investment in a new agency that will look after developing and operating a national livestock traceability database. Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz announced the funding for the Canadian Agri-Traceabiity Services in Calgary today. CATS is a not-for-profit corporation that brings together the Canadian Cattle Identification Agency (CCIA) and... Read More
By Jill Burkhardt What is on your fall To-Do list? Harvest? Second (or third) cut hay? Bringing cattle in from pasture? Preg checking cows? Fall is not when one would normally think about range management, yet by doing a few simple measures of the rangeland in the fall, you can plan better for the coming... Read More