It is amazing how a lack of volatility in today’s feed grain markets almost makes a person nervous. Feeders and farmers don’t seem believe that the corn and barley markets can actually sit still and hold a broad trading range. It really is unbelievable how we have moved from an industry that expected feed prices… Read More
Last week I had to attend a horse show in Red Deer with my wife. For those of you that know me well, you are fully aware that I am by no means a cowboy or even a hobby horse person. I used to own a pair of cowboy boots but I sold them in… Read More
Sometimes you just know that a market feels toppy but you maybe are a little scared to pull the trigger and start locking in some profits. Then without notice the market violently trades against you in a short period of time. How would that make you feel? Well if you are unsure ask your neighboring… Read More
This week I attended the Canada Grains Council Meeting and listened to a very interesting day of reports on the market access issues that Canada is facing. Unless you have been in Phoenix all winter I am sure that you have not missed the whole Triffid flax issue that has thrown a real wrench in… Read More
Its nice to actually experience some profits in the feeding business. The question is whether this will continue through the spring or fade away and leave us wondering what happened. With April producing short supplies and barbeque season a month away, the result has been some badly needed profits for the sector. For the Canadian… Read More
It is about time that we saw some black ink in the feeding sector. Whether the rise in live cattle prices is due to hedge fund buying, increasing box beef demand or the terrible weather in the US, we will take the profits anyway that we can get them. The next question is whether this… Read More
The weather in the US in the first two months of the year has led to some higher fat cattle prices. This has initiated a little optimism for the fat cattle board in 2010. What is unclear is whether or not this momentum will continue or die off like the Beta tape. One thing that… Read More
With the weather issues in the US, a rise in fed cattle prices has followed. Cattle feeders are very interested in the potential profits that can finally be squeaked out of the market. Will this continue? Can we expect 2010 to maybe be the turn around year that we thought was maybe possible back at… Read More
By most accounts the 2010 NCBA convention in San Antonio was a huge success. This was my first NCBA meeting so it is fitting that we talked to Anne Dunford a wily veteran of the NCBA festivities. Anne wrapped up the week and talked about what she thought were the major things to be pulled… Read More
When your financial margins are under pressure people tend to pay more attention to the nuts and bolts of their operations. Many consultants would say that you have to be doing this all the time not in just stressful times. At the NCBA tradeshow it was very clear that cattlemen are moving closer to the… Read More
Canada and Mexico have taken the issue of country of origin labelling (COOL) to the World Trade Organization (WTO). We are basically one year into the implementation of COOL and the financial impact is severe. The impact on the Canada and Mexico livestock markets has been very hurtful. The interesting thing that I found at… Read More
To me there is no better eating experience than eating beef. Dave Zino is the Executive Chef with the NCBA and is responsible for spreading the word about cooking beef. Dave travels North America educating and making sure that people understand the true beef eating experience. The NCBA and the Beef Information Center both strive… Read More
Being someone that has served on boards for a couple different agricultural associations, I respect people that commit the time necessary to make a difference. Whatever your beef politics are it is important to understand the work that happens behind the scenes. Trying to run your own business and also commit the time to cattle… Read More
With the losses that have been suffered in the feeding industry in 2010 it is no surprise that there is a very keen interest in what the analysts are saying about the cattle market in 2010. Before I attended the NCBA convention many people told me that the highlight of the show is the Cattlefax… Read More
Larry Hicks is the founder of CattleHedging.com and specializes in helping clients manage risk in Canada and the United States. The cattle market has been just as viscous as any other market in agricultural commodities. Larry has always been a proponent for making sure that customers protect their equity and assets and reduce the amount… Read More