Hog farmers across the country have had it bad for a while. Market crashes, disease and deteriorating consumer confidence have been major issues for pork producers for quite some time. Running a hog farm is not easy or glamorous. They require an incredible amount of hands on management from farrow to finish. Hogs are hard… Read More
Category: Livestock
It has been a challenging year for cattle feeders in the respect that unhedged cattle have performed well financially but the majority of cattle for progressive producers were contracted or hedged. On top of this is the fact that replacing cattle in the feed yard is very expensive based on the break evens that are… Read More
“Those dairy farmers print money!” That’s what a friend of mine says every time the subject of dairy farms comes up. Drive down many roads in Canada and it’s easy to see how that perception was born. Huge brand new facilities, multi-site operations with finely manicured yards and milking parlors with nicer tile most people’s… Read More
I can remember back earlier in the year when Anne Dunford told me that, “higher prices doesn’t mean higher profits.” It would seem that this is proving to be very true in the cattle markets. Feedyards that locked in with contracts are disappointed and wishing more cattle were being sold in the cash market. The… Read More
As the cattle industry contemplates the rebuilding of the cow herd, bull selection strategies will become incredibly important to ranchers profitability in the future. Once better known as an art, bull selection is a science now. Gone are the days when an old cowboy could walk out into a pen and say, “I like the… Read More
The way that feedyard owners handle cattle has a massive impact on gains and the overall health of the animal. Many of you have used the snake and tub concept originally designed by Temple Grandin (i think?) When I was at the NCBA convention I ran into a very cool booth that was giving live… Read More
There has been quite a bit of commentary in the media recently from certain farm groups like the NFU and R-Calf regarding the need to eliminate or more strictly regulate speculators in the market. Interest in commodities has greatly increased in recent years which has increased the volume of speculators trading in corn, beef and… Read More
With growing concern over the realities of a limited calf supply do to the aggressive culled cow rate in the past five years. Ranchers are optimistic in their economic future because of the barriers of re-entry and the inability for supply to increase in the near term. I discussed the cow calf supply issue with… Read More
It seems that a cowboy is judged by a couple different metrics. He’s judged by the way he wears his cowboy hat, the brand of chew he carries, and the kind of boots he wears. I really have none of those since I don’t wear a hat, don’t chew and never wear boots. How would… Read More
I have now been to the NCBA twice and both were very interesting experiences. In 2010, the cattle industry was begging for different fortunes while in 2011 the meeting was lifted with significant bullsihness for cattle prices. I can remember meeting with Gregg Doud, NCBA Chief Economist at the 2010 meeting where I asked him,… Read More
It’s very interesting to listen to the people that attended the NCBA meeting during the height of the BSE outbreak. They will tell you that as Canadian’s our presence at the NCBA was met with a tiny bit of friction. Now the relationship is on much firmer footing and returning to the strength seen in… Read More
Last week Oprah really spurred controversy with her comments regarding animal agriculture. In case you missed it Oprah was toured through a Cargill facility and she took some shots at the red meat industry. At the NCBA 2011 conference I thought I would get the opinion of a real farmer and rancher on what Oprah… Read More
One of the highlights of the the NCBA convention every year is the cattle market outlook by CattleFax. As everyone left the session on Friday the consensus of the attendees was, “CattleFax is very bullish.” At the NCBA 2011 convention I had the opportunity to discuss the cattle market with Duane Lenz of CattleFax. Duane… Read More
The global consumer has been evolving as the new consumers get exposed to a beef diet. Even in Canada, our tastes and preferences around our favorite meal has changed as generations evolve. Do these changes mean changes for the beef business in Canada or do they really mean a bright future? For example, as the Chinese… Read More
Databases are very powerful tools that can make business decisions more clear, companies more effective and lead to high customer satisfaction. Larry Thomas is working on a very big project that will potentially connect all the dots in the value chain for beef producers. Once this system is live it has the potential to have… Read More