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Animals > Animal Diseases > Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy Risk Assessment on Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy in Cattle in
Canada
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Jan 1/00 | July 1/00 | Jan 1/01 | July 1/01 | |
On ALL CATTLE Operations: | - - - - - - - - - - - '000 head - - - - - - - - - - |
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Bulls1 | 229.1 | 249.8 | 228.3 | 251.2 |
Milk cows1 | 1,140.6 | 1,127.4 | 1,135.9 | 1,131.5 |
Beef cows1 | 4,137.0 | 4,451.6 | 4,208.1 | 4,561.7 |
Milk heifers | 464.6 | 479.0 | 466.0 | 473.0 |
Beef heifers - breeding | 595.3 | 777.6 | 599.5 | 792.9 |
Beef heifers - slaughter | 698.2 | 1,018.6 | 762.5 | 919.6 |
Steers | 1,221.7 | 1,519.9 | 1,148.3 | 1,552.6 |
Calves | 4,329.3 | 4,792.5 | 4,447.7 | 4,952.7 |
TOTAL Inventory | 12,815.8 | 14,416.4 | 12,996.3 | 14,635.2 |
On DAIRY Operations: | ||||
Bulls | 16.4 | 16.2 | 14.6 | 15.0 |
Milk cows | 1,140.6 | 1,127.4 | 1,135.9 | 1,131.5 |
Milk heifers | 464.6 | 479.0 | 466.0 | 473.0 |
Beef heifers - slaughter | 17.8 | 17.4 | 18.2 | 13.9 |
Steers | 43.4 | 40.9 | 38.9 | 48.2 |
Calves | 538.2 | 484.9 | 532.8 | 490.8 |
TOTAL Inventory | 2,221.0 | 2,165.8 | 2,206.4 | 2,172.4 |
On BEEF Operations: | ||||
Bulls | 212.7 | 233.6 | 213.7 | 236.2 |
Beef cows | 4,137.0 | 4,451.6 | 4,208.1 | 4,561.7 |
Beef heifers - breeding | 595.3 | 777.6 | 599.5 | 792.9 |
Beef heifers - slaughter | 680.7 | 1,001.4 | 744.5 | 905.6 |
Steers | 1,178.4 | 1,479.0 | 1,109.7 | 1,504.7 |
Calves | 3,791.2 | 4,307.8 | 3,914.9 | 4,462.4 |
TOTAL Inventory | 10,595.3 | 12,251.0 | 10,790.4 | 12,463.5 |
Statistics Canada - Cat. no. 23-603-UPE 1 Target population for surveillance |
Figure 2: Distribution of Cattle in Canada
The distribution of slaughter and age at slaughter for Canadian cattle is found in Table 2. The bulk of the Canadian cattle slaughter (96%) occurs in federally inspected plants, which are the only establishments eligible to transport meat products across provincial and international borders. Less than 5% of the slaughter takes place in provincially inspected plants (Table 3), and of this 5%, the provinces with the largest cattle populations, Alberta, Ontario and Quebec, require that all cattle be inspected prior to slaughter (80% of the dairy population and over 60% of the total cow population are located in these three provinces). There is virtually no on-farm slaughter occurring in Canada. See Section 6.1 for details on the slaughter inspection system.
Over 70% of the beef slaughter in federally inspected plants takes place in Alberta. In federally inspected plants, 84% of the slaughter is made up of young animals (steers and heifers, mostly 18 months of age), with the balance consisting of cull cows and bulls. Provincially inspected plants are generally small in size, therefore tending to slaughter cattle from small farms and receiving a greater proportion of lower quality cull animals. Approximately 1.1 million young beef animals and 174,000 cull cows and bulls were exported to the U.S. for slaughter in 2000.
Table 2: Slaughter Cattle - Number Slaughtered in Federally Inspected Establishments in Canada
Table 3: Slaughter Cattle - Number Slaughtered in Provincially Inspected Establishments in Canada
British Columbia | Alberta | Saskatchewan | Manitoba | Ontario | Quebec | Atlantic Provinces | Total | |
2000 | 9,468 | 27,969 | 3,660 | 10,096 | 98,415 | 10,313 | 8,112 | 168,033 |
1999 | 6,765 | 27,448 | 4,924 | 12,324 | 103,108 | 10,467 | 8,965 | |
1998 | 7,023 | 28,806 | 3,599 | 14,286 | 111,590 | 11,019 | 10,642 | |
1997 | 8,195 | 30,788 | 6,662 | 15,652 | 119,110 | 19,826 | 11,232 | |
1996 | 8,046 | 35,673 | 4,914 | 17,783 | 121,316 | 16,996 | 5,141 | |
Source: Canadian Food Inspection Agency and Provincial Governments |
3.2. The Canadian Dairy Sector
The dairy sector is important to Canada, with total net farm cash receipts of $4.1 billion in 2000. Dairy products shipped from approximately 281 processing plants were valued at $9.8 billion, accounting for 14.3% of all processing sales in the food and beverage industry in Canada. There are nearly 26,000 people working on dairy farms, and almost 20,500 other workers are employed at the primary processing level.
About 81% of Canada's dairy farms are located in Ontario and Quebec, where the bulk of the Canadian population resides, with 14% in the western provinces and 5% in the Atlantic provinces.
For the year 20002001, there were 1.16 million cows in Canada on 19,411 dairy farms. The primary breeds in Canada are Holstein (comprising more than 91% of Canadian dairy herds), Ayrshire, Jersey, brown Swiss, Canadienne, Guernsey, and milking shorthorn. For each breed, a breed association has been established under the Animal Pedigree Act.
Based on official records for all breeds in 2000, the average production of cows enrolled on official milk recording programs was 9,152 kg of milk in 305 days of lactation. Protein and butterfat levels averaged 3.23% and 3.70% respectively. Canada has one of the highest average levels of milk production in the world. This success is due, in large part, to a well-organized national approach to dairy cattle improvement and genetic evaluations.
With an average herd size of 56 milking cows, most dairy farms in Canada are small, although the trend over the past several years is towards larger but fewer farms. Most producers raise their own replacement heifers.
Calving occurs year-round on dairy farms to ensure a constant supply of fluid milk. Calves are removed from their dams shortly after birth and fed on milk replacers. Male calves and cull heifer calves are generally sold to veal or beef operations. Replacement heifer calves are fed a grain and forage-based ration to ensure rapid growth and early onset of puberty.
Most farms produce much of their own forage and grains. Supplements are also provided to cows depending on their level and stage of production. Bypass protein is important during early lactation. Given the high productivity of Canadian dairy cattle, close management of nutrition is critical to maintaining good health.
On average, dairy cows are culled at about five years of age (Bouchard 2002). In Quebec dairy herds, about 30% of milking cows in all herds are over five years of age (purebred cows are kept longer than average). Turnover in the milking herd is estimated at 30% per year.
Generally, on farms that raise their own replacement heifers, it is more profitable to retain cows that are producing well than to cull them at an early age. Hence, one of the criteria by which bulls kept for artificial insemination are assessed is the longevity of their daughters. The longevity index is set at 3, meaning cows are expected on average to be kept for three lactations (Dagenais 2002).
Canada supplies more than 20% of dairy genetics to the world in the form of high-quality dairy cattle, embryos and semen. Canadian dairy cattle are exported to more than 50 countries. Exports of Canadian dairy genetic material were valued at more than $128 million annually prior to the BSE-related restrictions put in place by the EU in October 2001. In 2000, major export markets were the U.S., the U.K., Spain, Germany, Japan, Brazil, Australia, Iran, Italy, and Mexico.
3.3. The Canadian Beef Sector
Beef production contributed over $6.6 billion to farm cash receipts in 2000, with Canadian beef and veal packers processing over 3.4 million head of cattle. Total beef production has increased by 78% since 1970 to its current level of 1.51 million tonnes. Companies across Canada continue to invest capital for processing capacity expansion and product quality improvements.
Exports have become increasingly important, given that beef consumption in Canada has remained stable. Over 50% of Canadas production of cattle and beef is currently exported. Key markets are the U.S. (accounting for approximately 70% of total exports), Mexico, and Asia.
The major beef breeds in Canada are Hereford, Angus, Charolais, Simmental and Limousin. The industry is concentrated in regions with natural feed and land-base advantages for beef cattle production. Some 70% of beef cattle are located in the foothills and grasslands of Alberta and Saskatchewan.
Cow-calf ranching and cattle feedlot finishing are two distinct areas of specialization in Canadian beef production.
There are 4.8 million beef breeding cows and heifers in Canada (January 1, 2001). Total beef production per cow has increased from approximately 170 kg in 1972 to approximately 277 kg in 2000.
Most cow-calf ranches in Canada breed their cows in June and July, with calves born in March and April of the following year. This means that the young calves, almost all of which are raised outdoors, are not subjected to cold winter weather. The calves graze with their mothers on pastures and grasslands throughout the spring, summer, and fall seasons.
The average weight of calves at weaning in the fall (October or November) is about 250 kg, but weights can range from 160 to 320 kg depending on age at weaning, the genetic background of the calf, and grass conditions during the summer grazing season. The lighter calves (160225 kg) are typically left on pasture for an extra 120150 days before they enter backgrounding and high-energy feeding programs for slaughter between 18 and 24 months of age. The medium-weight calves (225275 kg) at weaning are normally placed on a lower-energy backgrounding feeding program before being placed on a high-energy grain-feeding program for slaughter between 14 and 18 months of age. The heavier calves (275320 kilograms) are normally placed on a high-energy grain-feeding program after weaning for up to 225 days, and are ready for slaughter between 12 and 14 months of age.
Feed rations are mostly based on barley in Western Canada's grain-feeding operations, while corn and barley is fed in Central and Eastern Canada.
Backgrounding is the process of feeding high-forage (alfalfa hay and straw) feeds to increase the weight of smaller calves up to 350 kg. At least one half of the calves produced in Canada each year are backgrounded before they start on a high-energy feedlot finishing program. After weaning, light calves are fed forages and grain through the winter to gain weight at 680 g to 1 kg per day. In the spring, the smaller of these calves remain on pasture or are put into feedlots to gain weight at a rate of about 1.21.4 kg per day. The larger calves move into feedlots and are fed high-energy feed rations.
Along with the trend to larger and more specialized cow-calf ranches, the Canadian cattle industry has evolved towards more specialization in the grain feeding of slaughter cattle. Feedlots range in size from a few hundred head capacity to very modern operations feeding over 40,000 animals at one time. Historically, most cattle were fed in small feedlots on diversified farms that also grew feed grains and wheat for human consumption. Since the land and water resources and climate in Canada are very suitable to cattle feeding, many feedlots have become larger and more highly mechanized over the past fifteen years to specialize in cattle feeding. It is estimated that over 70% of the cattle grain-fed in Canada are produced in feedlots with capacities over 1,000 head. This produces uniform and high-quality beef products.
In 2000, Canadian feedlots finished 2.7 million steers and heifers for slaughter in Canada. Another 780,000 were fed in Canada for slaughter in the U.S.
Feedlot owners purchase calves or feeder cattle from either cow-calf ranches or backgrounding operations. Only a small portion of the calves produced in Canada are fed to slaughter weights by the original owner of the ranch on which they were born.
In the feedlot industry, there are two basic types of feeding systems, the system used depending on the weight of the animals when they are placed on the finishing program. A multi-stage feeding system is used for those steers and heifers that enter the feedlot at lighter weights. These cattle are started on a higher forage-lower grain feed ration to initially gain weight at about 1 kg per day. They are fed at this level for a few weeks, after which the proportion of grain in the feed ration is gradually increased to 8590%. Heavier feeder cattle begin at these high-percentage-grain feed rations. The average live weight at slaughter for steers is about 590 kg, while the average weight for heifers is about 550 kg.
In recent years, Canada has exported approximately 1 million head of live cattle to the U.S. annually. Canada has also begun importing more cattle from the U.S. for feeding and/or processing in Canada. The total number of cattle imported by Canada rose from 91,000 in 1998 to 233,000 in 1999 and to over 260,000 head in 2000.
3.4. SUMMARY - DEMOGRAPHICS AND STRUCTURE
Food safety is a key commitment of three major federal government organizations dealing with agriculture and agri-food, food inspection, and public health.
The dairy and beef sectors are important to Canada, contributing tens of thousands of jobs and about $11 billion in farm cash receipts to a vigorous and growing agriculture and food sector.
The dairy and beef sectors are modern and specialized. Canadian dairy cattle are high-producing, and their genetic material is in demand in many countries of the world. Canadian beef exports are expanding, a good part of this based on Canadas reputation for delivering a safe, high-quality product.
The dairy population is concentrated in central Canada where most of the Canadian population resides. On average, dairy cows are retained for at least three lactations before being culled at about five years of age, and would therefore be old enough to show clinical signs of BSE if the disease were present in Canada.
Beef production is concentrated in Western Canada. Most beef animals are slaughtered at 18 months of age and would introduce little infectivity into the food or rendering system if BSE were present in Canada. Beef cows are generally forage fed over winter and put out to pasture with their new calves in the spring and are less likely than dairy cattle to be exposed to high-protein meals.
Introduction | Assumptions and methods | Demographics and industry characteristics | Legislative authority
and veterinary infrastructure | Import | Slaughter and disposition | Rendering | Feed | References
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