AgriSuccess Express
Check out this week's news
November 9, 2007
| 1. | Cattle exports to U.S. surge |
| 2. | Red meat industry takes issue with cancer report |
| 3. | Losses continue for hog producers  |
| 4. | Plum pox fight gets funding |
| 5. | Wheat shipments through Churchill hit 30-year high |
| 6. | Upgrade at Weyburn Inland Terminal |
| 7. | Potato wart found again on P.E.I. |
| 8. | Potato trade agreement reached with U.S. |
| 9. | Quebec farmers seek compensation for clean practices |
| 10. | Year-end tax planning tips |
| 11. | Market Focus - Canadian dollar rally roars upward |
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1. Cattle exports to U.S. surge
While many cattle producers are wondering how they will manage through these times of low cattle prices, high feed grain costs and a soaring loonie, others are worried about the longer-term impact this will have on the Canadian cattle industry.
Recent data from the United States Department of Agriculture indicates that 13,000 head of feeder cattle were imported from Canada in September. That compares to 6,200 per week in September 2006.
“There's been a lot of feeder cattle going to the U.S. for some time,” says Bill Jameson, president of the Saskatchewan Cattle Feeders Association.
“The feed costs in the U.S. are lower than in Canada, so it costs less to put a pound of gain on in the United States than in Canada.”
Jameson says normally that trend is reversed as barley would be priced lower, relative to corn, and a weaker Canadian dollar would give home-grown cattle a bit of a marketing advantage.
“Consequently we are seeing some cattle going south to be fed by Canadians,” Jameson states, noting the majority of the cattle entering the U.S. are still being purchased by Americans.
The concern about so many extra Canadian cattle being fed south of the Canada-U.S. border this year is that it will ultimately reduce the number of animals available for slaughtering and processing.
“If we are going to lower the number of cattle fed in Canada, of course we're going to lower the number of cattle available to our western Canadian packing industry,” Jameson says.
Canada’s slaughtering and processing capacity has expanded since 2003 due to the concern about self-sufficiency, which was highlighted when BSE occurred. That capacity is already being underutilized and could erode even further as more cattle find their way into U.S. feedlots.
“Whether we can bring this thing (Canadian cattle feeding sector) back in line without some serious pain, I don't know,” Jameson says.
The Saskatchewan Cattle Feeders Association along with other groups representing the cattle sector has recently been lobbying the federal government. Organizations are trying to develop programming to help producers offset the losses being experienced across the industry.
Theresa Keddy, spokesperson for the Canadian Cattlemen’s Association, says they are working to find solutions to the high dollar, high feed costs and low cattle prices.
“We know it's difficult. It's definitely a challenging time, and we're working very hard to try and offset some of these challenges,” she says.
Keddy notes the expanded list of cattle and beef that can move into the U.S. on Nov. 19, 2007, could provide some more competition in the market place. However, the dramatic rise of the Canadian dollar will still be a major factor weighing on cattle prices.
2. Red meat industry takes issue with cancer report
A report by the World Cancer Research Fund has evoked a response from the Canadian red meat industry. The Beef Information Centre, Canadian Pork Council and Canadian Meat Council have issued a news release disagreeing with certain conclusions in the report.
The WCRF says its report contains the most comprehensive research available on cancer prevention. One of the recommendations stemming from the report is to limit consumption of red meats such as beef, pork and lamb and to avoid processed meats.
According to WCRF there is strong evidence that red and processed meats are causes of bowel cancer. Their advice is to limit intake of red meat to less than 500 grams cooked weight (about 700 to 750 grams raw weight) a week.
“Try to avoid processed meats such as bacon, ham, salami, corned beef and some sausages,” the report says.
The Canadian red meat industry takes a different view.
“There is no convincing scientific evidence that consuming red meat, as part of a healthy balanced diet, increases the risk of cancer,” the groups say in their news release. They quote a pooled analysis of 725,000 subjects conducted by Harvard in 2004 that concluded there is no positive association between red meat consumption and colorectal cancer risk.
“Canadians on average are eating 74 grams of red meat per day and are well within the Food Guide recommendations,” the groups note. “Many Canadians are not eating a balanced diet, missing out on the recommended daily servings of vegetables and fruit, and getting 22 per cent of their total calories a day from foods low in nutritional value like fats and oils, condiments, candy, chips and beverages.”
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Copyright 2007, Farm Credit Canada
