Insights and Stories on Slaughter

Tyson to shut Iowa pork plant against COVID-19 outbreak

May. 29, 2020 at 3:55 am CDT

Chicago | Reuters — Tyson Foods said on Thursday it will temporarily close an Iowa pork plant due to the coronavirus pandemic, a month after U.S. President Donald Trump ordered slaughterhouses to stay open to protect the country’s food supply. Meat processors such as Tyson, WH Group’s Smithfield Foods and […]

U.S. livestock: Live and feeder cattle futures slip

May. 22, 2020 at 7:45 pm CDT

By Christopher Walljasper

U.S. livestock: Hogs, live cattle gain against cash markets

May. 21, 2020 at 7:07 pm CDT

By Christopher Walljasper

JBS resumes second shift at Alberta beef plant

May. 21, 2020 at 4:50 pm CDT

By Dave Bedard

U.S. livestock: Live cattle futures slip as slaughter rises

May. 20, 2020 at 8:04 pm CDT

By Reuters

U.S. livestock: Hog futures fall

May. 19, 2020 at 4:28 pm CDT

Chicago | Reuters — U.S. hog futures fell on Tuesday, pressured by an increase in daily slaughter totals as pork plants come back online, traders said. CME live cattle futures firmed despite rising kill numbers, with the most-actively traded contract passing through a key technical benchmark. The nearby CME June […]

By Mark Weinraub

Canadian cattle in a feedlot with a cowboy in the background.

Klassen: Feeder market jumps on renewed optimism

May. 19, 2020 at 11:39 am CDT

Compared to last week, western Canadian feeder cattle over 800 lbs. traded $8-$10 higher while lighter weight categories were up $4 to as much as $12 in some cases. Feeder cattle under 800 lbs. were very well bid across the Prairies; feeder cattle under 700 lbs. are now trading at […]

By Jerry Klassen

U.S. livestock: Firm cash market lifts live cattle

May. 15, 2020 at 7:32 pm CDT

Chicago | Reuters — U.S. live cattle futures closed higher on Friday, with the front contract gaining against back months, led by higher cash cattle prices, traders said. Cash cattle traded as high as $120/cwt in the southern Plains on Friday, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said, up from trades […]

By Julie Ingwersen

As meat plant infections rise, Canada lets packers choose when to close

May. 1, 2020 at 9:48 am CDT

Winnipeg | Reuters — In Cargill’s High River, Alta. plant, supplier of more than one-third of Canada’s beef, 391 workers were sick with COVID-19 when the company suspended operations, according to provincial health officials. But Maple Leaf Foods decided to idle a poultry plant for eight days, in Brampton, Ont., […]

By Rod Nickel

Major Ontario pork packer expects to re-open Monday

Apr. 30, 2020 at 4:11 pm CDT

The hog slaughter and processing plant billed as Ontario’s second-biggest pork producer expects to be back in business Monday after a week-long COVID-19-related shutdown. Conestoga Meats, based at Breslau, just east of Kitchener, notified hog farmers and shippers on Friday that it would suspend “most operations” during the week of […]