More Young Canada Cattle To U.S.
Kansas City (Dow Jones) — The number of feeder cattle and slaughter steers and heifers coming into the U.S. from Canada through the first four months of this year is running about 40 percent above the average for the same categories and time frame in 1999 through 2003.
Those years offer the latest comparison since no live cattle were allowed to be imported from there in 2004 or during those months in 2005.
Data compiled from the U.S. Department of Agriculture's weekly imported livestock reports show that through the end of April, 2006 cattle imports from Canada stood at nearly 423,000 head, with about 65 percent of the animals being slaughter steers and heifers sent directly to U.S. beef-processing plants.
The year-to-date figure for feeder cattle and steers and heifers imported from Canada as of April 29 is below the 2002 same-period total for all cattle, which included cows and bulls.
The U.S. imposed a ban on imports of Canadian live cattle as well as beef in May of 2003 when a case of bovine spongiform encephalopathy, or mad-cow disease, was found in a cow in Alberta. The ban on beef was partially lifted in August of that year, but live cattle from Canada were not allowed to enter the U.S. until mid-July of 2005, and those animals must be less than 30 months of age at slaughter.
Industry sources said there are several factors why more young Canadian cattle are being shipped south into the U.S. this year. One of the reasons is to allow the Canadian beef plants to process more of the older animals that are not allowed into the U.S. but which have built up in numbers there. Since the older animals nor beef from those animals were being shipped outside the country due to BSE bans and Canadian ranchers could not afford to simply destroy their aged cattle, the inventories built up on the farms and ranches.
Glenn Grimes, agricultural economist at the University of Missouri, said other contributing factors included the tariff that Canada had imposed on imports of U.S. corn, which along with "good" cattle prices in the U.S. have resulted in more Canadian cattle being shipped south.
Jim Robb, agricultural economist with the Livestock Marketing Information Center in Denver, said the number of slaughter-ready cattle coming into the U.S. from Canada during the first four months was about 2,600 head per week above the same period in 2003. He said that based on the number of feeder cattle that came across the border during the January-April period, Canada could have below year-ago on-feed inventories during the second half of the year.
Robb also said that LMIC expects beef imports from Canada to be down this year from a year ago and for total U.S. beef imports to be down for the year. Canada is eligible to ship beef to Japan, so more of its production from the younger animals is going there plus the Canadian beef plants are slaughtering fewer cattle this year than they were a year ago, he said.
U.S. beef processors boosted their weekend slaughter operations May 1 and again May 8 to offset the down-time from May 8th's immigration day events. The combined estimated slaughter figures from this and last week resulted in 2.1% more cattle moved through the plants than during the same period a year ago.
Pork plants also made up for the closures on May 1, with the combined two-week totals running neck-and-neck with a year ago at 3.783 million this year versus 3.786 million last year.
Kansas City (Dow Jones) — The number of feeder cattle and slaughter steers and heifers coming into the U.S. from Canada through the first four months of this year is running about 40 percent above the average for the same categories and time frame in 1999 through 2003.
Those years offer the latest comparison since no live cattle were allowed to be imported from there in 2004 or during those months in 2005.
Data compiled from the U.S. Department of Agriculture's weekly imported livestock reports show that through the end of April, 2006 cattle imports from Canada stood at nearly 423,000 head, with about 65 percent of the animals being slaughter steers and heifers sent directly to U.S. beef-processing plants.
The year-to-date figure for feeder cattle and steers and heifers imported from Canada as of April 29 is below the 2002 same-period total for all cattle, which included cows and bulls.
The U.S. imposed a ban on imports of Canadian live cattle as well as beef in May of 2003 when a case of bovine spongiform encephalopathy, or mad-cow disease, was found in a cow in Alberta. The ban on beef was partially lifted in August of that year, but live cattle from Canada were not allowed to enter the U.S. until mid-July of 2005, and those animals must be less than 30 months of age at slaughter.
Industry sources said there are several factors why more young Canadian cattle are being shipped south into the U.S. this year. One of the reasons is to allow the Canadian beef plants to process more of the older animals that are not allowed into the U.S. but which have built up in numbers there. Since the older animals nor beef from those animals were being shipped outside the country due to BSE bans and Canadian ranchers could not afford to simply destroy their aged cattle, the inventories built up on the farms and ranches.
Glenn Grimes, agricultural economist at the University of Missouri, said other contributing factors included the tariff that Canada had imposed on imports of U.S. corn, which along with "good" cattle prices in the U.S. have resulted in more Canadian cattle being shipped south.
Jim Robb, agricultural economist with the Livestock Marketing Information Center in Denver, said the number of slaughter-ready cattle coming into the U.S. from Canada during the first four months was about 2,600 head per week above the same period in 2003. He said that based on the number of feeder cattle that came across the border during the January-April period, Canada could have below year-ago on-feed inventories during the second half of the year.
Robb also said that LMIC expects beef imports from Canada to be down this year from a year ago and for total U.S. beef imports to be down for the year. Canada is eligible to ship beef to Japan, so more of its production from the younger animals is going there plus the Canadian beef plants are slaughtering fewer cattle this year than they were a year ago, he said.
U.S. beef processors boosted their weekend slaughter operations May 1 and again May 8 to offset the down-time from May 8th's immigration day events. The combined estimated slaughter figures from this and last week resulted in 2.1% more cattle moved through the plants than during the same period a year ago.
Pork plants also made up for the closures on May 1, with the combined two-week totals running neck-and-neck with a year ago at 3.783 million this year versus 3.786 million last year.
