Smaller Canada Hog Herd Supportive For US Prices
KANSAS CITY (Dow Jones)--The Canadian pork industry has further reduced its swine herd, which should be supportive for hog prices across North America, according to analysts. Statistics Canada early Tuesday released data for livestock inventories as of Jan. 1. The data showed all hogs and pigs down 10.2% from a year ago and the swine breeding herd down 7.1%. The Canadian government initiated a sow buyout program early last year aimed at reducing the breeding herd by 10%. That program was largely responsible for the significant
decline that has occurred in the herd size, analysts said.
Canada's Hog Inventory Drops From Yr Ago - Statistics Canada
WINNIPEG (Dow Jones)--Canada's hog inventories as of Jan. 1 totaled 12.400 million head, down from 13.810 million at the same time a year ago and lower than the 12.825 million in the previous quarter ended Oct. 1, 2008, figures released by Statistics Canada revealed. The government agency said the three-year downtrend in Canada's hog inventory continued. The breeding herd alone, mainly sows and gilts, declined 7.1% to 1.4 million head.
STORIES OF INTEREST:
IBM Blends Technologies To Prevent Food Illnesses
THE WALL STREET JOURNAL - International Business Machines Corp. is experimenting with a technology that tracks food by monitoring the condition, quality and location of items, with the aim of preventing or mitigating food-contamination outbreaks. The technology, which uses Radio Frequency Identification tags or bar codes, makes it much easier to identify the sources of food items, organize recalls of problem foods and prevent the spread of food-related outbreaks. Producers and retailers also can use the technology to maximize food stocks.
USDA Attache: German Court Rules Ag Check-Off Program Illegal
DOW JONES NEWSWIRES The German Constitutional Court has ruled that the mandatory check-off system for agricultural commodities violates the German constitution and is illegal, according to a U.S. Department of Agriculture attache report posted Tuesday on the Foreign Agricultural Services Web site. The court ruled that the check-off program unfairly interferes with entrepreneurial freedom and stated that the information gathering and agricultural promotions are no longer a government task to be financed with special duties. As a consequence of the ruling, the German agriculture and food industries will either have to develop their own sector-related generic promotion programs and information gathering and analysis or general governmental funds will have to be provided to accomplish these efforts.
China Bird Flu Not Pandemic, But Be Prepared - UN
BEIJING (AFP)--A recent string of bird flu infections in humans in China posed no risk of a pandemic as the cases were unrelated, but authorities need to remain alert, U.N. experts said Wednesday. "The strain we see now is not a pandemic threat," Hans Troedsson, the World Health Organization representative in China, told journalists at a news conference. Eight human cases of infection with the deadly H5N1 strain of the bird flu virus have been reported in China so far this year. Five of those infected died from the disease. Though the number of cases was up from three in China for all of 2008, Troedsson said the numbers remain too low for great concern, especially as they came during winter months when the virus temporarily gains strength.
Cattle Inventories In Canada Decline - Statistics Canada
WINNIPEG (Dow Jones)--Canada's estimated total cattle and calf inventories as of Jan. 1 continued to decline, dropping 5.1% from the level seen at the same time a year ago, according to figures released Tuesday by Statistics Canada.The beef herd in Canada was down 5.6% from the year ago level while the nation's dairy herd declined 2.5%. As of Jan. 1, Canadian producers had an estimated 13.180 million head of cattle on their farms. This compares with a July 1, 2008, total of 15.195 million head and the Jan. 1, 2008, level of 13.895 million.
THE MARKETS:
CME Livestock Outlook: Hogs, Live Cattle Seen Mixed
CHICAGO (Dow Jones)--Chicago Mercantile Exchange hogs could open mixed Wednesday, according to analysts and brokers. Follow-through liquidation and steady-to-weak cash expectations are bearish market features. Also, unprofitable pork packer profit margins and soft electronic-Chicago Board of Trade corn could weigh on some contracts. Pork bellies are seen mixed with an undertone of weakness on potential spillover selling and new cash developments. CME live cattle could open mixed on follow-through selling that could clash with possible short covering and the notion that Tuesday's board selloff was overstated. Feeder cattle could open mixed as well.
US Cash Cattle Pre-Open: Quiet After Light Tuesday Trade
KANSAS CITY (Dow Jones)--All is quiet in the Plains states fed cattle markets Wednesday after a few thousand head traded in Nebraska and Colorado Tuesday. Traders said the cattle were hedged livestock, and the sales made sense since futures prices were sharply lower. About half of the cattle were thought to have traded on a packer's grid pricing system and the rest on a cash basis. Of those that sold on a cash basis, most were sold at $80 per hundredweight on a live basis with a few up to $81. Some also were said to have sold on a dressed basis at $130, but these could not be verified.
US Cash Hogs Pre-Open: Mostly Steady With A Few Weak Tones
KANSAS CITY (Dow Jones)--The Midwest direct hog markets are called mostly steady Wednesday, though there is some scattered softer sentiment for prices on reports that most plants have adequate supplies for the week. Based on expectations of around 100,000 head for Saturday's slaughter and indications that the plants scheduled to operate have the majority of the hogs needed, some packers may try to save a little money on the balance of the purchases.
By Curt Thacker, Dow Jones Newswires; 913-322-5178; curt.thacker@dowjones.com