Ralph Cator

| Industr y Roundup |
Inventories of major livestock on Canadian
farms declined over last year
Cattle and hog inventories in Canada declined between July
1, 2009 and July 1, 2010, according to a report from Statistics
Canada.
The Canadian cattle herd fell by 4.9 per cent to 14.0 million
and has been in a steady decline since its peak of 16.9 million
in 2005, the agency reported. The hog inventory fell 2.4 per
cent to 11.8 million.
As of July 1, 99,026 farms reported beef or dairy cattle,
down 3.5 per cent from the same date in 2009.
During this period, the Canadian dairy herd fell 1.3 per
cent, while the total beef herd declined 5.5 per cent. Statistics
Canada said indications are that the beef herd is not rebuilding,
as farmers reported a 5.1 per cent decline in the total number
of beef cows and a 2.3 per cent drop in replacement heifers.
The total number of dairy cows and replacement dairy heifers
also declined compared with 2009.
From January to July 2010, an estimated 1.9 million head of
Canadian cattle and calves were sent to slaughter – a 6.5 per
cent increase from the same period in 2009, but 0.3 per cent
below levels reported for the July to December 2009 period.
During the first six months of 2010, exports of live cattle and
calves totalled 613,100 head, up 1.5 per cent from the same
period in 2009.
As of July 1, there were 7,050 hog farms in Canada, down
10.6 per cent from the same date in 2009. Canadian hog
producers reported an estimated 11.8 million hogs on their
farms, down from 12.1 million hogs on the same date in
2009.
Farmers reported 1.3 million sows and gilts on their farms,
down 4.8 per cent from July 1, 2009, and 9.4 per cent below
levels as of July 1, 2008.
Hogs that were sent to slaughter totalled 5.1 million during
the second quarter, down 0.8 per cent from the same period
in 2009. Canadian hog slaughter peaked in the fourth quarter
of 2004 at just over 6.0 million head.
During the second quarter, total hog exports amounted to
1.4 million head, down 14.1 per cent from the same quarter
in 2009. Second-quarter exports were 52.3 per cent below
the peak of 2.9 million head recorded in the first quarter of
2008.
The number of sheep on Canadian farms also decreased, by
1.9 per cent to 1.0 million head, the agency reported.
Regionally, inventory levels of sheep fell across the country
between July 1, 2009, and July 1, 2010, except in Alberta, the
Atlantic region and Saskatchewan. The largest relative decline
occurred in Manitoba, where the inventory declined 11.3 per
cent.
During the first six months of 2010, 325,900 sheep were
sent to slaughter in Canada, down 4.5 per cent from the same
period in 2009. Statistics Canada said the export market for
sheep has remained virtually non-existent since 2003.
Mexican market reopens for poultry
genetics exporters
Canadian poultry genetics exporters will again have access
to the lucrative Mexican market since the doors were closed
following the March 2004 outbreak of avian influenza,
Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) announced.
Imports of day old chicks and poults and hatching eggs to
Mexico from all countries reached $18.2 million in 2009. Due
to this new agreement, AAFC estimates that exports of these
products from Canada could reach $2 million annually.
“We’re very pleased to hear that the export of hatching
eggs, day-old chicks and turkey poults from Canada to Mexico
can restart after Canada received confirmation that Mexican
authorities informed their border points of entry,” Agriculture
Minister Gerry Ritz said in a release. “This is great news for
farmers.”
In 2009, Canadian agri-food exports to Mexico were $1.5
billion.
Government secures new market access to
the Philippines
Canadian exporters of rendered animal products have
gained important access to Philippine markets that were
previously closed to them, Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz
recently announced.
Following a concerted effort by government and industry,
the Philippine government has agreed to open its market to
Canadian rendered animal by-products including blood meal,
poultry meal and fats.
The Canada Beef Export Federation estimates that the
Philippine market for Canadian exporters of rendered
products could reach $20 million.
Last year, existing Canadian agri-food exports to the
Philippines totalled $250 million.
New E. coli test unveiled at IAFP
California-based Life Technologies announced at the
International Association of Food Protection (IAFP) annual
meeting the launch of the MicroSEQ E. coli O157:H7 assay,
designed to detect the deadly strain of E. coli using the
company’s real-time PCR technology.
According to the company the test has secured Performance
Tested Methods certification from the AOAC Research
Institute for detection of E. coli O157:H7. The new product
will enable more effective monitoring of the food supply for
contamination and help ensure food safety.
E. coli O157:H7 can cause severe illness, even death and has
been responsible for significant outbreaks of food poisoning
across the globe, the company said in a release.
Usually culture-based assays can take up to five days to yield
results, but this new test is highly specific and sensitive and can
be run in as little as eight hours, Life Technologies noted.
Maple Leaf sees profit drop in Q2
Maple Leaf Foods’ profits saw a decrease in the second
quarter of 2010 due to a change in long-term interest rate
swaps, but the company said it was pleased with its overall
performance, particularly in its meat products division.
In its Q2 report released at the end of July, Maple Leaf
Foods reported net earnings of $3.0 million compared to
$4.9 million last year. This includes a non-cash pre-tax charge
of $20.7 million due to the change in fair value of long-term
interest rate swaps.
“We are very pleased with the continued steady improvements
across our business in spite of challenging market conditions.”
Maple Leaf president and CEO Michael H. McCain said in a
release. “The protein business saw healthy improvements in
financial performance while facing significant raw material
28 Canadian Meat Business September/October 2010 meatbusiness.ca