Ann Wasko, Market Analyst/Consultant with Cattle Trends Inc., is busy giving presentations this week on the Prairies.
She says prices were better than expected for 2017.
"Across North America, certainly saw better prices than many of us were expecting, and that meant profitability in almost all of the sectors, from cow-calf right on through feedlot, packer, and even to the retail and food service industry. We had kind of a different scenario where everyone was making some money in 2017, and that doesn't always happen."
What many believe drove some of the strength in the U.S. market in the May, June time frame was Walmart, Wasko says.
"Walmart U.S.A. came out with a high end beef, so in the U.S. that's choice, and an Angus program. So, it kind of drove the demand to a very high end product, and here in Canada, it was also matched by Walmart Canada going to a AAA Angus program as well. And anytime you see a big significant shift, it can have an impact on price, and in this case, it was a positive."
She says, it was an interesting scenario where a typical discount grocer went after a high end product.
Also, U.S. beef producers are restocking after recovering from droughts in the deep South.
From 2014 to 2018, the U.S. will have added three million head of beef cattle to the national herd.
Wasko says, that means a lot more beef coming at us, with record beef production expected in the U.S. in 2018.
Source : Steinbachonline