Trade Remains the Wild Card Influencing North American Hog Markets

Jan 23, 2018

The Director of Risk Management with h@ms Marketing Services warns the wild card when it comes to North American hog markets continues to be on the trade front.

The Canadian government is currently involved in trade negotiations on two fronts, the Comprehensive Progressive Trans-Pacific Partnership and the renegotiation of the North American Free Trade Agreement.

Tyler Fulton, the Director of Risk Management with h@ms Marketing Services, points out we are reliant on roughly 20 to 25 percent of all of the U.S. pork production being exported so, if there's any disruptions to that type of trade or any major changes, whether it be on currency or on geo political issues, that could put the pork sector at risk.

Tyler Fulton-h@ms Marketing Services:

The Trans-Pacific Partnership is definitely an important feature for Canadian hog producers.

It will give us a significant advantage in a couple of countries that will likely augment our exports to those countries but it really isn't being figured into markets.

Because the U.S. pulled out of those talks, it's really not impacting the futures markets which is where we would look to see if there's any changes.

On the flip side we've got NAFTA which this week we're going into the sixth round of negotiations and, by the end of this week, we may have an idea as to whether or not any significant progress was made there.

Source : Farmscape

Video: Evolution of Beef Cattle Farming

The Clear Conversations podcast took to the road for a special episode recorded in Nashville during CattleCon, bringing listeners straight into the heart of the cattle industry. Host Tracy Sellers welcomed rancher Steve Wooten of Beatty Canyon Ranch in Colorado for a wide-ranging discussion that blended family history and sustainability, particularly as it relates to the future of beef production.

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That philosophy aligned naturally with Wooten’s involvement in the U.S. Roundtable for Sustainable Beef, where he served as a representative for the Colorado Cattlemen’s Association. The roundtable brings together the entire beef supply chain—from producers to retailers—along with universities, NGOs, and allied industries. Its goal is not regulation, Wooten emphasized, but collaboration, shared learning, and continuous improvement.