A Manitoba pork marketer says some U.S. processors have shut their doors to Canadian pigs as enforcement of U.S. voluntary country of origin labelling (vCOOL) looms. “It’s very impactful,” said Lorne Voth, president of ProLine Pork Marketing. “We get more and more guys that are saying, ‘I need Americans. I need American pigs.’ ” U.S. voluntary country-of-origin labeling rules were passed in 2024 and take effect Jan. 1, 2026. They will restrict companies from adding “Product of USA” or “Made in the USA” labels to meat, poultry and egg products unless they come from animals born, raised, slaughtered and processed in the United States. In 2024, the U.S. imported 6.8 million head of live pigs from Canada valued at $779 million, according to data from the Manitoba government. The province sent 29 per cent of those imports, representing 27 per cent of pigs sold in the province. This included millions of weanlings that are raised and slaughtered south of the border. Livestock and indust
Read MoreWild hogs were spotted in Coppell and in two neighborhoods in Roanoke last week, officials said.
Read MoreAn important shift is underway: federal trade deals and improved global purchase commitments are nudging the likelihood of big broad-based farm aid downward. For pork producers — especially those already squeezed by tight margins, rising input costs and global market uncertainty — this development bears watching closely. What’s Changing Earlier this year, farmers across major commodity sectors had strong expectations that the federal government would step in with substantial tariff-related aid to offset export losses, rising costs and disrupted global markets. But as trade deals have been struck in recent months, officials are signalling that “additional relief” will now be evaluated in light of those agreements instead of being presupposed. In particular: Trade deals with major buyers are being cited as a factor reducing the urgency of broad relief programs. Agencies are now saying they will assess market developments into the upcoming year before deciding what aid, if any, is ap
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