Hog Days
Hog Days will take place in Brandon, MB at the Keystone Centre. The show will be held on one day Thursday December 12th from 10 am - 4:30 pm.
From 11:15 am to 11:45 am attend a information session on: iPhone, iPad, Blackberry, Android, Twitter and Facebook: How can you make it work for you?
Lunch is served from 12 noon - 1:00 pm at a cost of $12 person.
At 4:00 pm the winners of the Best Make and Bake contest will be announced followed by the Carcass Competition Winners.
For questions please contact Everlito Mendoza at 204.937.6460 or email
everlito.mendoza@gov.mb.ca •
Banff Pork Seminar
Start planning now the 39 annual Banff Pork Seminar will be held January 21-23, 2014 at the Banff Centre.
As in past years the seminar will feature speakers covering a wide variety of current topics facing the hog industry. The Banff Pork Seminar attracts people from all areas of the industry.
Check www.banffpork.ca for updates and details. On line registration is now open. For more information or details contact Marliss at banff@ualberta.ca. •
Manitoba
Swine Seminar
Mark your calendars for the upcoming Manitoba Swine Seminar, which will be held February 5 & 6, 2014, at the Victoria Inn, Winnipeg MB.
Some of the speakers include:
Tom Stein, Metafarms will deliver a presentation outlining the importance of benchmarking; Dr. Steve Dritz, Kansas State University, will deliver a presentation on getting weaned pigs off to a good start; Kurt Stoess, Hylife, will discuss rearing pigs without antibiotics; Dr. Tim Blackwell, OMAFRA, will talk about communicating on-farm welfare; Andrew Dickson, MPC, will provide an update about the industry in Manitoba and globally and Dr. Denise Beaulieu, Prairie Swine Centre, will discuss how to feed modern highly productive sows.
For more information contact Dallas Ballace conference manager at 204.475.8585 or email Dallas@goodwinballance.ca •
Cramer Livestock Expo
The fourth installment of the Cramer Crop Livestock Expo will be held February 20th, 2014 at Kinetic Exhibition Park in Swift Current. The show continues to grow each year and will once again feature a Trade Show along with the various Cramer Cup series, hog carcass - forage - egg – canola - baking competitions.
To take advantage of early bird discount rates reserve your booth by January 20th, 2014.
For more information or details contact Lisa Doyle at 403.244.7821 or email;
lisa@conventionall.com •
Alberta Pork Congress
The 40th annual Alberta Pork Congress will be held at the Westerner Park in Red Deer, Alberta, from June 10 - 12, 2014.
Held in conjunction with the Alberta Pork Congress is the third annual Bruce Winkler Memorial Silent Auction. As in past years all proceeds will be donated to the Alberta Cancer Foundation, specifically the Linac MR Machine. Auction items are appreciated. Contact Laurie Brandly Auction Chair to have your donation picked up.
Trades Show applications are being accepted via fax and online booth selection will be available soon.
Mark your calendars as the dates have changed. More details will be available in the upcoming issues.
For more information please visit our website; www.albertaporkcongress.com or contact Lisa Doyle at 403.244.7821 or via email; info@albertaporkcongress.com •
CPC in Washington with Minister Ritz to Discuss COOL
Canadian Pork Council's Chair, Jean-Guy Vincent and Executive Director, Martin Rice joined Canada's Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food Gerry Ritz in Washington recently to advocate on behalf of the Canadian livestock industry for the US to come into compliance with its World Trade Organization (WTO) obligations regarding Country of Origin Labelling (COOL).
"The burdensome COOL requirements are significantly damaging trade in North American livestock and have been determined by a WTO panel are contrary to the international trade obligations of the United States", stated CPC's Chair Jean-Guy Vincent. "Maintaining rules that cause discrimination against Canadian and Mexican livestock unnecessarily jeopardize U.S. exports."
"The most effective solution remains an amendment to the Farm Bill that repeals mandatory COOL for beef and pork which would provide the requisite WTO compliance by eliminating discrimination against Canadian cattle and hogs," added Mr. Vincent.
Canada's and Mexico's WTO challenges have resulted in confirmation by the WTO of the discriminatory effects of COOL on Canadian cattle and hogs.
As a direct result of the introduction of the COOL regulations in 2008 Canadian hog farmers suffered massive economic hardship because of the reaction of US food distributors against having to deal with a multitude of different origin labels. The value of lost live swine and beef cattle exports since COOL became mandatory in the fall of 2008 exceeds $1 billion annually.
Canada will consider all legal options, including, if necessary, the use of retaliatory trade restrictions against U.S. products. Canada and Mexico are America's two largest export markets with total exports in 2012 valued at $292 billion and $216 billion, respectively.
Canada is the world's third largest pork exporter and represents 20% of world pork trade. In 2012 Canadian pork was exported to over 100 countries. •
Canada Pork International (CPI) Welcomes the Signature of the Canada-Honduras Free Trade Agreement
Canada Pork International (CPI) was pleased that the Government of Canada, represented by the Honourable Ed Fast, Minister of International Trade, in early November signed the Canada-Honduras Free Trade Agreement. CPI is also pleased that in addition to the FTA, the Honourable Gerry Ritz, Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food, announced that Honduras has approved Canada's pork inspection and certification systems, allowing exports of all pork from Canadian federally registered establishments, effective immediately.
"CPI and its members fully appreciate that the FTA with Honduras restores our access to the Honduran market which we estimate to be worth between $5 and $7 million in the first full year of the FTA," says Jacques Pomerleau, President of Canada Pork International. "The Canadian pork industry is very dependent on export market sales as more than 60% of its production is exported outside of Canada and our industry needs to have an improved access to all possible markets to remain competitive."
Canada is the world's third largest pork exporter. In 2012, Canada exported 1.19 million tonnes of pork products, worth $2.8 billion to more than 100 countries. For the first eight months in 2013, they amounted to 778,566 tonnes, worth $2.05 billion. •
Mandatory Pig Movement Reporting Starts July 1, 2014
The Chair of the Canadian Pork Council's (CPC) Identification and Traceability Committee expects mandatory movement reporting of pigs to begin in the summer of 2014.
"CPC and its provincial member organizations are preparing for the regulatory amendment to the federal Health of Animals Regulation, which is expected to announce July 1, 2014 as the official coming into force date," stated Oliver Haan, Chair of CPC's ID and Traceability Committee.
"CPC's PigTrace Canada program aims to provide animal health and food safety officials with the best possible information regarding pig identification and movement by requiring anyone handling pigs to report movement information within seven days," added Mr. Haan. "Mandating PigTrace through federal regulation is an important step towards building a successful system that responds quickly to disease outbreaks and food safety emergencies."
Proposed amendments to the Health of Animals Regulations were first published by the Government of Canada during the summer of 2012. CPC and its partners have since worked with the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) on an appropriate timeline to implement the traceability program under federal law. July 1, 2014 sets a reasonable timeframe to allow the CPC and its provincial member organizations to launch the program.
CPC's Chair, Jean-Guy Vincent, stated that recent discussions at CPC's fall meeting in Ottawa confirmed that pork industry leaders continue to support the full implementation of traceability through the PigTrace Canada program. Mr. Vincent told members, "CPC has been working on the development of PigTrace since 2002. I'm happy to see how much the program has grown, and am excited that it will soon be implemented right across Canada."
CPC will initiate a comprehensive outreach campaign on PigTrace in January 2014, once program funding is solidified. Mr. Haan notes "CPC has developed a variety of movement reporting tools that will allow pork producers to choose the format and technology that works best for them. We are working with federal and provincial governments and our industry partners to make sure program requirements are clear for all stakeholders."
For more information on PigTrace and producer requirements to report animal movement under the regulations starting July 1, 2014, please visit www.pigtrace.ca •
Unified Canadian Stance on Need for Resolution of U.S. COOL
The Canadian Pork Council is extremely pleased to be party to unified efforts between Canadian governments at both the federal and provincial levels, and the Canadian livestock industry, to communicate our collective determination to achieve a permanent resolution of the country-of-origin labelling dispute with the United States.
The CPC, along with the Canadian Cattlemen's Association, was represented in a Canadian delegation led by Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food Gerry Ritz and which included three provincial agriculture ministers – Manitoba Agriculture, Food and Rural Initiatives Minister Ron Kostyshyn, Saskatchewan Agriculture Minister Lyle Stewart, and Alberta Agriculture and Rural Development Minister Verlyn Olson – who met with U.S. meat industry leaders at the annual North American Meat Association (NAMA) Outlook Conference in Chicago.
The CPC continues to work closely with the Government of Canada in a WTO dispute process which began in 2009 and which in 2012 found the U.S. to be out of compliance with its international obligations in how it administers country-of-origin labelling.
Minister Ritz, in his remarks to U.S. industry leaders in Chicago, left no doubt that Canada is prepared, if necessary, to impose retaliatory tariffs on U.S. exports to Canada if the United States fails to come into compliance with its WTO obligations on COOL. However, it is our view that a resolution to the COOL issue is available now through the Farm Bill currently being debated in the U.S. Congress and the CPC remains hopeful that the United States, rather than the WTO, will take the lead to resolve this issue and to restore the open border conditions which history shows have been mutually advantageous in positioning the North American livestock and meat industry to compete most favourably in the world meat market. •
Olymel is Committed to Supporting the National Chair in Swine Welfare
Olymel management announced in late October that it is committed to supporting the work of the future National Chair in Swine Welfare over a five year period with a financial contribution of $15,000 per year. "Olymel believes that because the research findings of the new National Chair in Swine Welfare are focussed on animal welfare regardless what production systems are in use, they should benefit all stakeholders in the Canadian hog industry—producers, veterinarians, processors and distributors. Retailers and consumers should also benefit from the pooling of efforts by the industry and the Chair's researchers, as several groups have called for changes in production practices in recent years," notes Olymel CEO Réjean Nadeau.
The Chair will conduct research jointly with the University of Saskatchewan and the Prairie Swine Centre in Saskatoon, and its work will be funded equally by contributions from member companies of the Canadian pork industry and grants from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada.
"Olymel believes that its contribution to financing the work of the new research chair will promote best practices throughout the pork industry. The development of advanced scientific research programs will better address the current challenges of hog production, animal welfare, and thus improve the production sector's substantiality. This initiative will also strengthen an industry that makes a significant contribution to Canada's economic development and innovation in the agrifood sector, job creation, as well as the reach of Canadian expertise and products worldwide," Mr. Nadeau said in closing. •
Canadian Pork on the Menu in the EU
The Canadian Pork Council (CPC) is extremely pleased with the recent announcement that Canada and the European Union (EU) finalized the terms of the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) and will seek authorization from their respective parliaments to implement the deal. In addition to securing free access for processed pork products on the day this new agreement takes effect, Canada will acquire a quota volume equivalent to over 80 thousand tonnes of pork cuts.
"The pork industry appreciates the government pursuing our access interests to the very end." stated CPC's Chair Jean-Guy Vincent. "The Canadian and EU markets for pork complement each other and this relationship holds great potential to enhance our sector's export opportunities, as well as benefit workers, businesses and families who rely on the pork sector for their livelihood."
Canada's pork industry exports two-thirds of its production. The diversification in export marketing opportunities is crucial to maintaining this important industry. Canada currently imports a significant volume of high value pork ribs from the EU and the pork industry sees the market opportunity for shipping hams and other pork cuts to the EU.
"Our current exports of pork cuts to the EU are virtually non-existent. This is not because our prices are uncompetitive but instead is due to tariff and non-tariff barriers to entry into the EU market which CETA will now address" added Vincent. "CETA will provide the Canadian pork sector meaningful access to the EU market and an estimated economic return far greater than the projected export value when factoring in the additional economic development stimulated by the increased feed grain production, meat processing and distribution activities generated by these new sales of Canadian pork.
Improved access will occur in stages and allow the Canadian industry to build up its supply potential and provide exporters the opportunity to maximize the value of each product shipped in the global pork market. "Based on existing market intelligence and the anticipated market opportunities for specific cuts of pork, this deal could, in a few short years, lead to annual sales of 400 million dollars", added Mr. Vincent who raises hogs in Sainte-Séraphine, Québec.
Canada has been exporting pork for over 100 years. We are known all over the world as a supplier of safe high quality pork. Annual Canadian pork exports amount to approximately 1.2 million tonnes with a value of well over 3 billion dollars. Canada is the third largest pork exporter in the world. The EU is the only important pork-consuming market for which the Canadian pork industry has had little real access with a population of 500 million people consuming over 20 million tonnes of pork. •
Canadian Pork Industry Pleased With the Chileans Commission Decision
The Canadian Pork Council (CPC) and the Canadian Meat Council (CMC) were pleased to announce that the Government of Chile has decided to reject demands for safeguard measures on imports of frozen pork. ASPROCER – the Chilean producer association had requested an import surcharge of 14.3 per cent on imported frozen pork. This threat to Canadian exports had been neutralized and removed.
Chile has become an important growing market for Canada which is the second largest foreign supplier of frozen pork in that market. From January to August 2013, Canadian exports reached more than 7,500 tonnes valued at over CDN $17 million. Exports in 2013 will be considerably higher than 2010 which at 6,603 tonnes for full year 2010 was a good year for Canadian exporters.
CPC and CMC participated in the safeguard investigation conducted by Chile's National Commission to Investigate the Existence of Distortions in the Price of Imported Merchandise and made submissions about the inconsistency of the ASPROCER petition with WTO rules and the absence of the evidence of serious injury required to support an affirmative finding.
CPC and CMC are pleased with the thorough and objective manner in which the Commission conducted its inquiry and analysis.
Canada and Chile have benefited from a Free Trade Agreement that entered into force in 1997 and was updated earlier this year. Canada's ability to grow and diversify its pork exports has been enhanced by the Canada-Chile FTA.
CPC and CMC roles include advocacy to maintain and expand Canadian pork exports around the world. The outcome in Chile is one example of their efforts to assist the Canadian pork industry maintain its hard won market access. •
Danbred North America Renamed DNA Genetics
Leading swine genetics company Danbred North America now runs under the new name DNA Genetics and a new focus, while remaining under the same independent US ownership.
"DNA Genetics will use our Danish genetics as its foundation, but we are now independent of Denmark's genetic program," says Brett Bonwell, CEO of DNA Genetics. "Operating independently of Denmark gives us the ability to focus on the traits and economic value that are most important to the profitability of our North American customers. The result will be providing customers with the best genetic value for greater gains and improved performance."
The separation from the Danish genetic system is an amicable one. "It came down to the fact that our business approach and how we deliver economic value for our customers no longer matched theirs," he states.
The company is ready to operate independently. "We have always been set up to run separately in the case of a trade barrier or disease outbreak, so while the circumstances are different, we are ready to provide a seamless transition for our customers," he says.
The biggest change? Trait selection will now be based solely on a North American economic model instead of a European model of production. The company is investing US$5 million to move the current genetics to a new level for the North American market. This includes investments in database development, people, and the new, state-of-the-art InSight Performance Center. InSight, set to be fully operational by 2014, will be equipped to measure feed intake, with more than 2,000 boars on-test at any given time, surpassing the capability of the Danish system. •
Hoof Trimming Sows Pays Dividends
A researcher at the Prairie Swine Centre says preliminary results indicate that trimming sow's hooves pays dividends in terms of lower culling rates and bigger litter sizes.
But Dr. Yolanda Seddon cautions that hoof trimming was only one of several factors involved in the trials, so hoof trimming alone may not be a huge benefit.
She says lame sows don't do well. Often it's because they are in pain, they show a reduction in feed intake and they lose weight.
There can be fewer pigs born to lame sows, more piglet deaths in the farrowing crate because the sow is unsteady on her feet and less milk because she's not eating enough.
Some lame sows don't want to get up and eat as much.
When lame sows need to be culled during gestation there's the challenge and loss involved in euthanizing her and then the gap that leaves in the production stream. •
— By Jim Romahn
MPC in Ottawa to Talk Hog Stabilization
Manitoba Pork Council continues to work hard on programs to move the industry forward. As you may recall, earlier this year they made a proposal to the Government of Manitoba for a provincial hog stabilization plan to create long term viability in the industry. At that time, Manitoba Premier Greg Selinger indicated that he would consider supporting MPC's plan if they can obtain federal support.
In late October, MPC GM Andrew Dickson and Karl Kynoch MPC Chairman, along with their MNP financial advisors, presented our three-pronged proposal to a number of Members of Parliament and federal government officials. We also briefed the Canadian Pork Council on the approach.
They were encouraged by the initial responses to their plan in Ottawa, and now await positive feedback and further opportunities to meet and discuss the proposal. •
FCC Extends Young Farmer Loan Program
Farm Credit Canada (FCC) has extended its loan program designed to help young farmers purchase or improve farmland and buildings.
"Young people are seeing a bright future in agriculture and we share that vision," said FCC President and CEO Greg Stewart. "We listen to our customers and are committed to developing products and services tailored to young farmers and the unique needs of the agriculture industry."
Launched in March 2012, the Young Farmer Loan Program offers qualified producers who are under 40 years of age loans of up to $500,000 to purchase or improve farmland and buildings.
The loan includes features and options that address this demographic and support their long-term success, including variable rates at prime plus 0.5%, a special fixed rate and no loan processing fees.
FCC has approved more than $500 million in loans since the program was announced, and is now doubling its commitment to $1 billion for lending to young farmers.
"A strong agriculture industry is vital to the long-term prosperity of the country, so it's great to see the continuation of this financing option," Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz said. "The very presence of FCC provides confidence and security for both FCC customers and non-customers to expand their operations and move the agriculture industry forward."
The Young Farmer Loan enhances FCC's suite of existing products and services that support young producers, such as the FCC Transition Loan, FCC Ag Knowledge Exchange events, FCC Publications, FCC on Campus, and FCC Management Software for both accounting and field management. In 2012-13, FCC approved $2.3 billion in financing to farmers under age 40, contributing to record disbursements of $7.7 billion to help customers expand or start their operations.
For more information on the FCC Young Farmer Loan, visit www.fcc.ca/youngfarmerloan or producers can call the local FCC office at 1-800-387-3232. •
Stewart Cressman Re-elected
Stewart Cressman of New Dundee has been re-elected chairman of Swine Innovation Porc and Normand Martineau vice-chairman during the organization's annual meeting in Edmonton.
Cressman is also chairman of the Agricultural Research Institute of Ontario and SIP) would like to congratulate Messrs. Stewart Cressman vice-chairman of the Livestock Genetics Advisory Board and a member of the Ontario Swine Health Advisory Board.
He has been a beef and hog farmer on the family farm he took over in 1980.
Cressman said Swine Innovation Porc has been effective through its membership in Swine Cluster 1 and now is about to transition to Swine Cluster 2.
The Board of Directors of Swine Innovation Porc has nine members:
• Beth Clark, pork producer representing Ontario Pork
• Stewart Cressman, pork producer representing the Ontario pork sector
• Neil Ketilson, representing the Saskatchewan Pork Development Board
• Jean-Paul Laforest, Chair of the Science Advisory Body
• Normand Martineau, pork producer representing the Les Éleveurs de porcs du Québec
• Danielle Pettigrew, representing the Quebec pork sector
• Daryl Possberg, pork producer representing Alberta Pork Industry Services
• Mike Teillet, representing the Manitoba Pork Council
• John Webb, representing the Pork Value Chain Roundtable •
— By Jim Romahn
Prinova Animal
Nutrition Signs New Canadian Distribution Agreement
Prinova Animal Nutrition of Carol Stream, Illinois is pleased to announce a distribution agreement with WLT Distributors Inc. of Winnipeg, Canada. In this agreement, WLT Distributors Inc. will be the Canadian distributor for the Crest Flavor palatability products.
WLT will maintain and represent Canada-wide inventory of registered feed flavor products for manufacturers of commercial livestock, pet, equine and wildlife feed products.
ITSI New Distributor for MiniTube
International
Insemination Technics and Supplies International Inc. know as ITSI was honoured to be the representative of Reproduction Provisions LLC of Walworth Wisconsin and Minitube International AG of Germany. Reproduction Provisinios is pleased to announce that a agreement with Minitube International to act as their distributor in the US and Canada for their animal artifical insemination and embryo transfer equipment & supplies. This new relationship will provide a new convenient opportunity for customers to obtain AI products produced by Minitube International AG, Germany. •
Working Together Drives New Canadian Advantage in Farm Animal Care
Consensus-based approaches and innovative models for continual improvement are helping Canada take charge as a leader in managing the rising expectations and new opportunities around farm animal care.
This was the picture that emerged through discussions of achievements, challenges and future directions at the National Farm Animal Care Conference Oct. 9-10, 2013, in Ottawa. The conference featured a range of leading speakers on the front lines of the latest developments and thinking related to livestock welfare. In attendance were 140 participants from across the agriculture and food value chain as well as others with an interest in farm animal care.
The centerpiece of Canada's progress the past several years has been the development of updated Codes of Practice for the Care and Handling of Farm Animals. Five Codes have been completed – dairy cattle, mink, fox, equine, and beef cattle. Two more are far into the process – pigs and sheep. And two more have recently started – chickens-turkeys-breeders and poultry-layers. Complementary to this is a more recent focus on developing an Animal Care Assessment Framework, designed to provide industries with a credible process to follow when developing an animal care assessment program. •