February 19, 2004

Canadian Cattle, Calf Inventories At Record High

Canada's total cattle and calf inventories soared to record highs in the aftermath of global bans on Canadian cattle due to mad cow disease, according to figures released Wednesday by Statistics Canada.
 
As of Jan. 1, livestock producers had an estimated 14.660 million head of cattle on their farms compared with 13.488 million Jan. 1, 2003.
 
The government agency said its survey results reflected the impact of the ban on Canadian cattle following the disclosure of a single reported case of BSE on May 20, 2003.
 
The results do not reflect the subsequent discovery on Dec. 23, 2003 of a dairy cow in Washington state that tested positive for BSE. The origin of this dairy cow was traced to northern Alberta.
 
Herd sizes rose in all provinces as exports virtually collapsed following the ban, Statistics Canada said. The herd surged 16.0% in Manitoba, the largest increase, while Saskatchewan's went up 12.3% and Alberta's rose 6.9%.
 
The agency said farmers reported increased levels of cattle on cow-calf operations and backgrounding operations, while the number of animals held on feedlots dropped.
 
Western Canadian provinces account for almost three-quarters of the national herd, with Alberta alone representing 38.7% or about 5.7 million animals as of Jan. 1, 2004. A year earlier, Alberta's cattle herd had fallen 8.8% following two years of drought coupled with scarce feed supplies and high feed prices.
 
Canada's exports of cattle and beef meat to all countries virtually collapsed after the ban was imposed last May. The vast majority go to the U.S., Statistics Canada said.
   
For 2003, farmers exported 509,000 head of cattle to all countries, only 30% of the previous year's level. Beef exports fell almost 40% to an estimated 300,000 metric tons.
 
Canadian Cattle exports to the U.S. plunged 70%, while exports of beef to the U.S. were down 37%.