Canada increases beef imports on low supplies

Canada's beef imports from Australia and New Zealand have increased dramatically due to the continuing reduction in Canadian cow beef supplies.

There has been a 26,944-tonne shortfall in Canadian domestic cow production so far this calendar year compared to the same period in 2008, according to CanFax, the market analysis division of the Canadian Cattlemen's Association (CCA).

In the calendar year to July, Australian beef exports to Canada surged 104 percent on-year to 5,521 tonnes swt, while New Zealand beef exports jumped 90 percent on-year to 21,729 tonnes swt.

The Canadian herd as of January 1, 2009, totalled 13.2 million head, down five percent from the 13.9 million on January 1, 2008, and seven-percent below the herd in 2007.

The Canadian Cattlemen's Association forecasts the country's beef herd to contract to its lowest level in nine years by 2010, as producers battle drought, cheap pork supplies, and tough economic conditions.