Welcome showers were experienced across most states this week, with light falls over much of NSW, Queensland, the NT and northern WA. Isolated regions of Victoria, Tasmania and south eastern SA received decent rain, from 25 to 50 mm, which assisted sheep markets.

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His family said the "black dog" of depression had already sapped his spirit and now he sits in a chair all day, his short-term memory gone.

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Numbers at Toowoomba this week increased with the majority of young cattle selling to a cheaper market, while a reduced number of restocker buyers were present. Medium weight C2 vealer heifers to feed were 2ȼ cheaper on 143ȼ, while heavy C3 yearling steers to feed dropped 3ȼ to average 152ȼ/kg. Light D2 yearling heifers to slaughter were 9ȼ dearer, making 129ȼ, while light D1 cows to processors were unchanged on 65ȼ/kg.

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A NEW political party that wants to ban live exports and rodeos and heighten animal welfare awareness in Canberra has demanded federal Agriculture Minister Joe Ludwig’s resignation.

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STATE forests and national parks could be opened to grazing in Queensland to help desperate cattle farmers.

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With rainfall recorded around parts of the state cattle numbers dropped 25% at MLA NLRS markets week-on-week. Wagga and Goulburn were the exceptions as Wagga increased 20% and Goulburn lifted 5%. All other selling centres lost numbers with Dubbo yarding 2,000head less, while consignments at CTLX Carcoar dropped 1,000 head compared to the previous market. Gunnedah yarded 48% less as the Hunter markets both penned fewer cattle, with Scone easing 42% and Singleton penned 50 head less. The northern sales of Casino and Armidale along with Inverell all yarded significantly fewer cattle.

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Eastern states cattle prices were generally weaker this week, despite widespread showers across most of the country.

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Unseasonal rainfall in the north

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THE proliferation of city-based activists lining up to attack traditional food production systems due to environmental fears or animal welfare concerns are saddling agricultural industries with red tape and increased costs.

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The 2013-14 Budget strengthens the foundation of Australian agriculture, prepares our farmers for future challenges, and lays the groundwork for the opportunities for rural Australia in the Asian Century.

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Export goat rates were mostly unchanged in recent weeks, with all categories averaging 183¢/kg cwt. Lighter weight goats are being turned off earlier.

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THIS week the ABC's 7.30 broadcast footage of the shocking abuse of cattle in an Egyptian abattoir.

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With the sustained higher lamb slaughter, skin supplies remain high for this time of year. While raw skin types are holding firm, quality is very mixed, but good quality types are still making a premium. Demand from overseas markets still remain lacklustre.

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TWENTY-THREE studs from as far afield as South Australia are battling it out at the 2013 State Sheep Show in Roma. The two-day show has attracted 132 Merino and Poll Merino sheep from 14 Queensland studs, eight NSW based studs and one South Australian stud.

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ONE of Australia's largest landholders and cattle producers, the North Australian Pastoral Company, has been offered for sale.

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A POLITICAL pamphlet published by the Liberal Party lists the $100 million rescue package for the cattle industry as an example of Labor Party "waste".

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Feeder cattle rates eased again this week, with the ample supply of suitable cattle continuing to impact the market. Mid-fed and long fed prices have also reportedly retreated due to the increased supply.

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In the first three hours of trade, share prices rose almost nine per cent with a turnover of almost a million shares.

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THE wool market kicked 26 cents a kilogram last week and industry experts are tipping this upward trend could continue.

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PRODUCERS are being warned to make sure their animals are in a fit condition to travel before being transported.

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DELIVERING stock from point A to B safely, efficiently and meeting animal welfare obligations is the responsibility of both the livestock transporter and the producer, according to Wedderburn Transport principal and Livestock and Rural Transporters Association (LRTA) committee member Mark Talbot.

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Federal food inspectors will now allow a much broader geographic definition in food marketers' use of the word "local" while the label claim undergoes regulatory review.

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The federal government is closing Agriculture Canada offices in Melville, Watrous , North Battleford and Weyburn.

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China stoked a soybean market debate by estimating its imports of the oilseed next season at 66m tonnes – a record high, but well below the a US forecast which has raised eyebrows among traders.

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Zhongpin Inc., one of China’s leading pork processing companies, is preparing to spend millions of dollars expanding its facilities over the next year.

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New Zealand’s meat exports are being blocked at the border into China with authorities apparently rejecting them because of a name change on an export certificate.

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The wholesale price of chickens grew 0.1 per cent week on week, after declining for seven consecutive weeks.

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At a high-level conference organized with the Irish Presidency, Copa-Cogeca and other key stakeholders presented detailed views on the EU Commission package designed to strengthen animal and plant health, seeds and safety measures in Europe.

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Scientists say flu infections are rising among pigs raised for slaughter on farms in south and southeastern China, which is also plagued by bird flu.

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It smacks of elitism and privilege while sounding like something beyond the bounds of ordinary people. So-called business schools internationally have hijacked it as a product only they can deliver to students at exorbitant costs. It needs to be overhauled and made accessible in a different way.

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The weather continues to be a major factor in stock management. Despite the fact that we are half way through May for some grazing conditions are very difficult.

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Speaking at the launch of the results in Dublin last week (Tuesday, 14 May), Dr Thia Hennessy, Head of the Teagasc National Farm Survey said: “While agricultural commodity prices remained relatively favourable in 2012, the inclement weather adversely affected production costs and crop yields. In particular, dairy farms were impacted by the wet summer and direct costs of production increased by 21 per cent.” She also stressed that “many farmers depleted their stock of winter fodder early last autumn and this is likely to have further negative implications for income this year.”

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Most farmers faced a new and unpleasant experience this spring. They never thought that feeding minimum grass and other forage with concentrates would be a major topic in April.

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A small ad on a Saturday in March saw sustained interest in a 40-acre holding on the outskirts of Clonakilty, Co Cork, so much so that the land is now sold.

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The Jamaica Broilers Group has invested more than $300 million to construct a new processing plant at Spring Village, St Catherine, to relocate its Further Processing Facility from Content, Bog Walk, in the parish.

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Quarantine measures have been imposed in the east of the country following the confirmation of a foot and mouth disease outbreak in the village of Akshoka.

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Cattle markets

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In recent times, there has been a renewed interest in traditional breeds such as the Aberdeen Angus and Hereford on the back of bonus schemes currently in operation across the major plants in Northern Ireland.

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Finding a real topper of a young bullock dead in the field after turnout due to Tetanus or Blackleg is a financial shock that can be avoided. Tetanus, caused by C. tetani, is most commonly seen after routine tasks such as dehorning and castration.

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Finished steers went for 225p/kg last week, up 5p/kg on the week before with quotes bunching around 300-310p/kg and penalties of £150 per head for non quality assured cattle, according to market analysts at the Livestock and Meat Commission Northern Ireland.

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After a late-night session Wednesday, the House Agriculture Committee voted to approve a $940 billion farm bill, a day after the Senate passed its version, setting the stage for Congress to finally begin work on a new five-year bill.

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A £3 million investment in new accommodation at the Scottish government’s bull stud at Knocknagael, Inverness, was officially opened yesterday with politicians and farming and crofting leaders emphasising its potential contribution to Scotland’s beef industry.

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IT MAY be in short supply throughout much of the country, but demand for grass and indeed grass-fed raised and finished beef and sheep has soared since horsemeat DNA was first confirmed in some processed foods on sale in British supermarkets.

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The Scottish red meat industry is making its presence keenly felt in Hong Kong this week at HOFEX, the largest food and hospitality trade show in Asia-Pacific.

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A project on porcine circovirus by Dr Marina Sibila and Dr Segalés was awarded at the 6th edition of the European PCV2 Research Award sponsored by Boehringer Ingelheim.

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In an effort to expand the market for poultry products, Ugachick has launched a quality assurance laboratory.

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At this week’s Beef Expo 2013 (Thursday 23 May) farmers will be able to get information and advice from Natural England staff and see exhibits and meet representatives from other organisations on a joint ‘one-stop’ information stand.

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The NBA are pleased to announce that Beef EXPO 2014 will be held at Hexham Mart, Hexham, Northumberland on Thursday the 22nd of May 2014 with farm tours taking place the day before on Wednesday the 21st of May.

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The world’s first real live pig feed is broadcast on a large format outdoor advertising screen in London this week to raise donations and support for the farm animal welfare charity, Compassion in World Farming.

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HID Globa, a worldwide leader in secure identity solutions, today announced it will present its solutions for secure access control together with parent company ASSA ABLOY, under the Motto “Access your world” at IFSEC Birmingham.

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Limousin bull sale at Carlisle

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A new Pig Industry Scholarship at Harper Adams University is aiming to help raise the profile of the exciting range of career opportunities in the pig industry, covering the allied industries as well as pig production.

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Beef and lamb sector trends and developments will be highlighted at major industry event organised by EBLEX and agri benchmark.

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Farmers wondering whether to tag and register cattle have been told by State Veterinary Services that the cost is less than $33 a head.

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Farmland values in the U.S. Plains states rose 20 percent in the first quarter from a year earlier, with acreage commanding record prices because of red-hot demand for cropland in the world's biggest food exporter, the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City said on Wednesday.

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Chuck Storm of Mitchell, one of the shareholders in a new 5,000-head sow farm near Mount Vernon, S.D., said at an open house earlier this month that the model used in the operation is simply “modern pork production.”

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Wendy’s has a 99-cent problem, but it is not the complaint commonly heard in quick service that the brand’s value menu has too big a share of its sales.

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Ohio State University's agricultural research arm has spun out its first company into the related BioHio Research Park to produce diagnostic tools and vaccines that fight poultry and livestock diseases.

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Premium Standard Farms, a unit of Smithfield Foods’ hog production subsidiary, Murphy-Brown, announced it has changed its name to Murphy-Brown of Missouri, LLC, effective immediately.

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Omtron USA, which was being sued by chicken farmers prior to the company’s bankruptcy filing, has now turned the tables and filed a suit against the farmers.

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THE US DEPARTMENT of Agriculture (USDA) is forecasting a record global wheat crop this year, with a rise in plantings across the globe, but this bearish news had not brought back wheat prices in the past week.

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The AgGag lwas have bugger all to do with food safety you arsehole Seth

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Here are five nutrients that are very important for brain function and are only found in animal foods like meat, fish and eggs.

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Corn planting is substantially behind schedule but a good-weather window is opening, which is keeping prices lower.

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Burger King on Thursday will unveil its 2013 summer menu plans, highlighted by a new, limited-time BK Rib Sandwich, which is boneless like McRib — has a tangy sauce and comes with sweet bread and butter pickles. It will be sold nationally beginning May 21.

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Omaha-based ConAgra Foods will continue its effort to scale back the sodium in its products despite recent studies that challenge current government guidelines for a low-sodium diet.

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Plumrose USA has notified 100 workers at its deli meat slicing facility in Booneville, Miss., that they are losing their jobs. The remaining 320 workers will continue operations at the plant, Plumrose Chief Operating Officer Mike Rozzano confirmed to Meatingplace.

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Record-large U.S. corn and soybean crops will end three years of punishingly tight domestic supplies, the government said on Friday in a report that offered the brightest outlook in years for world food supplies.

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Some restaurant operators are scaling back expansion plans because of uncertainty about the expense of insuring employees under the new federal health-care law.

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Smithfield Foods Inc, the world's largest pork producer, said on Tuesday it will soon raise half of its hogs on feed that does not contain the additive ractopamine, a lean muscle promoting drug that has been banned in China and Russia.

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An influential government panel said there is no evidence that very low-salt diets prevent heart disease, calling into question current national dietary guidelines on sodium intake.

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A good doctor will not simply make a diagnosis based on measurements. The symptoms and complaints expressed by the patient are at least as important in making a determination as the data provided by diagnostic tools.

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A rapidly shrinking federal budget deficit is upending bipartisan talks to reach a federal budget deal, illustrating the conundrum Washington faces with an improving near-term fiscal outlook but continued longer-term pressures tied to aging baby boomers.

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Safeway Inc. (NYSE: SWY) announced the preliminary results of its stockholder vote at the company's 2013 Annual Meeting of Stockholders held yesterday.

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2011 is the most recent year for statistics on the growth of the organic industry worldwide, but here's an update.

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Bones star Emily Deschanel is encouraging moms to boycott cows' milk and embrace a vegan diet to show compassion for cattle.

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Microsoft founder Bill Gates spoke May 7 at an International Agriculture and Food Security Briefing sponsored by Farmers Feeding the World, a Farm Journal Foundation Initiative, and the Senate Hunger Caucus.

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Cattle slaughter and beef production in the US during the first quarter of 2013 was down on the same time last year, with lower volumes in February and March more than offsetting a relatively high January (US Department of Agriculture).

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Last Friday McDonald's confirmed it was dropping one of its most expensive menu items, the Angus Third Pounder burger, which has been a mainstay of the chain since its introduction in 2009.

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In an effort spearheaded by the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), and bankrolled by the Koch brothers and other corporate sponsors, state legislatures in most major agricultural states are being beset this year with so-called "ag-gag" bills -- repressive and misguided legislation that proposes to make it a crime to photograph or videotape operations at factory farms where animals are being raised.

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In a study comparing Salmonella and Campylobacter prevalence and concentrations on pasture-raised broilers processed on-farm, in a small USDA-approved slaughter facility and in a mobile processing unit, a high proportion of the carcases was found to be contaminated.

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Only a fraction of the nation's corn crops are in the ground, which is a significant change from last year. Planting continues but snow, rain, and storms remain an on going challenge for farmers. For example, only about 3% of the Nebraska's corn crop had been planted by Sunday, according to the Nebraska office of the National Agricultural Statistics Service. This is significantly down from 40% last year and the five-year average of 26%. This week crop specialists at UNL and neighboring universites in the Corn Belt offer recommendations and a review of historical data that show planting date often is not the key factor to yield response.

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Last Friday’s World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates (WASDE) for May from USDA indicate new crop production and 2014 carryout levels are largely in line with pre-report expectations. Only the soybean crop (raised 1.2%) was more than 1% different from the average trade guess. Corn, wheat and soybean carryout stocks (i.e., remaining at the end of the marketing year) for 2014 were all above the midpoints of their respective ranges, but not by enough to have large impacts on prices for now.

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Even if grilling season demand lifts beef prices this summer, high cattle costs will make it hard for JBS’ U.S. beef business to reach its full-year margin target, a Deutsche Bank analyst said following the company’s first-quarter earnings report.

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Federal prosecutors secretly obtained two months' worth of telephone records of Associated Press journalists in what the news agency described Monday as a “massive and unprecedented intrusion.”

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Wendy won't be serving you breakfast, but Ronald might offer it all day.

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A bipartisan group of Senators today introduced new legislation that would take a closer look at the use of drugs in food-producing animals and help to improve the ability of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to study the use of antimicrobial drugs in food-producing animals.

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Tyson Foods Inc. unveiled plans to introduce new products in 2013 as a significant part of its growth strategy.

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PETA recently issued a press release indicating they would begin to use remote controlled drone aircraft, like the one pictured here, to begin spying on and harassing hunters. Do you think a 12 gauge with a load of T-shot could take one of these rigs down?

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Philadelphia-based Aramark, the nation's largest food service company, has won a top award from an animal welfare group for its commitment to improve conditions for animals in its supply chain.

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Operating income of Seaboard Corp.’s Pork segment in the first quarter ended March 30 totaled $32,264,000, down 39 percent from $52,873,000 in the same period a year ago. Seaboard said the decrease was primarily a result of lower prices for pork products and higher feed costs, partially offset by a one-time credit of $11.3 million.

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Hormel Foods Corporation (NYSE:HRL) today announced the release of its 2012 Hormel Foods Corporate Responsibility Report, available online at www.hormelfoods.com/csr. This is the company’s sixth full report, which includes information on the company’s second set of environmental goals that span from 2012 - 2020 using 2011 as a benchmark. The report is self-declared Application Level B as confirmed by the Global Reporting Initiative.

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National Hog Farmer has been following the developing story behind the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) multiple disclosures to anti-agriculture activist organizations of thousands of records including the personal information of agriculture producers.

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The useless bastards at PETA should realise road accidents do happen

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Last summer a hedge fund trader told me he wasn't sure there was real money to be made trading grain. It didn't make sense to me then -- how could a smart speculator not make a few pennies during the great short-supply run-up? He argued down days cancelled the up days and a few other things along that line, but I'm starting to realize the full picture is much more complicated.

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Wal-Mart Stores here has reportedly filed a lawsuit against the United Food and Commercial Workers Union and an affiliated group, charging disorderly conduct in Los Angeles-area protests late last year.

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President Obama famously joked in a college commencement address in 2009 that he could use the IRS to target political enemies but of course he never would. It appears that people at the Internal Revenue Service didn't think he was joking.

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It’s no secret that the United States has a weight problem, but the numbers are staggering: More than a third of U.S. adults are obese.

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Every sausage sold by master butcher Bob Evans has been 175 years in the making

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Ukrainian pork in European, Chinese and Russian markets could replace the Brazilian products, which have recently been banned in these countries, Ukraine analytical company KSG-Agro CEO Serhiy Mazin told a local newspaper Kommersant-Ukraine in the recent interview.

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The results of a comprehensive assessment of food safety in retail deli, particularly regarding the threat of listeria contamination, are now available to the public, the USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service and the Food and Drug Administration announced.

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Early May provides the first look at the forage conditions facing the beef cattle industry in 2013.

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Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam has vetoed state legislation that would have mandated that anyone photographing animal abuse at a food animal facility report that abuse within 48 hours and submit any unedited photographs or video recordings to law enforcement authorities.

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After probing antibiotic-resistant bacteria in meat and poultry, Consumer Reports is now addressing concerns around mechanically tenderized beef.

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Kraft Foods’ Oscar Mayer brand announced five new hot dog innovations, including the Bacon Dog, which it said is the first of its kind.

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Beef jerky maker Distinctive Brands has filed for bankruptcy in Colorado, listing assets of between $500,000 and $1 million, and liabilities in the same range.

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Sitting on $400 million in cash and its spinoff from Sara Lee behind it, Hillshire Brands is looking to grow its business by acquiring complementary brands and extending its own iconic brands into adjacencies like it did with its Jimmy Dean brand, according to company executives.

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Profit margins for cattle feeders and beef packers moved in opposite directions last week, thanks to lower cash fed cattle prices and a rising wholesale beef market.

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