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Mark your calendar for the Alberta Beef Industry Conference

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The Alberta Beef Industry Conference is less than two months away, taking place at the Sheraton Red Deer Hotel from March 12-14, 2019.

The event is one of Canada’s largest beef conferences and trade shows, and provides an opportunity for the industry to come together to learn, to network and to discover the latest products and innovations.

As one of the five hosts of the conference, the Alberta Cattle Feeders’ Association is delighted to work alongside Alberta Beef Producers, Alberta Auction Markets Association, Alberta Livestock Dealers and Order Buyers Association, and the Western Stock Growers’ Association.

Once again, there is a line-up of speakers who have a wealth of industry or subject expertise to share. We look forward to hearing their insights on the industry’s most pressing issues. Here are some of the highlights:

Brad Wall: Western Canada’s Economy: Risks and Opportunities; Offense and Defense 

Brad will speak about the current political landscape and its impact on Western Canada.

Amber MacArthur and Marty Seymour: If the Future is Different Than the Past, is Your Business Ready?

Learn what your business needs to do to adapt to changing times.

Chief Clarence Louie: Cowboys & Indians – Causing Disruption to Create Economic Prosperity

Hear how he turned a bankrupt band into a multi-faceted corporation that employs hundreds of people.

Dr. Frank Mitloehner: Sustainability in Beef – the Nexus Between Productivity and Environmental Performance

A look at environmental mitigation opportunities, especially in the areas of carbon emission reductions, welfare and health.

Dr. Sylvain Charlebois: The Rise of the Conscious Carnivore? The Good, the Bad, and the Awfully Ugly

Advice on dealing with the vegetarian and vegan movements.

Marie-Noelle Desrochers: Trade Agreements That Matter for Canada

An insider’s perspective on governments’ approach to trade matters and the impact it has on the Canadian beef industry.

Brett House: Global Economic Outlook Amidst Rising Uncertainty

What’s ahead for the global economy.

Brett Stuart: Global Beef & Protein Outlook

A view of the global beef landscape, including international trade and health issues.

Brian Perillat: CanFax Market Update

The beef industry’s supply and demand dynamics, and current Canadian price trends.

Art Douglas: 2019-20 Weather Forecast

The upcoming forecast, and a discussion of the impact weather patterns have on the beef industry.

The ever-popular Danny Hooper returns as master of ceremonies, and comedian John Hastings will be entertaining us during the Taste of Alberta dinner on Wednesday evening.

Mark your calendars for another not-to-miss event – you can register here.

Trans-Pacific trade deal opens new markets for Canada’s beef producers

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A recently ratified agreement between the government of Canada and 10 other countries will provide tariff-free and/or competitive access to key markets in the Asia-Pacific region.

On Oct. 25, The Government of Canada became the fifth member nation to ratify the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP).

CPTPP countries that ratified before Canada were Japan, Mexico, Singapore and New Zealand. The sixth nation to ratify the deal was Australia on 31 October. Because the provisions of the agreement specify that it enters into effect 60 days after ratification by at least 50 per cent of the signatories (six of the eleven participating countries), it will come into force on 30 December 2018.

Canada’s agricultural producers had urged the federal government to be one of the first six to ratify the agreement, allowing Canada to benefit from the early rounds of negotiations and tariff cuts. For beef producers, early ratification is considered key to securing the best terms with the growing markets in Japan, Vietnam and Malaysia.

The Japanese market in particular holds huge potential for Canadian beef producers. The CPTPP will reduce the current 36.5 per cent tariff to 27.5 per cent on Canadian fresh beef and 26 per cent on Canadian frozen beef. Further cuts will eventually bring the tariff down to nine per cent for fresh beef, while frozen beef will ultimately be completely exempt.

The National Cattle Feeders’ Association (NCFA) and Alberta Cattle Feeders’ Association (ACFA) are delighted the Canadian federal government worked so diligently to ratify the deal. The government used a rare walk-around process to pass the 14 Orders in Council required to complete the process.

“Canada is a trading nation,” Jim Carr, Minister of International Trade Diversification, said in a statement announcing the ratification. “The CPTPP will add nearly half a billion consumers to the growing list of places where Canadian businesses can compete and succeed on a level playing field. The ratification of the CPTPP represents another important step toward trade diversification to help the middle class and those working hard to join it to compete and succeed in the global marketplace.”

Revised NAFTA agreement a relief to Canada’s beef producers

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Image Credit: KCL Cattle Company Ltd.

After more than a year of negotiations, Canada, the U.S. and Mexico have reached an agreement on NAFTA. The new, proposed agreement is called the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Trade Agreement (USMCA).

The agreement is good news for Canadian beef producers, as it preserves the duty-free trade in live cattle and beef, which has benefited all three partners under NAFTA. The existing rules of origin and the mechanisms for fair dispute settlement also remain intact.

Brian Innes, president of the Canadian Agri-Food Trade Alliance (CAFTA) issued a statement on the new agreement: “We welcome an agreement to renew NAFTA. Free and fair trade has made our agri-food exporters globally competitive. We’re very pleased that free and fair trade of North American agri-food products will continue.”

The U.S. is Canada’s largest trade partner for beef and live cattle, and the new agreement ensures that will continue. “USMCA gives the Canadian beef industry critically important ongoing access to our largest markets: U.S. and Mexico,” said Bryan Walton, ACFA’s president and CEO. “This is an integrated industry here in Canada and free trade in North America benefits producers in all three countries.”

Why diversification still matters

The uncertainty over NAFTA has been trying for Canada’s beef producers, and it has highlighted the need for Canada to expand its global reach and forge new trading partnerships.

Trade with Asia recently received a boost with the signing of the Comprehensive and Progressive Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP). Speedy ratification of this deal is of the essence for Canadian producers to ensure Canada is on the ground floor when it comes to securing lower tariffs with other partners. 

Europe is another market that provides export opportunities to Canadian beef producers. The Canada-European Union Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) is designed to encourage free trade between Canada and Europe, although Canada doesn’t currently fill its quota for beef exports because there are not enough Canadian packing plants qualified to send beef to Europe.

“The most important thing that we got out of reaching this USMCA agreement is we’ve removed most of the cloud of uncertainty that was hanging over the Canadian economy and discouraging investors from moving forward,” said John Weekes, former chief negotiator for NAFTA.

The pursuit of an ambitious international trade agenda is one of the key tenets of Canada’s National Beef Strategy, which is designed to ensure that Canada’s beef producers are positioned to weather challenges and take advantage of opportunities. You can read more about that in ‘4 reasons the National Beef Strategy is important to Canada’.

4 reasons the National Beef Strategy is important to Canada

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These are interesting times in the beef industry. Our producers face numerous challenges such as declining cattle numbers across the world and consumer concerns about environmental impacts and animal welfare. At the same time, new markets, including those in Asia and the Pacific region, are providing opportunities for industry expansion.

To ensure Canada’s beef producers are positioned to make the most of these opportunities — and overcome the challenges — industry organizations, including the National Cattle Feeders’ Association, came together to develop a National Beef Strategy. 

The goal of the strategy is to position Canadian beef producers for greater profitability and growth and to support their reputation for superior quality, safety, value, innovation and sustainable production methods.

The National Beef Strategy is based on four main pillars and goals:

#1 Beef Demand

To increase the value generated from each animal by 15 per cent. Recommendations include:

  • Product development and the use of under-valued cuts to maximize competitiveness
  • Building recognition and loyalty for the Canadian Beef Advantage brand
  • Pursuit of an ambitious international trade agenda
  • Increasing consumer confidence in food safety, quality and production practices
  • Communication of the sustainability message

 

#2 Competitiveness

To reduce cost disadvantages compared to main competitors by seven per cent:

  • Working with regulators to develop a supportive regulatory environment
  • Improving access to affordable resources such as skilled labour, animal health products, feed grains and forages and new technologies
  • Maintaining and enhancing research capacity
  • Continuous improvement in sustainability and efficient use of resources

 

#3 Productivity

To increase production efficiencies by 15 per cent through improvements in the following:

  • Genetic selection
  • Research and development
  • Enhanced information flow along the production chain through information technology and verification

 

#4 Connectivity

To improve communication within the industry and connect positively with consumers, the public, government and partner industries through:

  • Development of an industry communication strategy
  • Engagement with industry partners and stakeholders
  • Engagement with government, consumers, domestic and international organizations

 

“This strategy is something all stakeholders in the industry can buy into,” said Martin Unrau, co-chair of the National Beef Strategic Planning Group. “There’s strength in numbers and by working together we will build a stronger and more robust industry capable of meeting and responding to the opportunities now and into the future.”

You can read more about some of the challenges facing cattle feeders in ‘Pressing cattle feeders issues discussed with politicians during Ottawa trip’.

Finances are among Cattle Feeders’ top issues

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Ryan Kasko, ACFA’s new board chair, talks in this blog about priority issues for the upcoming year.

Non-refundable checkoff

ACFA is working on a plan to collaborate with Alberta Beef Producers to build a new path forward that would include an Alberta Beef Industry Development Fund, Ryan said.

“We will be asking producers to vote in a plebiscite this fall to return to a non-refundable checkoff,” he said. “The money generated will be used to finance marketing activities, research and other projects that will benefit the Alberta beef industry.”

Ryan said the Alberta Livestock and Meat Agency (ALMA) used to provide $20 million for industry research and marketing initiatives. The funding has been eliminated, so it is hoped the checkoff proceeds will at least partly offset the lost funds. “We’re hoping to work with the government to show the value this investment is providing, and to hopefully get more government funding,” he said.

Farm safety

The association is also heavily invested in making sure its members understand recent changes to the Alberta Labour Code. “We’re offering a feedlot safety program to ACFA voting members so that feedlots can get up to speed on farm safety, specifically in reference to those changes,” Ryan said.

Trade

NAFTA is at the top of cattle feeders’ minds. “Although we’re not directly involved in negotiations, we work alongside the National Cattle Feeders’ Association and the Canadian Cattlemen’s Association to support them in their efforts to make sure the beef industry remains part of NAFTA.”

Looking for a new CEO

Bryan Walton, ACFA’s president and CEO, will retire this fall, and a search for a replacement has started.

“We will be sad to see Bryan go,” said Ryan. “He’ll be a hard person to replace. But at the same time, any change provides an opportunity for new ideas, and we’re looking forward to that process.”

You can learn more about Ryan and his work as a cattle feeder in an earlier Meet the team post.

Cattle feeders’ Christmas crossword puzzle

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We hope you had a wonderful Christmas filled with plenty of fun, family, friends and good food. In the spirit of the season, we’re having some fun with this week’s blog post – print out and fill in the crossword puzzle below to find out how much you know about the business of cattle feeding.

Hint: the answers can all be found on the website, but if you have any trouble tracking down the answers, just click the link in each clue for the information you need.

Cattle feeders’ Christmas crossword puzzle:

Across

3. Grasslands help the environment by sequestering _______________
5. Burger restaurant that proudly supports Canadian beef and is helping build a verified sustainable program
6. A greenhouse gas emitted during the digestive process of cattle
8. Award-winning veterinarian (first name)
9. One of ACFA’s four strategic priorities
10. An under-serviced market that is crucial to the growth of Canada’s beef industry

Down

1. New beef processing plant where innovation is setting new standards
2. An organization dedicated to teaching students about agriculture
4. First name of ACFA’s CEO
7. Trade deal between Canada, U.S. and Mexico that has produced a strong, integrated beef industry

crossword puzzle

Did you find all the answers? If you’re missing any of the answers, you’ll find them below. In the meantime, we wish you all the best of the season. See you back here in the new year!

 

Across answers:

3. Carbon

5. McDonalds

6. Methane

8. Joyce

9. Collaboration

10. Europe

 

Down answers:

1.Harmony

2. InsideEducation

4. Bryan

7. NAFTA

Pressing cattle feeder issues discussed with politicians during Ottawa trip

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Parliamentary Secretary for Trade, General Andrew Leslie addressing attendees at a townhall sponsored by University of Alberta and Global Affairs Canada.
Photo Credit: Casey Vander Ploeg

Last month, representatives of the Alberta Cattle Feeders’ Association headed to Ottawa to participate in a series of meetings between the National Cattle Feeders’ Association (NCFA) and Canadian politicians.

The meetings provided an opportunity to put the issues and challenges facing Canada’s cattle feeders in front of key members of government. The critical issues discussed included:

    • Labour: Changes are needed to the Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP), so cattle feeders and beef processors can access desperately needed workers.  Employers are currently forced to endure a lengthy and convoluted process rife with red tape and changing requirements, which takes many months to complete.
    • Infrastructure: Significant funding is needed to upgrade rural infrastructure, particularly roads and bridges. Current investment is heavily swayed to urban areas, but it is the rural areas where much of the economic activity occurs, including mining, agriculture, oil and gas, and transportation.
    • NAFTA: A successful outcome to the negotiations is needed to encourage and facilitate international trade. 
    • TPP: Now called the Comprehensive and Progressive Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) – even though the U.S. has now left the partnership, it is important for our industry that Canada signs on and keeps the negotiated market provisions as they were before. 
    • EU trade: EU approval of Canadian food safety practices will enable us to start filling our tariff-free quota under the agreement. 
    • China: Canada needs the same access to China as the U.S. successfully achieved in June 2017. Following a recent agriculture trade mission to China by Agriculture Minister Lawrence MacAulay, bone-in beef will hopefully start moving soon and a pilot project will be created to export Canadian fresh-chilled beef.  While not the same access afforded to U.S. beef, it is a step in the right direction.

NCFA board meeting

During the same trip, an NCFA board meeting was held. Several influential officials attended to discuss pressing issues:

To learn more about other ways that ACFA advocates for Alberta’s cattle feeders, visit our Advocacy Page.

How a beef plant is setting a new standard in food safety

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A beef processing plant which opened this year just north of Calgary is setting new industry standards for food safety, animal care and environmental stewardship.

This week, we’re exploring the food safety innovations introduced at Harmony Beef, which opened in Balzac, AB., in February 2017.

Hazard analysis and critical control points

The management team at Harmony Beef is committed to meeting or exceeding the stringent requirements of the Canadian Food Inspection Agency’s Food Safety Enhancement Program.

One of the cornerstones of the program is HACCP System (Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points), a systematic approach to food safety that helps prevent, find and correct hazards throughout the production process.

At Harmony:

    • The plant and production protocols have been designed to meet European standards, which exceed those in North America.
    • Temperature control and air flow systems in the building were designed to control any potential microbial growth and prevent contamination.
    • Critical control points, where inspections and interventions take place, include everything from slaughter to packaging.
    • Supervisory and food safety personnel have the authority to enforce compliance with food safety systems on anyone entering and/or working in the facility.
    • All water used in the plant is treated, and the outflow exceeds Canadian drinking water standards.

Opening up a world of opportunity

Because the new plant demonstrably complies with European food safety standards, it provides the opportunity to increase our trade with EU countries.

International trade is crucial to the growth and sustainability of the beef industry, and to the contribution it makes to the Canadian economy. But, as you can learn in the blog post, Canadian beef in demand: feeding the European market and why it matters, Canada does not meet its tariff-free quota for beef exports to Europe. In the post, feedlot operator Jason Hagel says processing plants in Alberta tend to focus on the U.S. market, leaving the European market under-served.

You can read about another international trade issue concerning Canada’s beef producers in Canadian beef trade with China takes a serious blow.

In upcoming weeks, we will explore the high standards of animal care, including low-stress handling, and the environmental innovations introduced at the Harmony plant.

Canadian beef trade with China takes a serious blow

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Recent trade developments between China and the U.S. have some Canadian beef producers seriously worried.

Their concern stems from the disparity between the types of product China will now accept from the U.S. and those accepted from Canada:

    • Currently, Canadian producers are only allowed to ship boneless, Under Thirty Months (UTM) frozen beef and only from individual processing plants that have been audited and approved by Chinese officials and certified for export to China by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency.
    • China’s trade deal with the U.S. allows American producers to ship boneless beef, bone-in beef, chilled beef, and certain offals from any federally-inspected and approved processor.

Canadian beef producers already suffering the impacts

Producers and industry associations have written letters to Agriculture Minister MacAulay, as well as trade officials, to inform them of the impacts this has on the Canadian beef market. Producers are trading directly into China and have met all the requirements necessary for sale of beef into China – and this is a tremendous opportunity that may fail without similar access to that achieved by the U.S.

Some Canadian producers are selling their product under the branded ‘Farm Gate to Chinese Plate’ program, and have a custom processing contract with a large processing plant here in Alberta. These producers have invested substantial time and capital over the past four years to build a strong relationship with their Chinese partners. In 2016, 10,000 head of Canadian cattle were exported to China. Producers were looking forward to increasing that to 15,000 head in 2017, but their Chinese customers have informed them they may change the order, and want it for a lower price.

Canadian producers are selling product into China for high-end retail and restaurants, but they can only ship frozen, boneless product. The fact that the U.S. is now allowed to ship fresh or chilled bone-in beef puts Canadian producers at a distinct disadvantage in this marketplace. This may end trade with the Chinese for Canadian beef producers as a result.

Canadian trade with China

To date, China has expanded its acceptance of Canadian product in stages, where additional product lines are allowed access over time. For instance, China agreed to accept Canadian bone-in beef back in September 2016, but the agreement has not yet been finalized, so currently, no bone-in product is being shipped. However, the recent agreement with the U.S. shows that China can work on opening many beef product lines at the same time. The hope is that Canadian negotiators can secure the same treatment for Canada.

Canadian beef producers have expressed concerns over the fact that their industry depends on global trade – they need to be competitive for the growth and sustainability of their industry. China is a market where producers need the Canadian government to step up its efforts to gain access similar to that achieved by the U.S.

Learn more about Canada’s beef trade with China from Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada.

Canadian beef in demand: feeding the European market and why it matters

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Global trade is a mark of success for any business, and that holds true for the beef industry as well.

One market that has not reached its full potential is Europe, where Canadian beef is in high demand. To learn more about this market, and why more Canadian beef doesn’t head east across the Atlantic, we spoke with Jason Hagel of Hagel Feeders.

His feedlot is one of the few in Canada that feeds cattle bound for the European market. The business was started by Jason’s grandfather in the mid 1950s and now feeds about 5,000 head of cattle each year, in addition to a cow/calf operation comprising about 1,000 head. Hagel Feeders can be found just east of Linden, Alberta.

In 2005, Jason was approached by a group of ranchers who had started a brand called Prairie Heritage. They were looking for a feedlot for their beef, which was supplied to local restaurants and grocery stores. The brand was based on providing beef grown by certified beef producers, with an environmental farm plan in place, and without the use of growth promotants or antibiotics. Success in the domestic market was eventually followed by expansion into the European market. “Even though tariffs made the product expensive to the European consumer,” said Jason, “they were hungry for it. About one-third of our product was being shipped there.”

In 2014, the Prairie Heritage brand was sold to One Earth Farms, but Hagel Feedlots continues to feed the cattle.

The cost of European beef exports, and why they matter

The main requirement for export to Europe is that the beef must be produced without the use of growth promotants. “It costs about 18 to 22 per cent more to finish an animal without growth promotants,” explained Jason, “because they take longer to finish, and require more feed.”

The animals must also be segregated, and RFID technology is required to provide the data needed to guarantee that the animals have been raised and fed as stated.

“Nonetheless, it’s very important for Canada to stretch out her arms to countries other than the U.S.,” he continued. “We send the majority of our product down there and that reduces our bargaining power when it comes to price. We have two American packing plants in Alberta, which have no real interest in going to anywhere other than the U.S. because it’s easy and they can buy a premium product for a lower price.”

CETA and tariffs: beef industry implications

The Canada-European Union Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA), ratified in February 2017, is designed to encourage free trade between Canada and Europe. However, Canada already enjoys a tariff-free quota for beef exports. “Right now we don’t send much beef,” said Jason, “so we don’t even reach those quotas. It’s not because we don’t have the beef to send, but because there are not enough packing plants that are qualified to send beef to Europe.”

With the opening of Harmony Beef in Balzac, Alberta, later this month, that may well change. Stay tuned for an upcoming post in which we will feature this new business and discuss the implications for trade and for the Alberta economy.

Europe’s not the only market where our beef is in demand. Check out this earlier post to learn how people in 58 countries enjoy Canadian beef.