CANADA LIVESTOCK NUMBERS DOWN.
The number of cattle, hogs and sheep on Canadian farms all declined in 2008 and the number of cattle farms also fell, Statistics Canada said Tuesday.
Overall, cattle producers reported 13.2 million head as of Jan. 1 this year, down 5.1 percent compared with same period a year earlier. The dairy herd fell 2.5 percent, while the beef herd fell 5.6 percent.
The beef herd shows no sign of rebuilding, as the number of cows is down 6..6 percent and the number of replacement heifers is down 9.7 percent, StatsCan said.
As well, at the end of 2008, there were 86,520 cattle farms, down 3.8 percent from the same period a year earlier.
Hog inventories were down 10.2 percent to 12.4 million, continuing a 3-year downward trend. Because of falling prices, the Canadian government implemented the Cull Breeding Swine Program in 2008 to pay hog producers to reduce the size of their herds, the report said.
Sheep and lamb numbers in Canada also fell 2.1 percent to 808,200 head in 2008.
Lamb and mutton production has slowed in recent years due to major challenges such as loss of export markets and domestic demand, the report said.
