George Groeneveld Is Not An Honest Man

[dfarms11]

Maybe it was just me procrastinating and not doing things until the deadline, but I knew my second cheque wouldn't be as much as the first. Heck, I didn't even know if I was going to bother with the age verifying my calves since I wasn't going to get much from the second cheque. But then I thought, well my family sure wouldn't mind a supper out as that is about all it would cover!

[grassfarmer]

Sean, I'm interested in this feedlot expansion in SK - what part of the province is it happening in?, what scale of lots are you talking about being built - huge scale or family farm sized lots? If these are large enough scale to compete with the AB ones who is building them and will they become custom feedlots for the existing packers in Canada or the US? If not this would surely mean an over building of feedlot capacity? Given the capital cost of constructing a modern feedlot I can't see much sense in building new ones in SK and leaving the ones here empty. The cost of regulation in AB would be substantially less than building a new feedlot elsewhere. I'm intrigued by this development

[grassfarmer]

Farmers_son,
Why the envy of the feedlot sector? this payment is obviously inventory linked so of course a guy with 10,000 head in a feedlot will get many times the payment a 200 cow/calf operator will get. I don't see anything wrong with that. And you can't say cow/calf operators have all the work to do to age verify and the feedlots have none. The feedlot sector has been movement recording since Jan. 1st if I'm not mistaken. On the other hand all you had to do was fill in the forms and apply for a premis ID as you were already age verifying your calves.
When you talk money, more is always good, but this was the easiest money I've earned in a while so I don't know what you are complaining about.

[smcgrath76]

GF - no argument our feeding capacity is overbuilt (and still growing). Lots in SK within the last 5 years are anywhere from 5000 or so up to 30,000 and growing. I know of two lots with combined totals of 60,000 head on feed beetween them that do not kill calves in AB.
A feedlot in SK can outbid the AB feedlot for SK calves. They don't have trucking to AB for feed or calves. It is not that it is overbuilt, but who has the advantage in the overbuilt stage.

[grassfarmer]

So how will these guys make out having to truck everything to the US for slaughter given the MCOOL restrictions on which plants/companies will buy/handle Cdn cattle?

[smcgrath76]

GF - I am sure the cattle will go where the highest bids are. Currently that is the US market. If it is AB then they will be harvested there. They just will not be fed in AB. It is still cheaper to truck the fat to kill than truck the calf and the feed.