Twelve youth gathered at the Calgary Stampede’s OH Ranch this fall for Steer Selection Day, the official kickoff to the Calgary Stampede’s 2025–26 OH Ranch Branded Beef Youth Ambassador Program. The day brought together this year’s ambassadors and their families for orientation, hands-on learning, and the key event: selecting the steer each youth will raise…
It’s not your average deck of cards. There are no kings or queens and the game involves as much talking as it does thinking. It can be played alone like solitaire, in pairs, as a family or with a team. Conversation cards they are called — and there are thousands of these decks found in…
One of the costs when selling cattle is shrink — pounds lost when cattle are stressed and emptying their bladders and digestive tract. The body weight of individuals may vary. Morning weights, when cattle are relatively empty, are less than mid-day or evening weights when the gut is full, unless they were held off feed…
KAYR Tremor crowned Agribition Supreme Champion Bull For the Phillips family of Kay-R Charolais of Waskatenau, AB, winning Supreme Champion Bull at Canadian Western Agribition is the culmination of more than five decades in the purebred business. Together with their partners, KFC Farms Ltd. of Abbotsford, BC, and Didsbury, AB, they led KAYR Tremor 7015L…
With the cows home and a bit of a lull before calving starts, there’s no better time to catch up on some opportunities with the Verified Beef Production Plus (VBP+) program. Applications are still open for the Alberta VBP+ Incentive. Thanks to $1.9 million in funding for VBP+ through the Sustainable Canadian Agricultural Partnership (Sustainable…
The World Meat Congress, held in Cuiabá, Brazil, in late October, provided a powerful and timely global perspective on the forces shaping the future of the animal protein sector to more than 600 meat industry leaders. Hosted by the International Meat Secretariat, the World Meat Congress focused on the global structural shift underway in how…
As Canadian beef producers, we take pride in our disease-free status and the global reputation of our livestock industry. Canada has been free of foot and mouth disease (FMD) since 1952, an achievement that has allowed us to maintain valuable export markets and consumer confidence. But this success shouldn’t breed complacency—it should motivate us to…
At the time of writing this message, U.S. trade is a very volatile situation. Rather than dive into that and risk it being out of date by the time you read this, I wanted to touch on more durable subjects. Rest assured that we are doing all we can on the U.S. market access front,…
As we come to the end of 2025, I’m sure you’re wondering what the new year holds for Alberta Beef Producers and its relationship with the Canadian Cattle Association (CCA). I am pleased to report that significant progress has been made since our August announcement of the intention of ABP to withdraw from the national…
It’s been a busy fall across the province, and like many of you, we’ve been taking things day by day. While we’ve managed to push forward several strategic initiatives, we’ve also had to dive into the weeds as new issues popped up, such is the nature of working on behalf of producers at ABP. One…
As beef producers seek practical tools to improve animal health, productivity, and welfare, stress mitigation has emerged as a key focus—especially during high-stress periods like weaning, transport, and feedlot processing. Among the newest strategies in stress management is FerAppease® (Fera Diagnostics and Biologicals), a maternal bovine appeasing substance (mBAS) marketed to reduce cattle stress responses….
As part of our 2025 ABP Magazine cover series, we’re featuring talented Alberta artists who capture the spirit of rural life. For our September issue, the cover artwork was painted by Kristin Kueber, an artist from Killam, Alberta. Kristin grew up on her family’s purebred Simmental cattle and grain farm, and that background inspires her…