Latest news with #cattle
Reuters
8 hours ago
- Business
- Reuters
Nigeria imports Danish cows in bid to slash $1.5 billion milk import bill
ABUJA, June 2 (Reuters) - Nigeria is importing dairy cattle from Denmark as it aims to double its milk output within five years, part of a plan to cut dairy imports that cost the country $1.5 billion a year, Livestock Minister Idi Maiha said on Monday. Despite boasting one of Africa's largest cattle populations, Nigeria's milk output of 700,000 tonnes a year lags its annual consumption of 1.6 million tonnes. This shortfall means the country imports around 60% of its milk. "Our goal is ambitious but achievable; to double Nigeria's milk production from 700,000 tonnes to 1.4 million tonnes annually in the next five years," he said. Maiha said Nigeria's cattle population, exceeding 20 million, consists largely of low-yield pastoralist breeds. A Nigerian farm has already imported over 200 heifers from Denmark, building its herd through intensive breeding, Maiha said. So far, eight new pasture species have been registered, the first in 48 years, and a national strategy for animal genetic resources with support from the Food and Agriculture Organization has been launched, he said. "With over 20.9 million cattle, 60 million sheep, and 1.4 million goats already, we are not starting from zero, we are building from strength," Maiha said.
CTV News
8 hours ago
- Business
- CTV News
How flesh-eating screwworms in cattle could raise U.S. beef prices
CHICAGO -- New World Screwworm, a devastating parasite that eats cattle and other wild animals alive, is traveling north from Central America to Mexico and has crept past biological barriers that kept the pest contained for decades, experts said. Washington halted cattle imports from Mexico in May, citing the insect's spread further into Mexico, about 700 miles from the Texas border. With the U.S. cattle herd already at a multi-decade low, the closure could further elevaterecord-high beef prices by keeping more calves out of the U.S. cattle supply. What is New World Screwworm? Screwworms are parasitic flies whose females lay eggs in wounds on any warm-blooded animal. Livestock and wild animals are usually the victims. Once the eggs hatch, hundreds of screwworm larvae use their sharp mouths to burrow through living flesh -- feeding, enlarging the wound and eventually killing their host if left untreated. When screwworms infect a cow, a tiny scrape, a recent brand or a healing ear tag can quickly become a gaping wound, carpeted with wriggling maggots that put the entire herd at risk of infestation. Screwworms were eradicated from the U.S. in the 1960s when researchers began releasing massive numbers of sterilized male screwworm flies who mate with wild female screwworms to produce infertile eggs. Why does this matter to U.S. consumers? The U.S. typically imports over a million cattle from Mexico every year. The import suspension will likely contribute to rising beef prices by tightening the supply of beef cattle, which dwindled after drought forced ranchers to slash herds. U.S. beef prices likely also got a boost from a separate import suspension from Mexico over screwworms that lasted from November to February, experts said, and upward pressure on prices should persist through summer grilling season. Mexican cattle are usually fed and fattened on U.S. farms for five to six months before slaughter, and a diminished slaughter rate can elevate beef prices. Though the fly is hundreds of miles away from the border, any outbreak in the U.S. would further tighten the cattle supply and put other livestock and household pets at risk. Screwworms will even feed on humans if they can, said Dr. Timothy Goldsmith, a veterinary medicine professor at the University of Minnesota. Homeless people would be especially vulnerable to infestation because they sleep outside and have less access to hygiene products and medical care, Goldsmith said. What is being done to control the outbreak? A factory designed to breed and sterilize screwworms in Panama is releasing 100 million sterile flies every week, but experts say more factories need to come online quickly to choke off the fly's spread north. Screwworms cannot fly more than 12 miles on their own, but they can cover large distances while burrowed inside their hosts, said Sonja Swiger, entomologist at Texas A&M University. The flies have already passed through the narrowest stretches of land in Panama and Mexico, meaning exponentially more sterile flies need to be released to control the outbreak. On Tuesday, the U.S. Department of Agriculture announced it would invest US$21 million to convert a fruit fly factory in Mexico to produce sterile screwworms. The agency said the border will likely re-open to cattle imports by the end of the year. How could this impact American cattle ranchers? The USDA estimated a screwworm outbreak would cost the Texas economy $1.8 billion in livestock deaths, labor costs and medication expenses. After decades of eradication, most cattle ranchers no longer have the experience or tools to diagnose and treat screwworm. Infestations can be cured, but treatment involves removing hundreds of larvae and thoroughly disinfecting wounds, a time-consuming, pricey and labor-intensive process. 'This is a pest we don't want back. This is a bad thing,' said David Anderson, livestock economist at Texas A&M University. 'I can't imagine having to deal with that. It's gross.' (Reporting by Heather Schlitz. Editing by Emily Schmall and David Gregorio)
Yahoo
a day ago
- Business
- Yahoo
New Mexico cattle industry prepares and cattle imports paused as screwworm travels north
Jun. 1—A small, pale maggot about a half-inch long could cost New Mexico cattle ranchers greatly if it gets back into the country. One of the state's senators introduced new legislation to combat the New World screwworm fly, which has recently spread across Central America toward the U.S. At the U.S.-Mexico crossing in Santa Teresa, the pens supporting the nation's largest livestock entry point sat empty and eerily quiet Friday, with workers performing maintenance projects and catching up on paperwork at facilities normally bustling with thousands of cattle passing through daily. The U.S. Department of Agriculture closed the border to livestock imports after the screwworm was detected in the southern Mexico state of Chiapas in November. Imports resumed in February once the two countries established protocols for inspection and treatment. However, when screwworm was detected in Oaxaca and Veracruz, just 700 miles from the U.S., the USDA closed the border to imports once again on May 11. Unlike typical maggots, which feed on the dead, screwworm larvae feast on the living, meaning the fly larvae can do significant damage to cattle, even causing death. While New World screwworms overwhelmingly affect cattle, any warm-blooded animal can be susceptible to infestation, including livestock, pets, wild animals and people. The U.S. eradicated the parasites in 1966 and has worked with the Panama government to keep screwworms there in check, maintaining a buffer zone of several countries between U.S. ranches and the insects. But the New World screwworm population in Panama exploded in 2023, and last year's infestation in Chiapas prompted the U.S. to release $165 million in emergency funding to protect livestock, pets and wildlife. Some experts see a new U.S. infestation as inevitable. "It's not an 'if we're going to see it;' it's a 'when we're going to see it,'" said Bronson Corn, president of the New Mexico Cattle Growers' Association. "And unfortunately, I think we're going to see it sooner, much rather than later. Probably within the next three months, I would say, we're probably going to have it here in the United States." New Mexico has more than 10,000 cattle farms and ranches. The U.S. livestock industry benefits by more than $900 million a year because there aren't screwworms in the country, USDA estimates. Dr. Samantha Holeck, state veterinarian with the New Mexico Livestock Board, is preparing for the worst and hoping for the best by working to educate livestock producers on the New World screwworm and developing protocols for sample collection to make sure flies can be rapidly identified. "The challenge is, we've got very warm weather. The flies are able to move on their own, as well as with animal movement and things like wildlife that are going to move independently. We don't have control over how wildlife move. There are risk factors that still make it an imminent threat to the United States, even with a lot of good preventive strategies and surveillance in place," Holeck said. In the 1960s, New Mexico's livestock industry was heavily affected by the screwworm, she said. "A lot of our common management practices, even ear tagging potentially, can put an animal at risk, because any sort of fresh wound as small as a tick bite for example, can attract those female flies to lay eggs," Holeck said. "So once they have an opportunity to lay eggs in, those larvae begin to burrow in, because the larvae feed on live, healthy flesh." Left untreated, screwworms can cause traumatic injuries, are able to enlarge a wound and capable of even eating through bone. An untreated screwworm infestation could kill an animal within one to two weeks. Treatment with a dewormer like ivermectin can clear an infestation in a cow within two to three days. Livestock producers can usually identify an infestation by observing a rapidly expanding wound, signs of distress or pain in their animal, or by the foul smell of the wound. If screwworms are identified in New Mexico, the infested livestock will be thoroughly inspected and treated, Holeck said. They also won't be transported until free of screwworm larvae. Fly sterilization Female screwworms only mate once, so the strategy for managing the screwworm population has long been to produce sterile male screwworms and then release them into the wild. But, when the screwworm population was eradicated in the U.S., the country was producing sterile flies to release across a broad area. At present, the only sterilization facility is in Panama and is capable of producing hundreds of millions of sterile flies in a week. "If that facility were to go down, we'd be in a real big wreck," Holeck said. On Tuesday, Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins announced that the USDA is investing $21 million to renovate an existing fruit fly production facility in Mexico to produce 60 to 100 million additional sterile New World screwworm flies weekly. Sens. Ben Ray Luján, D-N.M., and John Cornyn, R-Texas, introduced a bill to authorize money for a new sterile fly production facility in the U.S. to combat the growing screwworm outbreak. The STOP Screwworms Act is cosponsored by Martin Heinrich, D-N.M., Ted Cruz, R-Texas, and Cindy Hyde-Smith, R-Miss. With bipartisan support, Luján is hopeful the bill will move quickly through Congress because of the urgent situation. "The last time that there was an outbreak, it devastated the cattle industry, beef prices and availability in the United States," Luján said. "This little thing is quite devastating." At the border, empty cattle pens The orange theater-style seating at the Santa Teresa Livestock Auction was empty Friday. Hay and feed were neatly piled and only a few head of cattle were penned together. General Manager Hector Alberto "Teto" Medina estimated that the pause on imports will affect producers in Mexico, who exported over $1 billion in livestock to the U.S. in 2024, but would have ripple effects throughout the U.S. food system and related business sectors — down to what consumers pay for groceries or dining out. "This is the hardest we've ever been hit on the U.S.-Mexico border," he said. "We're talking about employment for farmers that feed these cattle, ranchers, transportation companies, brokerage companies, federal workers, feedlots, processors, for plants that process the cattle into meat — all the way down to restaurants and all the way down to our plates." So far, he said he had no plans to lay off any of his staff, and was upbeat about a solution. "What's being done at the USDA is the correct thing to do," he said. "They are ensuring that our food supply is safe and clean. ... I wish it didn't have to affect us as much, but that's the way life is sometimes."
Globe and Mail
2 days ago
- Business
- Globe and Mail
Cattle have roamed Cambridge's city centre for hundreds of years. GPS is keeping the tradition going
The sight of cattle grazing in the parks and open spaces around Cambridge is as much a part of the scenery as the ancient colleges that make up the city's famous university. But the tradition that dates to medieval times nearly fell victim to budget cuts this year until officials found a 21st century solution – GPS-guided collars. Farmers have had the right to herd their livestock onto public land in Cambridge for centuries, and each spring and summer around 100 cattle roam around the city's medieval commons, fens and greens – including Sheep's Green, where Charles Darwin collected insects. They go about their grazing alongside merchants, tourists and scholars strolling through the University of Cambridge, and they've become a city attraction. But cattle also have a tendency to wander, and the Cambridge cows have been known to fall into the River Cam, which winds through city. Every year around four of the animals end up in the water, either from slipping, running into each other or being spooked. There's little risk of them drowning since the Cam is shallow and cattle are surprisingly good swimmers. But once they tumble in they can't climb back up the muddy riverbank, so they stand and wait to be rescued. That can take hours and requires a specialized farmhand called a pinder, plus usually the fire department as well. The city council spends £10,000 ($18,600) annually on a 24-hour pinder service to fish cattle out of the river. That's in addition to the £28,000 the council pays every year to maintain gates, grids and fences for grazing. The total outlay is far more than the £4,000 the city collects in annual grazing fees from farmers. Last November, city council faced a financial crunch and needed to find £6-million in savings from its £71-million budget. As part of the cuts, councillors proposed dropping the 24-hour pinder service and leaving it to farmers to pick up the tab. Meet SwagBot, the AI-powered robot cattle herder preventing soil degradation The proposal caused an outcry from residents and farmers, and put the future of the grazing into doubt. Farmers argued that forcing them to pay for the service would make using the commons uneconomical and they'd have to pull their cattle. The backlash led councillors to consider an alternative. They decided to fit the cattle with solar-powered GPS collars that emit high-pitch sounds as the animals approach a virtual fence. If they persist, the collar sends a mild electric pulse to train them to turnaround. The virtual boundary can be adjusted with an app, which farmers can also use to track the whereabouts of their cattle. The GPS system, developed by a Norwegian company called Nofence, has been rolled out on a trial basis. It costs a fraction of the on-call pinder. 'It works really well for what it's got to do,' said Mark Drew, who keeps 30 Hereford cattle on the commons and another 40 outside of town. 'We're tenant farmers. We don't own a lot of land ourselves, so we have to get grass wherever we can. It's nice to have a presence in Cambridge and it's not too expensive,' he said, adding that he pays the city around £50 a year per head. 'Our cattle tend to work quite well with the public as well because they are quite quiet.' Mr. Drew said a major benefit of the GPS system is that city officials can easily adjust the virtual fence when needed. For example, they can change the enclosure to protect newly planted flowers and gardens. 'Once they've flowered then they turn the fence off and the cattle can then go over those areas.' He's had far too many late-night experiences rescuing cattle from the water. One from his herd got stuck in the river near Darwin College a couple of years ago and managed to climbed onto a small island. 'It couldn't get back to the common because there was a vertical bank. So we had to, with the help of the fire service, lift it back across the the water channel.' It took most of the day to get the animal back on dry land, Mr. Drew said. 'If by using the collars we can avoid the cattle going near those watercourses in the first place, we can save all the hassle and aggravation of that.' Opinion: If supply management has to be killed, Canada's dairy industry will have to follow New Zealand's lead Angelika von Heimendahl, a local veterinarian who keeps 10 of her 50 cattle on the commons, said it's not clear how many cattle the collars have saved from the river. 'We're not 100 per cent sure whether it's dogs chasing them, or whether it just happens. If it's dogs, then the collars are not going to help.' But for now, she said, the collars have worked well and Cantabrigians and cattle continue to live side by side. Although it's people, she added, who give her greater concern. 'Cattle are still animals that need to chew their cuds and lie down and be able to relax. And I think people sometimes really push their luck how close they go, or try and touch them.'
SBS Australia
3 days ago
- Climate
- SBS Australia
‘Dead cows in the house': How floods devastated Australian farmers
Dairy farmer Kevin Schlenert says he's continuing to find cattle who were washed away in floodwaters. Some are turning up alive, but many are still being discovered dead far downstream. Source: SBS News Content warning: The story contains distressing images of dead animals. Brothers Kevin and Doug Schlenert have been lifelong dairy farmers, carrying on in the footsteps of three generations of their family. Floods that devastated the NSW mid-north coast last week destroyed their diary production facilities and killed at least 70 per cent of their herd. "I've got no dairy now to keep going. I don't know which way to turn at the current moment,' Kevin said, speaking with SBS News at his home in Glenthorne on Sunday. "I don't know if I can bounce back from this. I really don't know.' Kevin said the water rose so fast he became trapped inside his home for 24 hours before he was picked up in a neighbour's boat. "It raised very quick. I went to the steps [of my house] within half an hour, then all of a sudden, in an hour and a half it was at the windowsill. "I sat in my bedroom on the mattress where I was found floating. "I had my dog and cat on the mattress with me. I had to vacate out the window.' He said one heifer floated into the house, while he sat on his floating mattress. "One got into my bedroom. She was alive and swimming, and she wanted to climb on the mattress," Kevin said. What he saw when he returned shattered him. "I found three [cattle] alive in my house and five dead ones inside the house. I have removed them and buried them," Kevin said. "It's heartbreaking to see them because you reared them as babies, and you get attached to them." He said he found more dead cattle downriver and heard of more washed up on beaches. Kevin's story is one shared by many dairy farmers in the area. His brother Doug, who shares the property and dairy with Kevin and also lost livestock, says the entire community is "drained". "There's a few dairy farmers here that haven't been hit bloody hard, they've been hit that hard it's not funny," Doug told SBS News on Wednesday. "One family, they've lost a hundred head of cattle — and they were big freaking cows. "The dairy industry up in the Manning is a big community. But [in] times like this we'll struggle." During a visit to the area on Tuesday, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese visited a dairy farm in West Taree. Doug says he would have liked to have seen the Albanese visit more impacted farmers. "He didn't come anywhere near me. He didn't show his face in Glenthorne." "I'd like to say to him, 'I found 32 dead cows, prime minister, are you gonna replace them?'" Kevin said cows are turning up alive, but it's difficult to get them back to the pastures. "We're not equipped to go onto the beaches and find them," he said. "We don't have horses, motorbikes to get them off the beaches, and there's still cattle running loose on the streets." Since Kevin's story was first shared this week, many have expressed sorrow and a desire to help. Kevin and Doug said they've felt touched by the messages of support, but stressed their plight was shared across the region, by dairy farmers, feed producers, oyster growers, beekeepers, shops, and residents. "If people want to help, they can help — we've just gotta get the dairy up and running. That's going to be a real big task," Doug said. But both he and Kevin said they're not sure if they'll be able to come back from this. "I think this has just pushed the boundaries too far." "I've been through the 2021 flood, and this year I think this is the fourth one I've been through, and I don't know if I can come out of this on the other side of it." "It's in our blood — my dad, his dad, and his dad. Three generations of dairy farmers," Doug said. He says they need a new vat and compressors to start up dairy production again, as their equipment was destroyed in the flood. For now, they're milking cows in a neighbour's dairy. Kevin says he's received the one-off $1,000 payment made available for flood victims. He says he's also eligible for a $130,000 two-year interest-free loan from the government. "Then I'd start paying it back over 12 years. That would be getting me close up to 70 years of age, I don't know if I still want to be dairying then," Kevin said. More than money, Kevin wants to see real and lasting change. He wants flood warning sirens installed across the Manning River catchment, which is one of the biggest in NSW. "Make sure the sirens are put on the river because you never know what Mother Nature is going to throw at us again," Kevin said. "If the river rises, they go off quicker than what the SES can get the text messages to us or any news crew get messages to us." "If the politicians don't get off their bums and put the flood warning sirens in place, it's not going to prevent another disaster like this." While in the region this week, Albanese acknowledged the particular challenge facing primary producers, including dairy farmers. "We know there are major challenges, but what we're about now is dealing with the immediate concerns of recovery and looking after people during this period," Albanese said. NSW Nationals leader Dugald Saunders said he'd like to see more meaningful support for farmers. "We haven't heard any indication of when a category C or D declaration might be made, which would unlock what we know is needed for primary producers and also for small businesses, which is grant funding," Saunders said. "Nobody can manage or wants another concession alone. That's currently what's on offer. Nobody can afford that. Nobody's had insurance. "If they've had a loan previously, they're worried about paying that off. They need a helping hand in the form of a grant. They do not need another loan." Emergency Services Minister Kristy McBain on Wednesday said the federal government was "hoping to enact category C ... shortly". A spokesperson for Dairy Australia said as well as financial support, the mental health of farmers is a growing concern, given the scale of the flood impacts. "Dairy Australia's regional teams are reaching out to flood-affected farmers with direct check-in calls to better understand the impact on their farms and well-being," the spokesperson said. "The locally led NSW Dairy Emergency Leadership Group is also providing practical support, prioritising immediate response needs such as assisting in allocating/sourcing fodder, generator support for those without power, milking machine techs, vet assistance, matching options for cow parking, mental health support, and communications to impacted farmers." Dairy Australia says some fundraisers have been set up for impacted farmers, but that the organisation does not endorse any specific charity or fundraising campaign. "We do note that the NSW SES is leading the flood response, and Rural Aid has stepped in to provide practical support to farmers recovering from natural disasters. Both of these organisations accept donations," the spokesperson said. Hundreds of fundraisers have been set up for residents and businesses impacted by the NSW floods. A spokesperson for GoFundMe says it has established a crisis team to oversee heightened fundraising activity. "We also launched a dedicated hub of verified fundraisers to help Australians discover fundraisers for those impacted by the floods." "It is not uncommon for those with no direct connection to launch a fundraiser, out of kindness and goodwill. In these cases, all donations are safely held until GoFundMe are able to ensure that funds can be transferred safely to the intended beneficiary. "If our specialists are unable to verify a connection, the fundraiser will be removed and donors refunded." Readers seeking crisis support can contact Lifeline on 13 11 14, the Suicide Call Back Service on 1300 659 467 and Kids Helpline on 1800 55 1800 (for young people aged up to 25). Readers seeking support with mental health can contact Beyond Blue on 1300 22 4636. More information is available at .
