CALGARY — Alberta cattle farmers expect to run out of feed for their animals this weekend as train delays and the effects of last summer’s drought combine to create a crisis situation in the prairies.
© Provided by The Canadian Press
According to the Alberta Cattle Feeders Association, several large feedlots, housing 20,000 to 40,000 head of cattle, have indicated they could run out of feed within days.
The industry group says the situation is now an “animal welfare issue”.
Last summer’s drought ravaged Prairie crops, forcing Canadian cattle producers to import large quantities of corn from the United States this winter to feed their animals.
But the cattle industry says corn deliveries by train are not arriving on time, due to labor shortages, cold weather and other supply chain issues.
Leighton Kolk, a feedlot operator in Alberta, was still waiting Friday for a train to arrive Tuesday. He says if his shipment of maize doesn’t arrive by Saturday he will have to “scrape the bottom of the bin” to feed his cattle.
The Canadian Press