Calgary bull sale: beef industry soaring despite Alberta's slump

Despite the uncertain economic times in Alberta caused by slumping oil prices, the beef industry is experiencing a boom.

That market strength is expected to be reflected at the 115th annual Calgary Bull Sale at the Stampede Grounds.

“The Calgary Bull Sale is the benchmark for other bull sales across the prairie provinces of Canada. The sale attracts Alberta's top quality beef bulls and offers bulls for sale to meet all ranchers' budgets,” the event’s website says.

The two-day event includes a show on Wednesday and an auction on Thursday.

Brian Perillat, an analyst with Canfax, a division of the Canadian Cattlemen's Association that watches beef market trends, says demand has been very strong.

“We've seen cattle prices almost double in the last five years, calf prices up 70 per cent in one year,” he said.

“So you know it is a phenomenal run and profitability has been very strong and you know it’s well, I think, well deserved for the cattle sector after having quite a few lean years.”

Perillat says he is not worried about trade restrictions imposed by a handful of countries in response to a case of BSE discovered last month in a beef cow in northern Alberta.

He says the countries involved — China, Taiwan, Korea, Peru and Belarus — represent only a fraction of the Canadian export market.