Happy Spring! Some early spring snowstorms helped moisture levels a bit, seeding has begun, and hog prices have climbed. Certainly a few positives since the last newsletter was released in January!

It was a busy first quarter of 2024. There were some great trade shows in Swift Current, Lethbridge, Red Deer and Great Falls that the team attended. Nice getting to see a lot of producers with whom we work with at these shows and equally great to see the number of awards they won highlighted later in the newsletter.

A few new faces have entered the mix for WAGS in recent weeks. Austin Coward has joined the team in Saskatchewan. A local product having grown up on a farm near Hodgeville, SK, Austin has a degree in Animal Science. He is excited to support our nutrition customers in the area. Bryce Rollet has joined the team in Lethbridge as our new logistics coordinator. Wonderful to have him on the team to help keep the warehouse organized and the logistics flowing!

On the poultry side of the business, our nutrition team launched a new product for Montana egg producers - LayerUp – to support eggshell quality from older flocks. Highlighting some of the challenges that this can help solve, our poultry team has put together an article for this newsletter focused on eggshell quality. I recommend you give it a read!

Hog margins have increased dramatically this past quarter with a combination of reduced feed costs and increased hog pricing. It is setting up for a strong remainder of 2024 for producers. We are excited to support producers in capitalizing on those margins and to take our international expertise in sows and continue to apply it in Montana and the Canadian Prairies. Sow workshops hosted by our swine nutrition team continue to receive great support from producers across Western Canada and Montana.

And last but not least, Sam has put together a very informative article outlining the benefits of LactiPro. If you are raising dairy or beef cattle, this article will help you understand the advantages LactiPro can provide in supporting the rumen through transition periods. Thank you very much for your continued business and for your trust in WAGS to provide top level nutrition support for your livestock. We hope you enjoy the Q2 2024 WAGS newsletter!

Grain prices continued to soften over the past months as the global market turned to be well supplied. The good production outlook in South America and the comfortable corn stock to use ratio in the US will remain contributing to the downside pressure. However, prices across Western Canada are starting to increase as farmers are busy in the field and given the latest FX trends. The protein market was also bearish following the good production outlook in Argentina and Brazil, as well as the expansion of the soy crush capacity expected for the US market for the next years.

Crude oil prices increased as OPEC+ is cutting 2.2 million barrels per day of production through at least the second quarter. On top of that, the escalating tensions between Israel and Iran have raised fears again of a wider war in the Middle East that could disrupt crude supplies. However, prices were pressured as war fears ease after Israel refrains from immediate Iran counterattack. The war news will keep contributing to market volatility and the Brent is currently trading at US$ 88.

The Canadian Dollar (CAD) was receiving support from the higher crude oil prices and trading at the $0.74 range against the US dollar. However, the CAD is currently pressured as the Bank of Canada could start to cut rates before the US. On top of that, the Canadian currency may have limited upside given the surge in carbon taxes – leading to a bad perception from foreign investors. The policy rate decisions will be important factors to watch in the near term, which will provide further guidance for FX trends. The CAD/USD is currently trading around the $0.72-0.73 range.

Corn futures turned bullish given the lower-than-expected US acreage estimates released by the USDA. However, prices in Chicago have softened due to the overall good global production outlook. Prices delivered to Lethbridge are at $305-$310 per MT. Barley prices are following the same trend and are around $290-$300 delivered to Lethbridge, AB. The market is receiving support from the drought outlook across the Canadian prairies and as farmers get busy in the field and with less intention to sell.

Canadian barley area is projected to fall by 2.5% to 7.14 million acres, 5.3% below the five-year average. Wheat prices increased over the past months and are being traded at $315-$325 per MT delivered to Red Deer, AB, while indications in the Saskatoon area range between $300 and $310 per MT. Wheat prices increased as recent attacks in Ukraine is keeping traders on edge. Dry weather across important producing areas in the US and Europe is also providing support.

Soybean meal prices declined given the expectation for reduced import demand from China but the FX is providing support. The US soybean planted area for 2024 is estimated at 86.5 million acres, up 3% from the previous year. The market is currently trading around $645-$655 delivered to Red Deer, AB – certain volatility is expected, but the overall trend is still bearish. Following the same trend, canola meal prices are at $395-$410 per MT delivered to Red Deer, AB. Australian canola is challenging Canada in some Asia-Pacific markets. Poor export performance is why the trade believes Canada’s ending stocks will be 3.74 million tonnes, which is almost double AAFC estimates. Peas are trading around $410-$420 delivered to Central Alberta and usage is declining in hog diets.

Grain & protein prices are expected to be volatile in the next quarter and increase following their seasonal trend. The weather news in North America will be an important driver, as well as the forecasted yields in Argentina and Brazil.

Synthetic amino acid prices are expected to soften following the correlation with soymeal prices. However, volatility around crude oil prices and logistics issues could lead to near term volatility.

Osteochondrosis is a non-infectious condition that causes lameness in pigs. It affects almost 100% of pigs (Carlson, 2003), however, most pigs are subclinical and do not express lameness. Osteochondrosis mostly affects long bones such as the humerus and femur, affecting the elbow and knee joints (Figure 1; Zhitnitskiy, 2010). Osteochondrosis affects pigs from 6 to 20 weeks of age; it involves a failure in the normal process of cartilage turning into bone (Carlson, 2010; Figure 2). While factors like fast growth, heredity, and trauma contribute to its prevalence, the exact cause remains unclear.

Figure 1. Severe lesions of osteochondrosis in the elbow, knee, and hock joint (Koning, 2015).

There are three stages of osteochondrosis (Zhitnitskiy, 2010):
- Osteochondrosis latens: characterized by failure in blood vessel development in the growth plate and articular cartilage complex.
- Osteochondrosis manifesta: the low blood circulation zone of the cartilage fails to turn into bone, becoming fragile as a result.
- Osteochondrosis dissecans: a trauma to fragilized tissue causes the articular cartilage surface to rupture due to insufficient bone formation (Figure 3).

Osteochondrosis is a significant issue in replacement gilts, particularly in genetic lines with high feed intake and rapid growth (Farmer, 2018). Dietary nutrients like protein, energy, and vitamins can be used to reduce osteochondrosis. Minerals like copper or manganese may help reduce its severity. Strengthening bones and cartilage from piglet to fattening stages is key to potentially preventing osteochondrosis (Wardale & Duance, 1994).

Nutritional interventions to prevent or aid in the repair of cartilage damage in replacement gilts.

1. Avoid rapid growth!

Osteochondrosis risk increases by 20% for each 100 g increase in ADG (Busch and Wachmann, 2011).

The main goal of a gilt nutrition program is to ensure gilt maturity in body weight, tissue composition, structural soundness, and reproductive development. Average daily gain (ADG) between 600−770g and breeding gilts at around 135−160 kg reduce lameness (Bortolozzo et al., 2009). Rapid growth rates result in the joints connecting the bones not being able to resist the load that accompanies the weight gain, causing osteochondrosis lesions (Ytrehus et al., 2004). Hence, limiting growth in replacement gilts may be necessary to prevent osteochondrosis (Farmer, 2018). Growth of gilts can be slowed down by:

- Feed management: Free access to feed after 10 weeks of age increases osteochondrosis risk by 20% for each 100 g increase in ADG (Busch and Wachmann, 2011). However, extreme feed restrictions can reduce mammary gland development (Sorensen et al., 2002).
- Diet formulation – Lysine to energy ratio: Reducing the lysine-to-energy ratio can help reduce growth, increase the number of gilts in optimal weight at puberty (Lents et al., 2020), reduce lameness and severeness of joint lesions (Quinn et al., 2015). However, puberty can be delayed if the lysine-to-energy ratio or energy intake is severely reduced (Lents et al., 2020; Johnson et al., 2022). Fibre can also be used to restrict energy intake (Winkel et al., 2018); but high inclusion levels are often needed (Helm et al., 2021).

Monitoring gilt weights is crucial to detect deviations from expected growth rates, allowing us to adjust the feeding program. Weighing gilts is the most accurate approach, but “measuring tapes” (Figures 4 & 5) can help estimate gilts’ weight with relative accuracy when a scale is not available.

2. Mineral and vitamin D supplementation

Minerals such as copper, manganese and silicon are crucial in collagen and proteoglycan synthesis (Frantz et al., 2008), both key players in cartilage disease (Alcaide-Ruggiero et al., 2023). Collagen comprises about 60% of cartilage (Fox et al., 2009), while proteoglycans provide biomechanical properties crucial for cartilage functioning.

- Copper and Manganese: Adding 250mg/kg of copper to diets of growing gilts decreased osteochondrosis severity (Frantz et al., 2008). Similarly, increasing dietary copper in sow diets from 15 to 100mg/kg reduced osteochondrosis severity in their offspring (Aballi and Austbo, 2003). Feeding manganese in combination with copper reduced overall osteochondrosis in gilts. These beneficial effects can be explained by copper’s role in proteoglycan synthesis and manganese’s stimulation of proteoglycan metabolism (Spiro, 1971; Pasqualicchio et al., 1996). It is important to avoid high inclusions of zinc (5,000mg/kg of diet) as this can inhibit copper absorption, resulting in an increased incidence of osteochondrosis (Hill et al., 1988).

- Silicon: There is no established dietary requirement for silicon for swine (NRC, 2012). However, silicon deficiency is associated with a decrease in collagen formation and there is a positive correlation between serum silicon and collagen concentrations in bovine cartilage (Calomme and Vanden Berghe, 1997; Seaborn and Nielsen., 2002). Increasing dietary intake of silicon increases bone mineral density in humans Jugdaohsingh et al., 2004). Feeding a diet with 1 g/kg of silicon (as zeolite) reduced overall osteochondrosis score in gilts (Frantz et al., 2008).

- Calcium and phosphorus ratio: An imbalance in calcium-phosphorus supplementation can cause or aggravate osteochondrosis. High-calcium diets can cause lesions typical of osteochondrosis, which resolves after calcium intake is normalized. High calcium diets can delay cartilage ossification, increasing the risk of osteochondrosis (Schoenmakers et al., 2000).

- Vitamin D: Cholecalciferol (vitamin D3) is involved in calcium absorption and metabolism and plays an important role in promoting cartilage and bone metabolismformation. Additionally, vitamin D directly affects chondrocytes and vitamin D receptors in joint cartilage, contributing to its positive effects on bone strength and mineralization (Sugiyama et al., 2013). Vitamin D3 is absorbed in the gut, then metabolized in the liver and finally converted into an active form in the kidneys. Hy-D®, a commercially available form of active vitamin D, is easier to absorb than standard vitamin D3. This commercial form skips the liver's first metabolic step, reaching the bloodstream quickly and efficiently, allowing higher blood levels of active vitamin D (Meuter, 2020).

Pigs (6 kg to 110 kg BW) supplemented with Hy-D® showed significantly higher levels of active vitamin D in plasma compared to standard vitamin D3 supplementation. Pigs also had a lower incidence of osteochondrosis, with fewer cartilage lesions (Figure 6).

Figure 6. Osteochondrosis incidence. Standard vitamin D3 vs Hy-D® supplementation (S Meuter, 2020 and Sugiyama et al., 2013).

Amino Acid Supplementation

Pigs need amino acids at every stage of life to grow and reproduce. Amino acids are the building blocks of protein, which also are part of collagen in cartilage.

- Proline and glycine: These amino acids are found in high content in cartilage collagen. These amino acids are considered “nonessential”, in other words, the pig’s body produces enough quantity of them and does not depend on dietary supplementation. However, feeding gilts diets supplemented with proline and glycine to create a prolineto-lysine ratio of 300% and a glycine-tolysine ratio of 200%, had significantly lower osteochondrosis scores than gilts fed a diet with conventional content of glycine and proline (Frantz et al., 2008).

- Methionine: Sulfur amino acids such as methionine and cysteine are important in cartilage metabolism (Cordoba and Nimni, 2003) as sulphur is required to form proteoglycan chains that give cartilage its absorptive properties (van der Kraan et al., 1990). Additionally, feeding extra threonine can lead to glycine formation, which is a key collagen component (Tang et al., 2021). Gilts fed a diet with a methionine-to-lysine ratio of 110% had a lower number of external abnormalities or external abnormality severity osteochondrosis scores compared with gilts fed a diet with a methionine-tolysine ratio of 30% (Frantz et al., 2008).

- Leucine, isoleucine, and valine: These amino acids also known as branched-chain amino acids (BCAA) are important for skeletal muscle and whole-body anabolism and energy homeostasis Mann et al., 2021). A diet with a high content of BCAA to create a leucine-to-lysine ratio of 200%, isoleucine-tolysine ratio of 100%, and valine-to-lysine ratio of 100%, significantly reduced the incidence and severity of osteochondrosis compared to gilts fed a control diet (Frantz et al 2008).

In conclusion, osteochondrosis and lameness pose significant challenges in gilt management, affecting their welfare, productivity and longevity. Dietary interventions play a crucial role in preventing and managing cartilage damage in replacement gilts. Strategies such as managing growth rates, mineral and vitamin D supplementation, and amino acid supplementation are effective in reducing the severity and incidence of osteochondrosis. Proper implementation of these dietary interventions can improve gilt health, and bone development, and ultimately optimize gilt and overall herd performance.

Note: References available upon request.

The eggshell quality plays an important role in the acceptance or rejection of the egg for tableegg consumers. Buyers want to see a clean, smooth, free of cracks, uniform in colour and good-shaped egg when they are buying from the store. For that reason, eggs that don’t comply with these characteristics are not sold as table eggs or are not sold at all. Producers get a discount on their payment for the eggs that are off-graded.

Eggshell quality is affected by multiple factors. Vitamin and mineral intake and bioavailability, drinking water quality, environmental temperature, age of the birds, birds’ strain, diseases, stress, and crowding are known for their effects in eggshell quality. Because of the economic impact of the eggshell quality and its multifactor nature it is important for the producers to adapt nutritional strategies, feeding strategies and management strategies to reduce the incidence of undergrade eggs. At the time this newsletter was issued, the price difference between a dozen of crack eggs and large eggs was between $0.73 and $2.94 CAD per dozen depending on your location, either you are an Alberta, Saskatchewan, or Montana producer. The most common eggshell defects are gross cracks, hairline cracks, star cracks, thin-shelled eggs and shell-less eggs, rough shells, misshapen eggs, flat-sided eggs, body-checked eggs, pimples, pinholes, and stained eggs.

Gross cracks are large cracks and holes that result in broken shell membranes and is caused by reduced shell strength or mechanical damage caused by birds’ beaks and toenails or rough handling. Reduce shell strength is related to ageing, unproper intake of calcium or vitamin D3, saline water, infectious bronchitis, and high barn temperature.

Hairline cracks are very fine cracks that run lengthwise along the shell and are easier to detect when candling the eggs. The incidence of this type of crack increases as the flock’s age increases, if the calcium and vitamin D3 is not adequate, when drinking water is high in salts, if infectious bronchitis is present, and if barn temperature is high. Rough handling and cage characteristics also affect the incidence of hairline cracks. The cage design needs to avoid that the eggs hit any surfaces too hard. Star cracks are fine cracks that extend from a central impact point. As the birds age, the incidence of these cracks increases. Inadequate calcium and vitamin D3, saline water, infectious bronchitis, high barn temperature, mechanical damage caused by birds’ beaks and toenails, mechanical damage caused by rough handling, the cage or aviary and the egg gathering system also increases the incidence of this type of cracks.

Eggs with very thin shell or no shell around the shell membrane are call thin-shelled eggs and shell-less eggs. These eggs are commonly produced by early matured pullets coming into lay, however other causes such as defective shell gland, disturbing the birds, unproper intake of calcium or vitamin D3, saline water, infectious bronchitis and eggdrop syndrome also increases the incidence of thin shelled and shell-less eggs.

Rough shell eggs are also known as sandpaper shell eggs. Some strain of birds tend to have a higher incidence of these eggs than others. At earlier stages of the laying cycle is also common to see a higher incidence of this eggs due to double ovulation, which produces one shell-less egg and one with extra shell deposits. Infectious bronchitis, infectious laryngotracheitis, avian encephalomyelitis (AE), defective shell gland, disturbing the hens, sudden increases in day length, light changes during the day and water shortage also increase the incidence of this eggs.

The term misshapen eggs refer to eggs that don’t fit into a typical egg shape. For example eggs that are too large or too round are defined as misshapen eggs.

Flat-sided eggs, and body-checked eggs are also considered misshapen eggs.The incidence of misshapen eggs and flat-sided eggs vary among different strains of birds. Young hens at the beginning of the laying period are more prone to lay misshapen and flat-sided eggs, often because of double ovulation.

Misshapen eggs and body-checked eggs are also common in hens late in the laying period. Flat-sided eggs are also caused by stress or pressure when the egg is in the shell gland and Body-checked eggs are the result of repairs to damage caused by stress or pressure when the eggs are in the shell gland.

Other causes of misshapen eggs are infectious bronchitis, immature or defective shell gland, stress and disturbance and overcrowding. For flat sided eggs other causes are infectious bronchitis, stress and disturbance, overcrowding, sudden increases in day length or large increases in day length. Finally, for body-checked eggs other causes are, aging of the birds, stress and disturbance, day length longer than 15 hours, midnight feeding, overcrowding and incorrect vaccination against bursal disease of the parent stock.

Pimples are tiny calcium bumps on the eggshell that are caused by foreign material in the oviduct, this problem is associated with age of the birds, excess calcium intake and strain of the birds.

Eggs with small holes in the shell are known as pinholes, it is believed that the most common cause of pinholes are pimples being knocked off the shell. Excess calcium intake, the strain of the birds, aging of the birds, toenail or sharp objects in the cages or aviary or egg gathering system are related with higher incidence of pinholes.

Substances like blood and manure might touch the shell and stain the eggs. At the onset of the laying cycle, the incidence of blood-stained eggs is higher since the cloaca is starting to stretch. Blood-stained eggs are also common when prolapses occur, to avoid the incidence of prolapses egg size needs to be managed to avoid that the eggs become too large. Another cause of blood-stained eggs is when birds pick at the cloaca, causing bleeding in the vent area, diming the lights helps to reduce vent picking. Regarding fecal-stained eggs, cleaning the nest boxes and running the manure belts more often helps to reduce the chances of the eggs to get in contact to the manure, reducing the incidence of fecal-stained eggs. Runny or wet manure is also a cause of fecal-stained eggs, balancing the electrolyte content of the feed and keeping a healthy balanced gastrointestinal tract reduces the chances of getting runny manure.

At Western Ag Supply we understand that feeding laying hens is about maximizing the income over feed cost for our customers and to do so it takes morethan just formulating feed. We take a multifactor approach to make sure we help our producers to get the maximum benefit out of their operations.

Note: References available upon request.

What is Lacti Pro? Lactipro contains a source of live (viable) naturally occurring microorganism/bacteria named Megasphaera elsdenii (Mega E). Other ingredients in Lactipro depending on product format are maltodextrin, sugar, sodium bicarbonate, potassium phosphate, ammonium sulfate, magnesium sulfate, calcium chloride and sodium chloride.

Mega E: Megasphaera elsdenii is a gramnegative, strictly anaerobic bacterium. It was first isolated from the rumen in 1953 and is a common type of good bacteria in the mammalian, mainly ruminant gastrointestinal tract (2,3). The strain of Mega E in these Lactipro products is NCIMB 41125 (7). Since Mega E exerts a beneficial effect as a microorganism to the host animal, it is considered as a probiotic for ruminants (2,3).

Mega E’s ability to use lactic acid as its major energy sources for growth has been well known (2), although it can also ferment amino acids into ammonia and branched-chain fatty acids, which are growth factors for other bacteria (1, 8), leading to an optimal rumen digestion and use of all nutrients. Mega E was noted as one of the best lactic acid utilizers compared to other rumen competitor bacteria (2,5). Having this special ability to use lactic acid, it plays a prominent role in the rumen preventing onset of acidosis (3,8). This is a useful role in cattle fed high-grain-based diets and acting even at a low ruminal pH (5.5) to mitigate severe acidosis. Mega E has been proposed as a potential dietary probiotic to prevent ruminal acidosis in high-producing dairy cows and in feedlot cattle for many years (1). However, it was not easy to produce and sustain its viability under normal environmental conditions (7).

Rumen and acidosis: Ruminants are born to consume grass (roughage or fiber), which are slowly broken down by ruminal microorganisms and stimulate the secretion of well-buffered saliva, thus keeping the rumen’s pH close to neutral (the pH range is from 6.2 to 7.0 in forage-fed animals, and from 5.8 to 6.5 in well-adapted grain-fed cattle (4). However, for improved animal performance (meat and milk production) it has been a common practice to increase the grain content of the cattle’s diets (6). This system has its own problem; it decreases the ruminal pH to a value below 6.0 for many hours per day. Sugar and starch in the diet is rapidly fermented in the rumen primarily producing a load of lactic acid which lowers pH. This low pH (5.5) has a negative effect on ruminal microbial populations and their activities and can lead to digestive disturbances, starting from ruminal acidosis and it’s associated series of health problems (bloat, rumenitis, liver abscess, laminitis, etc) (4,6).

Ruminal acidosis is a fermentation disorder in the rumen characterized by a lower-thannormal ruminal pH, but reflecting an imbalance between microbial production, microbial utilization, and ruminal absorption of volatile fatty acids (VFA). Acute ruminal acidosis is a metabolic status defined by decreased blood pH and bicarbonate, caused by overproduction of ruminal D-lactate (4,7).

High grain-based diets and grain processing (small particles) are risk factors for acidosis in feedlot cattle. Other risk factors are manipulations, stress and inappropriate bunk management which lead to interruptions in normal feed intake patterns (4). Subacute Ruminal Acidosis (SARA) is considered when rumen pH (5.8 and severe or acute ruminal acidosis is considered when pH(5.2. Systemic or general acidosis occurs when blood pH drops. If D-lactic acid amount increases in blood, it can cause neurological signs (paralysis) and even death (1,2,4,10).

Preferable pH for Mega E: It was shown that the growth of the Mega E occurred well at pH values ranging from 4.8 to 8.1 (5). In another study, that Mega E displayed a preference in using lactic acid at lower pH 5.0 to 5.5 (10). The ability to survive amongst tetracycline, monesin (rumensin) and other ionopores is another advantageous character found in Mega E (8).

Unique abilities of Mega E: In addition to having the ability to mitigate sub-acute ruminal acisosis (SARA), Mega E produces beneficial end products such as acetate, propionate, butyrate and valerate (2). In the presence of excessive nitrogen, enhanced microbial protein production was also noted. Mega E has a lactate racemase that allows it to use both the D-isomer and L-isomer of lactic acid. D-lactic acid is really bad and can cause systemic acidosis and even neurotoxicity (paralysis) (2,10). D-lactic acid uptake to Mega E is greatly enhanced through several dicarboxylic acids (malate, fumarate and/or aspartate) that are the intermediates or metabolites of the succinate pathway (2,5,10). This suggests that lactic acid utilization is more closely linked to availability of malate (1). There are very limited options for eliminating this toxic D-lactic acid production or minimizing loads of D-lactic acid in the rumen which eventually would lead to D-lactic acidosis. Mammals are lacking enzymes to metabolize Dlactic acid in their body. Therefore Meg E is the best probiotic to prevent D lactic acidosis not only in cattle, but in other mammals as well (1,2).

Different preperations of Lactipro currently available:

LactiproFLX® Dairy is recommended to give dairy transitions cows aiming for suppressing SARA and promoting milk production hike in early lactation.

Approximate amount of Mega E in a dose 2.0 x 1010 CFU/capsule

Dairy or Beef Cows: 1 capsule per head (single dose)

LactiproFLX® Calf is recomonded for calves to enhance better feed utilization and rumen development.

Approximate amount of Mega E in a dose 5.0 x 109 CFU/capsule

Calves: 1 capsule per head (single dose) LactiproFLX® Feedlot is recommended to give beef cattle mainly feedlot or high grain feeding setup, aiming for mitigating acidosis and promoting growth.

Approximate amount of Mega E in a dose 1.0 x 1010 CFU/capsule Feedlot Cattle: 1 capsule per head (single dose)

LactiproNXT - Rehydrated Product - Product must be mixed prior to application.

Approximate amount of Mega E in 1 mL 5.0 x 108 CFU

Different dosages should be given according to cattle type from this rehydrated product.

Feedlot Cattle: 20 mL of LactiproNXT/head (1.0 x 1010 CFU).

Dairy and BeefCows: 40 mL of LactiproNXT/head (2.0 x 1010 CFU).

Calves: 10 mL of LactiproNXT/head (5.0 x 109 CFU).

After mixing (rehydration) the entire content of the product must be used within 18 hours. uminants (2,3).

Note: References available upon request.

Congratulations to the following WAGS partners who are already raking in awards early in the year 2024.

Wymark Farming Co.
- 1st Place – H@ms Marketing Overall Top Producer of the Year 2023
- 3rd Place – H@ms Marketing Top Producer Paid Weight - Light
- 1st Place Carcass Competition Saskatchewan Cramer Show

Southland Farming Company Ltd.
- 1st Place – H@ms Marketing Top Producer Paid Weight – Light

Hillridge Farming Co. Ltd.
- 3rd Place – H@ms Marketing Overall Top Producer of the Year 2023

Eston Colony
- 1st Place – Saskatchewan Egg Producers Producer of the Year 2023

Sovereign Colony
- 1st Overall Gradeout Rrating. 2023 Star Egg Producer Award.

Congratulations as well to WAGS partners who made it to the H@ms Marketing March Top 10 list

INDEXING
2nd Vanguard Farming Company Ltd.
4th Hillridge Farming Co.
5th Wymark Farming Co.
8th Eatonia Farming Company

HEALTH/QUALITY TATTOO
1st Vanguard Farming Co. Ltd.

LEAN PERCENTAGE & LOIN DEPTH

Lean Percent target
1st Vanguard Farming Co. Ltd.
2nd Wymark Farming Co. Ltd.
4th Garden Plane Farming Company
8th Eatonia Farming Company

Loin Depth Target
1st Hillridge Farming Co.
3rd Eatonia Farming Coompany
5th New Dale Hutterian Brethren
6th Rale Colony Ltd.
9th R Valley Farming Co. Ltd.

CORE AREA AND SORT

% in Core Area
1st Hillridge Farming Co.
3rd Eatonia Farming Co.
6th Raley Colony Ltd.
5th New Dale Hutterian Brehtren
9th R Valley Farming Co. Ltd

Carcass Wt. Target
2nd Hillridge Farming Co.
3rd Eatonia Farming Co.
4th Raley Colony Ltd.
6th Vanguard Farming Co. Ltd.
7th New Dale Hutterian Brethren
9th R Valley Farming Co. Ltd
10th Wymark Farming Co. Ltd