Beef Cattle by Census Division, 1996

In 1996, Canadian exports of cattle and beef accounted for 2.1 billion, the second single largest agricultural export product after wheat ($4.7 billion). Although 72% of the cow-calf farms are in Western Canada, Eastern Canada is still an important meat producer and represents most of the Canadian beef market. Beef cows outnumber dairy cows in every province except Quebec and Newfoundland and Labrador. The slaughter has undergone major structural changes in the nineties. Today the top four slaughter and processing plants account for 70% to 75% of the total slaughter, compared with 53% in 1992.