SASKATOON -- Cattle ranchers in Saskatchewan may not be able to sell livestock following a major buyer’s announcement about slowing down operations.

Earlier this week the union representing employees at the Cargill High River processing plant in Alberta said 1,000 workers have been laid off following an outbreak of COVID-19. Thirty-eight positive cases of the virus were detected at the plant with one hospitalization.

Cargill said it has not laid off employees, but has temporarily idled its second shift operation.

Ryder Lee with the Saskatchewan Cattlemen’s Association said the changes won’t hurt the beef supply to grocery stores - but it means the plant won’t be buying livestock, leaving producers hanging on.

“The higher anxiety comes from people ready to sell right now, and what could they do and how to they manage that. What’s the market going to be next week and the week after?”

Chad and Crystal Ross with L-7 Land and Cattle just outside of Estevan say the changing market conditions have forced them to change up operations.

Knowing they won’t make a healthy return selling cattle between May and June, they’re targeting a late summer or early fall sale, hoping the market has bounced back by then.

“We could either get rid of the inventory now and take what we take or change our marketing time and we made the decision to change our marketing time,” Chad Ross said.

Lee said he’s been speaking to some of the 12,000 beef producers in Saskatchewan and they are collectively lobbying MPs and MLAs for a relief fund for producers who aren’t selling, but still need to feed the herd.

“We’d like some committee formed in western Canada to manage the flow and really it’s about making sure the system gets through this so that we have food production next year and the year after,” he said.

Sandy Russell, co-owner of Spring Creek Consulting, has been analyzing the volatile changes in the cattle market over the past few months.

With the uncertainty created by COVID-19, ranchers have seen the price per head for cattle slide $200 to $300 over the last month in some classes, she said.

“It has been severe, it is very unpredictable and so it’s hard to make decisions for producers who are having to market right now,” she said.

“Markets hate uncertainty and right now uncertainty is the name of the game.”