The Western Producer

Old crop canola joined old crop soybeans in being the greenest crop futures Tuesday, reflecting super-tight nearby commercial conditions. But new crop canola and soybeans sold off, widening the inversion, showing that the market is relaxed about the medium-term situation once the new crop starts coming in. "It's nothing new. There's not much out there now," said P.I. Financial broker Ken Ball about the different situations of old crop and new crop North American oilseeds. "But it's questionable how long they can keep this up, especially in beans. There's lots of beans in the world." July canola futures rose $5.70 per tonne to $642.50 while November canola fell $3.50 per tonne to…
[Read more]

The wide open spaces and grasslands of southeastern Alberta are the focus of a prairie conservation festival planned on the Geoff and Melanie Watson ranch June 8 near Elkwater, Alta. Rob Gardner of Nature Conservancy Canada is a key organizer of the day-long event, which he said will be more than a "feel good" session about nature and grass. Water conservation projects, grazing systems discussions and grasslands insurance options are designed to attract ranchers, while a wildflower hike, bug safari and mock branding event will attract those with other interests. "That's what we're aiming at, is a range of activities from little kids right through to some semi-technical things for…
[Read more]

A 59-year-old Estevan, Sask., area farmer was found dead in his tractor May 19, RCMP said. The cab was submerged in water. Family members found the man at about 1:30 a.m. in a field north of the city, RCMP said. The cause of death is unknown, and the coroner and RCMP are both investigating. Foul play is not suspected. The man's name has not been released.

Farm organizations are expressing surprise and regret at recently announced job cuts and closures that will affect close to 700 Agriculture Canada employees across Canada. In Alberta, Wild Rose Agricultural Producers president Lynn Jacobson called the changes disappointing and short-sighted, suggesting that reduced spending on federal research programs contradicts Ottawa's message. "We thought, with the way … the government had set things up in Growing Forward 2 and the references that were made to innovation and investments in research, that we weren't going to be touched on that end of things but what Ottawa is saying and what they are practicing are two different things." In…
[Read more]

WASHINGTON, May 17 (Reuters) - Cases of porcine epidemic diarrhea (PEDV), a virus associated with diarrhea, vomiting and dehyrdation in hogs, has been found in Iowa and possibly beyond, U.S. government and private industry officials said on Friday. The outbreak, the severity of which is not yet known, is believed to be the first of PEDV in the western hemisphere, although the virus exists in much of the world. The U.S. Department of Agriculture's National Veterinary Services Laboratories has detected the virus in the Iowa hog population, a USDA spokesperson said. Cindy Cunningham, spokesperson for the National Pork Board in Des Moines, Iowa, said: "It may be a little bit more…
[Read more]

Canola rallied more than one percent on Friday, lifted by a weak loonie and stronger soybeans. Very tight old crop stocks and lack of farmer selling while seeding is in full swing also supported old crop. For the week, July canola rose $18.30 and new crop November climbed $15.70. Rain in parts of Manitoba, Alberta and southeastern Saskatchewan today and this weekend will interfere with seeding. Seeding is more advanced in Alberta and the moisture will be welcome in many places. Tight stocks and lack of farmer selling also supported soybean and old crop corn prices on Friday. Wheat fell on the impending start to the U.S. winter wheat harvest. The loonie fell when the…
[Read more]

Against a backdrop of fresh vegetables at the Stonebridge Co-op in Saskatoon, federal agriculture minister Gerry Ritz announced the launch of the Safe Food for Canadians Action Plan today. The plan aims to strengthen food safety rules with more effective inspections and make consumer information more available. In an effort to improve control of E. coli in federally registered plants, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency is strengthening some of its beef safety rules. When a trend indicates unusual patterns or higher than usual numbers of positive test results, the plant must take immediate action, inform the CFIA and adjust its food safety protocols. Plants that make ground beef or…
[Read more]

Seed inoculant is selling fast as seeding gets underway across the Prairies. Some brands and formulations are already unavailable to producers. However, Novozymes and Becker Underwood say inoculum supplies are adequate, even if farmers' preferred types and formulations are not. Novozymes' Tag Team, its multi-action line, is sold out at the manufacturer's level, said Lethbridge sales representative Darren Smith. However, some may still be in retail pipelines, depending on the location. "TagTeam has been very popular this year. We had a lot bigger run on it than we expected," Smith said. "We don't want any left over. It's a one-year product. As a manufacturer, you're never…
[Read more]

Saskatchewan parks staff intend to carry out a prescribed burn in Fort Carlton Provincial Park between May 21 and  May 23, weather permitting. The burn area will be about 136 acres and is east of the park interpretive centre, between the North Saskatchewan River, the entrance road and the east park boundary. This burn is to help restore native grass, renew aspen and reduce wildfire risk in the park. Over the next 10 years, there will be burns every two or three years to meet these objectives.

Farmland in Manitoba's Assiniboine River Valley will likely be spared severe flooding this spring because the river is cresting below dike levels between St. Lazare and Brandon. Stan Cochrane, who farms near Griswold, Man., expects the Assiniboine to crest by his farm this weekend. "We have some (land) that's diked and the dikes are still holding, so far," he said. "I think the river has crested in Virden and Miniota. So as long as we don't get rain, the flows are going down fairly quickly right now." Record snowfalls in eastern Saskatchewan this winter meant there was a chance that Manitoba would see a repeat of 2011, when flood water covered 40,000 to 50,000 acres of land in…
[Read more]