Australian researchers say they have made a major breakthrough in the effort to develop shatterproof canola. Researchers at the New South Wales Department of Primary Industries have mapped shatter-resistant genes in Ethiopian mustard plants, also known as brassica carinata. “We investigated the level of pod shatter resistance in Ethiopian mustard and identified sources, which were […] Read more
Farmers still push for exemption on heating fuel
Farmers continue to put pressure on the Manitoba government to exempt barns, greenhouses and grain dryers from carbon taxes. Thousands of dollars of new costs could be imposed on farmers using heating, cooling or drying machinery if the proposed $25 per tonne carbon tax is imposed. Manitoba’s agriculture minister is offering no guarantees to provide […] Read more
Man. to repeat 2017 big grain corn acres
Grain corn acres will likely be flat in Manitoba this spring, which isn’t necessarily bad news because 2017 was a record year for acreage. Most growers are feeling positive about corn because yields were better than expected last year. “They’ve had pretty good corn crops the last number of years,” Ron Rabe, an agronomist in […] Read more
First look at seeding intentions
A few acres up in the major crops will appear as big reductions for pulses and some special crops this year. However, there are exceptions. Cereal and oilseed acres are expected to increase by about two percent, according to Agriculture Canada’s first seeding intentions analysis of the year. The effect on pulse and many specialty […] Read more
Crop research keeps agriculture industry competitive
Are crop advancements counterproductive? Some producers think so. It’s certainly true that when a crop becomes easier to grow, production can outpace demand and cause the price to drop. This is particularly the case for crops with a set, finite market and few alternative uses. This issue came up at the recent Durum Summit held […] Read more
Grain handlers pressured
Grain companies are struggling to keep product flowing through their facilities and that is hurting the bottom line, says an oilseed trader. “Everybody is just getting killed now,” said Glen Pownall, managing director of Peter Cremer Canada. “The margin structure is just getting hammered because there’s just so much excess capacity in the system without […] Read more
Input Capital tests new “mortgage streaming” contracts
A Regina-based company that buys unharvested canola from farmers through streaming contracts is dipping its toes into the farmland mortgage market. Input Capital Corp. announced Jan. 30 that it has launched a new “mortgage stream” on a pilot project basis. New mortgage contracts will offer growers an opportunity to meet mortgage obligations by entering canola […] Read more
Early look at western Canada: major crop acres up, minors down
A few acres up in the major crops will appear as big reductions for pulses and some special crops this year. However, there are exceptions. Cereal and oilseed acres are expected to increase by about two percent, according to Agriculture Canada’s first seeding intentions analysis of the year. The effect on pulse and many specialty […] Read more
Carbon hits the east-west divide
Carbon depletion versus sequestration may be why Ottawa isn’t recognizing prairie efforts
Canadian east versus west politics likely factors into why the federal government isn’t talking about the sequestration of carbon in prairie soil. Information compiled by Agriculture Canada shows soil organic carbon is increasing in western Canadian cropland with the reduction of tillage and implementation of direct seeding, while cropland in Ontario, Quebec and the Maritimes […] Read more
Trump’s anti-trade agenda could be great for Canadian ag
As the U.S. digs itself into a deeper hole trade opportunities for Canada emerge
WINNIPEG (CNS) – As United States President Donald Trump follows his “American first” policy and pulls out of trade deals, it could spell future opportunity for the Canadian agricultural industry, according to Dermot Hayes, a professor with the department of economics at Iowa State University. “In D.C. it’s chaotic. It’s the craziest situation I’ve ever […] Read more
