The company said it has invested in infrastructure and recently acquired another 1,500 high capacity grain hopper cars
Canada’s largest railway has expanded its grain-car spotting targets for the 2020-21 crop year, which begins Aug. 1. Canadian National Railway says it aims to spot 5,800 system hopper cars per week during non-winter shipping months of the 2020-21 crop year. That’s an increase of 150 cars per week compared to targets set by the […] Read moreFlax
No real fix to soil salinity but options exist
With more than five million acres at risk to salinity in Western Canada, farmers could do a better job of managing their acres, say some advisers. “It’s a very big deal,” said Lyle Cowell, manager of agronomic services at Nutrien Ag Solutions in northeast Saskatchewan. He and colleague Brianna Lummerding discussed salinity during a presentation […] Read more
GMO tests big business for Sask. lab
Consumer concerns over the presence of genetically modified material in bulk commodities and processed food product has spawned a growth industry for labs that can test for the presence of GMOs. Tajinder Grewal, chief scientist at SGS Canada Inc., says demand for GMO testing services at his new Saskatoon-based lab have been increasing steadily since […] Read more
Genomics firm eyes Prairies
NRGene, a leading genomics company based in Israel, plans to open a new office in Saskatoon. The office is expected to serve as NRGene’s North American headquarters and will support efforts to expand the company’s operations in Canada and the United States. Kirk Westgard, the assistant deputy minister at the Saskatchewan ministry of trade and […] Read more
Pandemic could prod gov’t to fix safety nets: researcher
In a rare occurrence, Canadian attention has been drawn to the country’s food system and food security. That could goad governments to fix inadequate safety net system, hopes a school of public policy researcher. “That public attention (during the pandemic) will also help translate to policy action,” said Kerri Holland during a webinar for the […] Read more
Weed of the Week: wild buckwheat
Wild buckwheat climbs the ladder of crop pest importance as the season passes. Alberta farmers say in polling it is their least favourite weed. It can be tough to kill, degrades grain and oilseed samples, messes up harvests and will trip up the odd field scout. The ropy pest can prompt grain buyers to refuse […] Read more
Kazakhstan’s rise hits Canadian flax
Canada sold 67,000 tonnes to China in first two-thirds of 2019-20 compared to 268,000 tonnes in all of previous year
Kazakhstan continues to usurp Canada’s flax markets, say analysts. APK-Inform estimates that the country’s seeded area will reach 3.33 million acres this year, up 13 percent from the year before. Production is forecast to exceed one million tonnes, a 22 percent increase. By contrast, Statistics Canada is forecasting flat plantings in Canada, at about 941,000 […] Read more
Weed of the week: redroot pigweed
As the weather warms up, redroot pigweed can become a serious problem for some crops that aren’t strong competitors. Worse yet, amaranthus retroflexus, a dicot weed in the Amaranthaceae family, is developing resistance, or appears to at least have become harder to control with Group 2 chemistries. In Ontario it has become resistant to Group […] Read more
CGC resumes research into spring oilseed harvest quality
The Canadian Grain Commission has rebooted a research project aimed at examining the quality and storability of spring-harvested canola and flaxseed. The CGC project was temporarily suspended earlier this year due to concerns over workplace safety caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. But Veronique Barthet, program manager of oilseeds at the CGC’s Grain Research Laboratory in […] Read more
Positive indicators can be found in grain sector
Grain farmers should be counting their blessings rather than singing “woe is me” and lobbying for a chunk of the money flowing from Ottawa in a river of COVID-19 support. Other sectors of agriculture have real problems caused by the pandemic and they deserve a lot more attention than the Trudeau government has provided. That’s […] Read more
