Canada’s wheat industry needs to devise a strategy to ensure that global market share is maintained, says the vice-president of marketing with Richardson International. Brent Watchorn said there are signs that Canada’s reputation as a supplier of top quality, high protein milling wheat is beginning to slip. He said some foreign buyers aren’t as impressed […] Read more
Brian Cross
Stories by Brian Cross
Commissions seek directors
Saskatchewan’s two new cereal commissions are seeking nominations for their inaugural elected boards. Director nominations for the Saskatchewan Wheat Development Commission and the Saskatchewan Barley Development Commission will be accepted until Oct. 18. Elections are slated for Nov. 28. The wheat commission requires seven directors and the barley commission six. All producers registered with the […] Read more
Malting barley price down, wheat up in latest PRO
Wheat values are higher in the latest CWB Pool Return Outlooks for the 2013-14 annual and futures choice annual pools. Projected returns relative to the last PROs issued Sept. 26 are $16 per tonne higher for all grades of spring wheat and $10 higher for canola. Estimated returns for malt barley are down $5. Durum […] Read more
CWB expects new ships to work Great Lakes next year
Two new laker-sized vessels being built for CWB by a Chinese shipbuilder will likely be working on the Great Lakes by next year. Construction of the new lakers is underway in China with completion of the first ship slated for late 2013 or early 2014. “There have been slight delays with regards to the shipyards […] Read more
High protein wheat may be difficult to find
Canadian farmers are looking at a record wheat crop this year but finding buyers for all that grain will be a challenge, says an executive at Richardson International. Richardson vice-president of marketing Brent Watchorn said the sheer size of this year’s crop, combined with lower than expected protein levels, could pose a challenge for marketers. […] Read more
New farmer insurance system coming
Protections on deliveries | New program will replace the grain commission’s bonding system
Canadian farmers who sell their crops to an insolvent grain company and don’t receive payment for their deliveries will soon be recovering their losses through a new insurance-based security program. The Canadian Grain Commission will replace its existing producer payment protection plan with a new plan designed to control costs for the grain industry, reduce […] Read moreNew tool helps farmers identify insects
The Canadian Grain Commission has developed a new web-based tool to help farmers identify pests in stored grain. It’s available at www.grainscanada.gc.ca and allows producers to use insect keys to determine the species of an insect found in stored grain. To identify an insect, producers choose the more accurate of two options that describe an […] Read more
Federal Court set to hear class action arguments
Motion to deny claim | Farmers say assets owned by the CWB were improperly confiscated by the federal government
The wheels of justice will advance a little further this month in an ongoing dispute involving assets controlled by the former Canadian Wheat Board. On Oct. 23, the Federal Court in Ottawa will consider a motion to dismiss a class action suit launched last year against the federal government and the wheat board. The Dennis […] Read moreCanola processor BioExx granted creditor protection
Toronto-based company is trying to sell all of its land and facilities in Saskatoon after closing facility in April
A Canadian company that developed a patented process to extract concentrated food-grade protein from canola has been granted creditor protection by an Ontario court. Toronto-based BioExx and its Saskatoon-based subsidiary BioExx Proteins applied Oct. 1 for creditor protection under the Companies’ Creditors Arrangement Act. The Ontario Superior Court of Justice approved the application earlier this […] Read moreRestoration project stirs childhood memories
Saskatchewan farmer John Enns has always had a soft spot in his heart for the John Deere 25. It was the first combine he remembers operating as a teenage boy nearly 60 years ago. It was also the combine that replaced the threshing machine on his father’s farm back in the mid-1950s. So when Enns […] Read more
