Looking at crop price charts of the last three years, new crop prices are disappointing. But if you look at decade-long charts, current values look pretty good. At these prices most crops, except wheat, appear modestly profitable or should at least break even in 2010-11. That’s one reason why I think farmers should attempt some […] Read more
Ed White
Stories by Ed White
Message from the takeout window
Canola’s always prided itself on being a gamechanger in the edible oils marketplace. That’s why it really wasn’t so strange having Arkadi Kuhlmann, the founder and CEO of ING Direct bank, as its lead-off speaker. Markets reporter Ed White is blogging from the Canola Council of Canada’s annual convention in San Francisco March 18-19. For […] Read more
Just-in-time agronomy delivery
Denise Maurice, the Canola Council of Canada’s crop production vice president remembers a farmer calling her up in a panic. Markets reporter Ed White is blogging from the Canola Council of Canada’s annual convention in San Francisco March 18-19. For regular updates visit White’s blog, here. He had found a new weed and it was […] Read more
The value of a premium brand
I knew when I reserved my room for the Canola Council of Canada’s convention in San Francisco that it would be a nice joint. How did I know that? Because it is the Fairmont hotel. The Fairmont hotel is about the most expensive hotel in Winnipeg. Around the world it’s got a swanky reputation. And […] Read more
Golden crop Golden Gating
Tomorrow I’m heading off to the Canola Council of Canada convention in San Francisco. And I can already hear some of you saying: “San Francisco? What the heck is the CCC doing in San Francisco? What does that have to do with canola?” There are two answers for that: 1) Whenever the CCC puts its […] Read more
Loonie calling
Look at this chart of the Canadian dollar in U.S. dollar terms: Pretty impressive. I’m going to San Francisco next week to cover the Canola Council of Canada’s annual convention and this’ll make my expenses shrink a bit. I’m going to be paying with Canadian dollars for U.S. dollar expenses, so in that light, let […] Read more
Canadian flax finds new home in China
Big shipments of prairie flax are sailing for China, a country that rarely buys the crop. That has many speculating that China has become the backdoor route for Canadian flax oil to get into the closed European market. “You’ve got to assume something’s going on, but no one knows,” said Lach Coburn, Cargill’s export terminal […] Read more
China attempts self-sufficiency in pork products
China is going to continue importing pork, but it may not be the kind of pork the world’s exporters want to sell. As well, although demand is expected to increase and require an extra 15 million tonnes of pork per year, the country may be able to supply most of the rising demand itself. “We […] Read more
Feed pellets can offer advantages
Pellets are a better feed for pigs than straight mash from a mixer, researchers generally agree. However, producers paying for expensive pellets may not be getting the gains they expect, an American expert told the recent Manitoba Swine Seminar. “You really need to focus on pellet quality,” Kansas State University animal nutrition specialist Joe Hancock […] Read more
Being meatheaded about China
Wow!!!! China’s got a whole bunch of people! And they don’t have much land or water! That should be great for us as people involved in agricultural production, right? Check out the chart below: That was one of the many charts supplied by Rabobank, the international Dutch lender with a particular interest in agriculture, in […] Read more
