The hemp industry is trying to convince producers to give the business a chance. Industry players told farmers attending the Canadian Hemp Trade Alliance convention in Winnipeg Nov. 17 that the industry is truly growing. They said demand for fibre soon won’t be just a promise but something for which farmers will be able to […] Read more
Ed White
Stories by Ed White
Velvet gloves in China, trade expert urges
The Canadian canola industry is being cautioned not to overreact in its response to China’s blackleg import restrictions. Hitting back or protesting too violently would only complicate the situation, says the Canada China Business Council (CCBC). “Our significant experience with China is that playing hardball with China doesn’t work,” said CCBC director of public affairs […] Read more
Dubai’s OK: how about the oats supply?
Well golly, the market certainly seems to have made up it’s mind about Dubai, concluding: IT’S NO BIG DEAL!!!!! Check out these five-day charts of Toronto, New York and Tokyo: That’s one heck of a way of shaking off the blues and getting back to the good times. A couple of bits of news helped […] Read more
Market (Du)biding time
So, was Dubai’s stumble into deadbeat status a big deal, a little deal, a huge deal, a nothing deal or something we can’t quite figure out yet? At first markets around the world tanked on Thursday when news spread that a state-backed entity in the Persian Gulf state of Dubai had told holders of US […] Read more
Fear, paranoia and pork
From what I can tell, pork has rather nicely avoided the resurgence of H1N1 this autumn. Just look at this Chicago lean hog futures chart: It’d be hard to claim that “swine flu fears” have demolished the market the way they did back in May-June, when lots of chatter around the world about “swine flu” […] Read more
North American swine industry shows signs of recovery: economist
There’s light on the horizon for beleaguered hog producers who can lock in profitable prices for next summer. Analysts and traders are hoping they can soon announce the end of the loss-making period that has devastated so many farmers. “We’re almost at the situation where we can say the worst is behind us,” said University […] Read more
EU flax ban may hasten GM zero tolerance demise
European Union may be forced to relax rules to avoid economic hardship The European flax blockade may seem like the death knell for genetically modified wheat, but a GM wheat promoter says the opposite could be true. That’s because the problems caused by zero-tolerance systems could start causing such damage to the European Union economy […] Read more
Canada falls behind on corn research
The potential for corn on the Canadian Prairies, as revealed by recent U.S. research on corn hybrids, is huge, says a leading Canadian corn expert. But prairie farmers will probably fall further behind Americans because there is little research being done on varieties designed for Western Canada. “We have the heat units. We have the […] Read more
Send another gunboat down the river . . .
It seems everyone these days loves Gerry. That’s Gerry Ritz, the present federal agriculture minister, about whom I have heard nothing but glowy stuff recently from farm organizations. A couple of weeks ago I received a newsletter from the Canada Beef Export Federation with Gerry and two organization luminaries beaming out of a photograph about […] Read more
Train(wreck)spotting
These days, my home life is filled with images of trains. Most days, there’s Thomas the Tank Engine, of whom my two year old daughter is a big fan, wending his cheery way across my television. Recently, she’s adopted another favorite train: the Polar Express. For those without young’uns, that’s another train-themed story and a […] Read more
