The National Farmers Union says Canada should ratify an international agreement governing the movement of genetically modified organisms. “If Canada refuses to ratify and comply with the Cartegena Protocol on Biosafety, we could lose market access,” says NFU women’s vice-president Colleen Ross. She said the agreement will eventually result in strict labelling and liability rules […] Read more
Sean Pratt
Stories by Sean Pratt
China currency change may help wheat sales
Now that the sleeping giant is awake, there are growing demands on China to allow its currency to appreciate, which some analysts feel will boost grain exports to the world’s most populated nation. With its economy posting a 9.1 percent growth rate in 2004, China is outpacing many developed nations by a wide margin. That […] Read more
Man. loses organic elevator
Manitoba is losing its only organic elevator. The Canadian Organic Commodity Marketing Co. in Arden, Man., is winding down operations due to a lack of capital. “The production is out there, the markets are out there, our phone rings off the wall. We just didn’t have the financial resources to move it forward,” said elevator […] Read more
Chickpea growers get new spraying advice
New advice for chickpea growers on managing ascochyta blight is flying in the face of conventional wisdom. A study conducted by the University of Saskatchewan’s Crop Development Centre has concluded it is critical to control the disease in the pre-flowering stage of development. “The standard recommendation in the early days was to basically start scouting […] Read more
China’s pulse boom worries growers here
A country that has gained a reputation as a cutthroat competitor in bean markets is sharpening the blade in preparation for another slaughter. China is poised for an eight percent increase in pulse production in 2005, according to the United States Department of Agriculture’s Foreign Agricultural Service. If growing conditions are normal, the country will […] Read more
Japanese rethinking GM canola
A country that regularly buys half of Canada’s canola seed exports is contemplating whether it will continue to accept shipments containing genetically modified product. Japan is re-evaluating the regulatory approval of GM canola through a new law intended to ensure the smooth implementation of the Cartegena Protocol on Biosafety, an international agreement governing the movement […] Read more
Ethanol fuels excitement – Special Report (story 1)
UNITY, Sask. – Mervin Slater wants farmers to participate in what has become a thriving energy sector in this eastern Saskatchewan community. However, he doesn’t mean erecting more pump jacks in their fields. Slater envisions producers mining the resources above the soil, converting their cereal crops into ethanol. “The oil wells that are out here […] Read more
Ethanol crossroad: Does U.S. experience hold lessons for Canada? – Special Report (about)
Canadian farmers have watched the American ethanol industry boom for the last decade and noted how its demand has improved grain markets and opened value-added opportunities. But just as Canada’s ethanol industry seems poised to ignite, U.S. ethanol makers have encountered tough times, with overproduction, falling prices and questions about the direction of future development. […] Read more
Ethanol crossroad: Does U.S. experience hold lessons for Canada? – Special Report (main story)
Todd Black’s short-term outlook for the U.S. ethanol industry is as bleak as his last name. “We could see some plants shut down, I think,” says the general manager of Adkins Energy LLC, a 160-million litre farmer-owned facility in Lena, Illinois. American ethanol prices have fallen 25 percent since January, the result of what some […] Read more
The corn vs. wheat debate – Special Report (story 2)
None of the 106 ethanol plants operating or under construction in the United States lists wheat as its lone feedstock ingredient. Three plants, two in Kansas and one in Illinois, use the cereal grain but only in combination with corn or grain sorghum. That model is in stark contrast to the one developing in Western […] Read more
