Crop Management
If the GPS system in use on your farm relies on a Wide Area Augmentation System signal, be aware of a planned outage that will occur in the middle of spring seeding this year. The United States Federal Aviation Administration, which administers the civilian-use GPS network, plans to switch WAAS GEO 6 (S15 – PRN […] Read more
Crop Management
Budget supports biofuel
SASKATOON — Canada’s biofuel groups and oilseed crushers are pleased with what it saw in the federal government’s 2024 budget. “The best way to describe it is they’ve got the right tools in the box,” said Doug Hooper, director of policy and regulation with Advanced Biofuels Canada (ABFC). Related stories: The Canadian Fuels Association (CFA) […] Read more
Canola competition stiffens; demand rises
SASKATOON — There are differing reports about what to expect from Canada’s top canola competitor this year. Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA) is forecasting 8.27 million acres of the oilseed, a four per cent drop from last year. Related stories: However, it is dry in Western Australia, and if it remains that way over the […] Read more
Coming canola crush capacity delayed
SASKATOON — Canada’s canola crush buildout is not going as smoothly as planned, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. “Project delays in 2023, 2024 and into 2025 have slowed the growth of crush capacity,” the USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) stated in a recent report. Related stories: Capacity is expected to reach 10.26 million […] Read more
Used cooking oil amount proves surprising
SASKATOON — Canada’s canola oil is facing stiff competition from used cooking oil (UCO) and tallow in renewable diesel markets. The amount of UCO being imported into the United States has surprised everyone, including the U.S. government. Imports in 2023 were large enough to produce 600 million gallons of the fuel. Related stories: That exceeds […] Read more
Consumer debt hampers growth: EDC
SASKATOON — Canada’s economic growth will remain constrained in 2024, according to Export Development Canada. Gross Domestic Product is expected to expand by a paltry 0.9 percent. Sizeable debt-servicing requirements have forced the Canadian consumer to focus on saving over spending. Related stories: “We see an extremely weak consumer, a heavily indebted consumer here in […] Read more
When do EEFs make agronomic sense?
In many situations enhanced efficiency fertilizers do not boost yields because there is already sufficient nitrogen in the system
This is the third story of a four-part series on enhanced efficiency fertilizer. Links to other stories in this series are below. There may be an opportunity to increase or preserve yields with enhanced efficiency fertilizers (EEF), but farmer adoption remains low in Canada. The reasons could be inconsistent results, the wrong sales pitch or […] Read more
Farmers get involved in machine design
Anyone who has operated or repaired farm machinery has probably asked themselves, at one time or another, “did some engineer really think this design was a good idea? If only they’d asked farmers …” In today’s highly competitive environment, brands now make a special effort to do exactly that. Farmer panels are usually involved in […] Read more
Ag shows to increase focus on on emerging farm robotics technology
Although agriculture is barely on the eve of widespread adoption of full autonomy in farm machinery, it is slowly becoming mainstream thinking across the equipment industry. As a result, farm machinery shows are starting to tailor their events to better cater to showcasing it, even in concept and prototype machines. DLG (the German Agricultural Society), […] Read more
Hydrostatic-powershift transmission among latest from JCB
A few machines have been introduced in recent years that take jobs away from the typical loader tractor. England-based JCB has some of them. The brand showed three different machines at the Commodity Classic Farm Show in Texas in February with the latest round of updates. Most notably for the 2024 model year in the […] Read more
