Crop Management
SASKATOON — A farmer who helped establish the Saskatchewan Canola Development Commission wants the organization to review its funding of the Canola Council of Canada. Zenneth Faye, who was also a founding member of Milligan Biotech, Canada’s first commercial biodiesel plant, asked the board of SaskCanola to examine the value that the council delivers to […] Read more
Crop Management
Convert your truck into a hybrid
B.C.-based Edison Motors pioneers the retrofit market with its diesel-electric conversion kits for vocational trucks
There’s an old saying that everything old is new again. When it comes to automotive and machinery design, that seems to be true in spades. Diesel-electric equipment has been in use for decades, but until recently, that system had fallen out of favour with many equipment manufacturers, including heavy truck builders. “It’s weird,” said Chace […] Read more
Equipment manufacturers adjust to battered supply chain
About a decade ago I was with a group of journalists touring a new ag equipment manufacturing plant in Germany. As we made our way past a stockpile of raw steel, our guide pointed out that the storage area of that new building was only a fraction of the size of the one it replaced […] Read more
Wheat growers question HVK
WINNIPEG — Wheat growers in Saskatchewan want to know why hard vitreous kernels are still used as a grading factor for Hard Red Spring Wheat. If it doesn’t serve a purpose except for unnecessary downgrades at the elevator, some producers say, then the industry should get rid of it. “HVK has been around as a […] Read more
Grain movement ‘humming along’ this winter
SASKATOON — Canada is dodging much of the grain shipping turmoil other exporters are facing, says Canada’s grain monitor. Total exports are about where they should be for this time of the year, said Mark Hemmes, president of Quorum Corp. “A large part of it has to do with the great weather we had before […] Read more
Canola recovery still possible
SASKATOON — Canada can still recover from its slow start to the 2023-24 canola export campaign, says an analyst. Exports are running about one million tonnes behind the pace needed to meet Agriculture Canada’s target of 7.7 million tonnes, said Chuck Penner, analyst with LeftField Commodity Research. Sales to China have been particularly lacklustre. However, […] Read more
Share concerns, build relationships with MPs, lobbyist says
Speak with your local MP on a regular basis and don’t be afraid to share your concerns with them regardless of their political affiliation, a long-time lobbyist told farmers. “Meet with your member of Parliament annually. That’s how you inform politicians. That’s where you can gain some real momentum and leverage. It only takes one […] Read more
Reid out at REAL; Regina farm show still a go
REGINA — The interim board chair at Regina Exhibition Association Ltd. said all planned shows and events will go ahead after chief executive officer Tim Reid was fired earlier this month. That includes Canada’s Farm Show. “I would like to reassure every event holder, every person that’s planning on coming to an event, that our […] Read more
Large supply likely to pressure mustard prices
A second big harvest in a row created a large carryout from the 2023-24 crop, while export program has been lackluster
SASKATOON — Chuck Penner does not think yellow and oriental mustard will experience their usual spring rallies this year. The best-case scenario would be flat prices, but they could easily “leak lower” like brown mustard prices tend to do starting in January. The early outlook for 2024-25 is not good either because of what he […] Read more
Falling prices ‘mow down’ crop revenue
CLANDEBOYE, Man. — Last year was the most expensive crop to ever be put in the ground on the Prairies. In 2024, farmers will spend less on fertilizer, diesel and other inputs, but costs haven’t fallen off a cliff, said Darren Bond, a farm management specialist with Manitoba Agriculture, “The crop this year … the […] Read more
