Markets
Rising fertilizer prices and the devalued Turkish lira spark the increase and will likely come at the expense of wheat acres
One of the top buyers of Canadian lentils is greatly expanding its own plantings but yields could be way down due to a prolonged drought. Turkey may increase its lentil acres by up to 30 percent, according to Armada Foods, a major Turkish importer-exporter and processor of pulses. The huge expansion of acres will come […] Read more
Markets
EU farm policy could drastically affect international trade
World’s exporters and importers warned they would face significant adjustments if proposed policies are implemented
Two proposed European Union agricultural reforms will upend world grain markets, says an EU grain trade association. Iliana Axiotiades, secretary general for Coceral, said the EU’s Biodiversity Strategy and Farm-to-Fork Strategy are two disasters waiting to happen. “These are going to have a tremendous impact on European production,” she said during a webinar organized by […] Read more
Gene editing needs better sales pitch
Health Canada is reportedly likely to treat gene-edited crops differently than genetically modified crops. That would be the right move. It means the oversight provided by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency would look much like what we see for conventionally bred crops. This issue is obviously far removed from consumers, but it will certainly affect […] Read more
Second COVID Christmas even more complex
Well, here we are, celebrating our second COVID Christmas. It’s not exactly a repeat of last year, when no one was vaccinated and the best we could do to protect ourselves was to keep the size of social gatherings to a minimum, particularly indoors. We’ve come a long way since then, and many of us […] Read more
Boosting rail trade with Mexico sounds easy, but it’s not
On my globe the easiest way to get from the Prairies to Mexico is straight south. When I lay out North American railway maps, sending grains, meat and other agricultural goods south to Mexico, and Mexican goods north to Canada, seems like an obviously good trade route. And in the light of the nightmare container […] Read more
There are lessons for farmers to learn from 2021
This year, more than ever, financial returns are going to be highly variable for prairie grain farmers and this will influence decision making for 2022. Farmer A: Yields were very poor due to drought and heat. There is no crop insurance because they believed it highly unlikely that they would ever grow such a small […] Read more
U.S. producers want fertilizer price probe
(Reuters) — Farmers have asked the United States Department of Justice to investigate whether recent spikes in fertilizer prices are attributable to market manipulation by fertilizer companies, according to a letter Dec. 8 by the Family Farm Action Alliance. The group, which has more than 6,000 farmer and rural members, alleges fertilizer companies are setting […] Read more
Canfax report – December 23, 2021
Fed prices rise Fed cattle prices established new annual highs last week. From second half of the year lows in July, fed prices have rallied 10 percent. Over the past few weeks, packers haven’t bought many cash cattle, and some producers have deferred marketings in hopes of higher prices in late December. Last week, dressed […] Read more
WP livestock report – December 23, 2021
HOGS The U.S. national live price average for barrows and gilts was $49.80 Dec. 17, down from $51.59 Dec 10. U.S. hogs averaged $59.41 on a carcass basis Dec. 17, up from $57.69 Dec. 10. The U.S. pork cutout was $85.82 per hundredweight Dec. 17, down from $86.19 Dec. 10. The estimated U.S. weekly slaughter […] Read more
Buoyant global economic growth expected
A 5.5 percent increase in global gross domestic product is predicted for this year, despite a resurgence in COVID-19 cases
Export Development Canada is forecasting another strong year of global economic growth in 2022. It predicts a 5.5 percent increase in global gross domestic product, down slightly from six percent in 2021. That is despite the Omicron-related resurgence in the COVID-19 pandemic. “The trajectory of the global economy seems to have decoupled from the trajectory […] Read more
