The livestock slaughter pace in Canada and the United States is recovering from COVID-19 temporary closures and slowdowns, but the effect on the supply chain and prices will take time to get back to normal. COVID was a devastating experience for the meat sector, but it is amazing that plant operators and workers have adjusted […] Read more
Markets — page 330
Long-term investment in commodity futures defies the obvious
Intelligent people can convince themselves to believe the silliest things. Some make themselves believe that wearing masks does nothing to minimize COVID-19 transmission. Others insist that wearing a bicycle helmet makes you more likely to get into an urban bike crash than not wearing one. And multitudes of supposedly smart-money people convinced themselves that investing […] Read more
Amino acid swap makes wheat more heat tolerant
Thermostats tell air conditioners to switch on when it’s hot and shut down when it’s cool. Plants have Rubisco activase (Rca) that tells their energy-producing enzyme, Rubisco, to kick in when the sun is shining and stop when leaves are receiving less light. To increase the efficiency of Rca and activate Rubisco faster, researchers at […] Read more
Genomics firm eyes Prairies
NRGene, a leading genomics company based in Israel, plans to open a new office in Saskatoon. The office is expected to serve as NRGene’s North American headquarters and will support efforts to expand the company’s operations in Canada and the United States. Kirk Westgard, the assistant deputy minister at the Saskatchewan ministry of trade and […] Read more
Canfax report
This cattle market information is selected from the weekly report from Canfax, a division of the Canadian Cattlemen’s Association. More market information, analysis and statistics are available by becoming a Canfax subscriber by calling 403-275-5110 or at www.canfax.ca. Fed price backs off After averaging in the mid $140s per hundredweight for the previous three weeks, […] Read more
WP livestock report
Hogs The U.S. national live price average for barrows and gilts was $24.38 June 12, down from $26.23 June 5. U.S. hogs averaged $30.36 on a carcass basis June 12, down from $32.14 June 5. The U.S. pork cutout was $69.99 per cwt. June 12, down from $72.78 June 5. The estimated U.S. weekly slaughter […] Read more
Pandemic could prod gov’t to fix safety nets: researcher
In a rare occurrence, Canadian attention has been drawn to the country’s food system and food security. That could goad governments to fix inadequate safety net system, hopes a school of public policy researcher. “That public attention (during the pandemic) will also help translate to policy action,” said Kerri Holland during a webinar for the […] Read more
Malting barley acres drop as COVID hits beer sales
Malt sales are plummeting as COVID-19 hammers North American beer consumption but that will be offset by increased malt barley demand out of China, say industry officials. “For sure the malting companies are struggling,” said Peter Watts, managing director of the Canadian Malting Barley Technical Centre. He spoke to one grain industry official who told […] Read more
Where is the bottom for corn?
Analysts say signs suggest that the bear market may be ending, which would also be good news for wheat prices
There are encouraging signs that corn prices have bottomed out, but don’t expect a bull run anytime soon, says an analyst. “Maybe we’re OK for stable trade,” said Rich Nelson, chief strategist with Allendale Inc. “(But) I don’t have the trigger yet for higher prices.” December corn futures hit a low of US$3.25 1/2 on […] Read more
Canadian wheat sales expected to slow to top customer
Turkey has bought four times as much of the crop from Canada as the previous year, but the jump isn’t expected to last
The top buyer of Canadian durum in 2019-20 won’t be nearly as active in the new crop year but one analyst remains “moderately bullish” about the crop. Sales to Turkey exploded this year. The country imported 947,600 tonnes from Canada through the first nine months of 2019-20. Turkey has been Canada’s top customer by a […] Read more
