Canola posts modest gain on week, supported by strong demand

November canola futures closed a dollar shy of the $500 a tonne mark, supported by rising soybeans and good domestic and export demand. The contract though could not sustainably break above $500 although it peak above during morning trade. It closed at $499, up $3.30 on the day and up $2.60 from the close the […] Read more

Canada set to open Mercosur trade talks in December -sources

BRASILIA, Oct 13 (Reuters) – Canada and the South American trade bloc Mercosur will announce in December the opening of negotiations for a free-trade deal during the World Trade Organization’s annual meeting in Argentina, two sources told Reuters this week. The governments of all four full members of Mercosur — Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, and Uruguay […] Read more

Demand remains strong for oil and meal so canola crushers are continuing production despite a squeze on profits.  |  File photo

Crushers crush despite poor margins

Canola crush margins are half what they were a year ago, but crushers are still making money and buying canola, says an analyst. The ICE Futures canola board crush margin for the nearby futures contract on Oct. 6 was about $62 per tonne, down from $111 per tonne a year ago. Ken Ball, senior commodity […] Read more


In 2016-17 crushers produced 5.15 million tonnes of meal. By 2025 the goal is to produce 7.7 million tonnes. Source: Canada Strategic Plan 2025 | Canola Council image

Canola sector must find new markets for protein

If all goes according to plan, prairie farmers will be producing 26 million tonnes of canola by 2025. If that does happen, as the Canola Council of Canada hopes, production will be 7.4 million tonnes more than 2016. Most people in the canola trade are on board with the expansion plan, but the industry will […] Read more

Growers with quality barley may delay delivery, hoping their crop will be selected as malting grade.  |  File photo

Tight supply has growers sitting on barley

Prices are rising and growers are in no panic to sell, especially if they have grain that could be malting quality

Feed barley markets in Western Canada continued to show strength last week with spot bids in some southern Alberta locations edging higher than $205 per tonne. Allen Pirness, a feed grain trader with Market Place Commodities in Lethbridge, said barley markets have been tight in recent weeks with reduced acreage, lower-than-expected yields and limited producer […] Read more


CME live cattle futures slump; cash prices disappoint

CHICAGO, Oct 12 (Reuters) – Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle on Thursday reversed some of their recent gains, pressured by profit-taking following this week’s initial cash prices that fell short of expectations, said traders. To avoid cattle deliveries, some investors sold the October contract either outright or simultaneously bought deferred months in a trading strategy […] Read more

Market wrap: USDA bullish for oilseeds, bearish for wheat

November canola at one point hit $500 per tonnes on Thursday supported by a bullish data on soybeans in the monthly USDA report. But by the close the November contract had softened and closed at $495.70, up $2.20 or 0.45 percent. Active farmer selling at the highs of the day were behind the late session […] Read more

Pea plant construction talks continue in Moose Jaw

Canadian Protein Innovation plans to process yellow peas into starch and protein for animal protein replacements and for industrial uses


Negotiations continue between the City of Moose Jaw and Canadian Protein Innovation on possible construction of a $100 million pea processing facility. The city says it had extended the deadline to reach an agreement on the land purchase and servicing agreement until Nov. 30. A previous extension from Aug. 31 to Oct. 3 had also […] Read more


India’s bumper summer crop adds to ample pulse supply

India is forecasting the second biggest kharif (summer) pulse harvest on record, but a Canadian analyst believes it will be smaller than the government thinks. In its first advance estimate for the 2017-18 kharif crop, the Indian government predicted 8.71 million tonnes of pulse production. That would be down from last year’s record 9.42 million […] Read more

New export markets needed to accommodate rising pork production

Pork exports to China boomed in 2016 but slowed this year, although they remain on a long term rising trajectory. Future demand from China and other export markets will continue to be a key market factor as North American hog herds grow and slaughter expands. Forecasts indicate that while U.S. pork production should remain manageable […] Read more