RED DEER, Alta. — Rural neigh-bours are reeling after losing a major battle in their 25-year war against gravel mining on a 122-acre parcel site in Red Deer County. “This is going to be the death knell for a small farm,” said Dale Christian, debriefing with neighbours on April 25 after council passed a land-use […] Read more
News
Gravel pit clears hurdle
Brazil gets help building railway
SAO PAULO, Brazil (Reuters) —Cargill Inc. is part of a group of grain trading companies analyzing whether to build an 1,100 kilometre railway in Brazil. The Ferrogrão railway could require investments of up to US$4.8 billion. It would link crop production regions in the centre west to the port of Miritituba in Para state, reducing […] Read more
CP focuses on better employee relations
Official says labour cuts were necessary but it is time to negotiate long-term agreements with unions
The top executive at Canadian Pacific Railway says he is committed to building a stronger relationship with railway employees. In an April 19 conference call with investors, president Keith Creel acknowledged that relations with the company’s unionized workers have suffered over the past few years as the company has taken steps to lower operating costs […] Read moreOntario budget’s ag spending plans fail to impress farmers
Ontario’s agriculture industry is the province’s top driver of the economy, so farm leaders were puzzled and disappointed when they saw little for their industry in the province’s budget released in April. But Jeff Leal, the province’s minister of agriculture, said the province’s support for the sector re-mains firm. One issue concerned numbers that on […] Read more
U.S. ag committee chair handles many files, even Russian spies
WASHINGTON, D.C. — It’s not often that espionage, international intrigue and suggestions of treason intrude in agriculture policy discussions, but Michael Conaway has one leg in each sphere. And he says the espionage won’t disrupt or delay all-important farmer concerns. “My new responsibilities with respect to the Russia investigation will not slow us down on […] Read more
Weather may play role in summerfallow acres
WINNIPEG — The amount of land left to summerfallow in Western Canada could hit a new record low in 2017, according to the latest Statistics Canada data, as the practice fall increasingly out of favour. However, weather conditions still have the final say with “unintended” summerfallow a distinct possibility this year. Heading into the 2017 […] Read more
AG Notes
Exports to Australia encouraged Eight Alberta companies recently participated in video conference export cafés with the Trade Commissioner Service at the Canadian High Commission in Australia. Held in Calgary and Edmonton, the initiative allowed companies to obtain direct consultation and feedback from experts in the Australian market to better prepare them for export development plans […] Read more
Kansas crop tour projects above-average wheat yields despite snow
By Julie Ingwersen MANHATTAN, Kan., May 4 (Reuters) – Wheat fields in Kansas, the top U.S. producer of the grain, were above average as crops benefited from good soil moisture, scouts on the annual Wheat Quality Council crop tour said on Thursday. However, scouts were unable to assess how late-season snow that fell over the […] Read more
Oklahoma wheat yield seen sharply lower -industry group
WICHITA, Kan., May 3 (Reuters) – Oklahoma’s 2017 average winter wheat yield is projected at 33.7 bushels per acre (bpa), an official with the industry group Plains Grains said on Wednesday. The estimate is down 13.6 percent from the state’s official 2016 yield of 39.0 bpa, which was a record high, according to the U.S. […] Read more
Global GMO crop area up 3 pct in 2016 after prior-year dip -study
May 3 (Reuters) – Plantings of genetically modified (GMO) crops rebounded in 2016 from a decline the prior year, led by increased sowings in Brazil and the United States, according to an annual report released on Wednesday. Biotech crops were planted on a record 457.4 million acres last year, up three percent from the 444.0 […] Read more
