CHICAGO (Reuters) — U.S. grain farmers are boosting demand for loans from farm banks as five-year lows in crop prices squeeze operating budgets ahead of spring planting, according to a national survey of farm bankers issued by the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City on Wednesday. “Reduced profits in the crop sector persisted in the […] Read more
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U.S. grain farmers add debt as crop prices squeeze cash flow
U.S. lawmakers propose bill to create single food safety agency
WASHINGTON (Reuters) — U.S. lawmakers proposed a bill on Wednesday that would create a single food safety agency by bringing together the oversight functions of the Food and Drug Administration, U.S. Department of Agriculture and other agencies. Democratic Senator Richard Durbin from Illinois and Representative Rosa DeLauro, a Democrat from Connecticut, told reporters on a […] Read more
Expenses fall, profits rise at Canadian Pacific
Revenue is up eight percent to $6.62 billion and the company expects the lower Canadian dollar will mean continued growth
Canada’s second largest railway company hauled home record profits last year and is showing no signs of slowing down. Calgary-based Canadian Pacific Railway reported full-year revenues of $6.62 billion in 2014, up eight percent from $6.13 billion the previous year. Operating expenses dropped to $4.28 billion from $4.71 billion a year earlier. The company’s operating […] Read moreResearch points to need for aquaculture reforms
ROME, Italy (Thomson Reuters Foundation) — Fish farmers in China have been increasingly harvesting wild stocks to feed their caged varieties, which is putting new strains on the world’s oceans, said new research from scientists at Stanford University. China is the world’s largest producer and consumer of fish, contributing about one-third of the global supply. […] Read more
Globe grew warmer in 2014
Separate studies report that last year was the warmest on record
(Reuters) — Last year was Earth’s warmest on record, bolstering the argument that humans are altering the planet’s climate by burning greenhouse gas-emitting fuels, according to a pair of analyses by two major U.S. agencies. Separate studies by NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration showed that 10 of the warmest years on record […] Read moreProducer car shippers seek more guarantees
Alberta farmers want the federal government to allocate 20 percent of grain cars to producer car shippers and short-line railways
RED DEER — Alberta farmers want the federal government to order the major railways to allocate 20 percent of its cars to producer car shippers and short-line railway operators. A resolution that passed unanimously at a recent Alberta Federation of Agriculture meeting said such a move would allow small grain industry players to compete. Reg […] Read moreU.S., Brazil each expand biotech crop plantings by four pct – report
CHICAGO, Jan 28 (Reuters) – Farmers in the United States and Brazil, two agricultural powerhouses, last year increased plantings of biotech crops faster than the global rate of expansion for such plantings, according to a report issued on Wednesday. U.S. farmers planted biotech crops on 180.6 million acres, up 4.3 percent from 2013, while Brazil […] Read more
Video: Canada’s agricultural markets updates – January 28, 2015
D’Arce McMillan, The Western Producer markets editor, monitors trends in the North American and global agricultural markets. Each week he hosts two markets videos, crops and livestock. The videos are designed to help viewers understand the forces responsible for changes in the trade. If agricultural markets are important to you, we have you covered. Crops: […] Read more
New cash grain price reporting website gets funding
EDMONTON — Western Canadian farmers will have a new web-based tool to help them find the best price for their crops. The Alberta Wheat Commission will develop and operate the $742,725 crop and data price reporting project to increase price transparency, said commission chair Kent Erickson. “We heard a lot from our producers across Alberta […] Read more
CME hogs see biggest rally in four months, cattle up
By Theopolis Waters CHICAGO, Jan 28 (Reuters) – Chicago Mercantile Exchange lean hogs closed sharply higher Wednesday on short-covering that earlier drove futures to their biggest one-day gain in four months at over two percent. The electronic is currently trading and is up 1.8 pct. February closed 2.100 cents per pound higher at 71.525 cents, […] Read more
