The British Columbia government has approved construction of the controversial Site C hydroelectric dam on the Peace River at an estimated cost of $8.8 billion. Construction of the dam, near Fort St. John, is expected to begin next summer and be completed by 2024. During the announcement, B.C. premier Christy Clark said the hydroelectric dam […] Read more
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B.C. approves Site C dam on Peace River
Documentary planned to counter anti-GMO arguments
Farmers who are concerned about losing a valuable biotechnology tool are urged to support a pro-GMO movie. Rob Saik, chief executive officer of Agri-Trend Group of Companies, said farmers are in danger of losing genetic modification unless they tell politicians and consumers the importance of the technology. “If agriculture doesn’t stand up and speak up, […] Read more
Syngenta drops lawsuit against Bunge over biotech Viptera corn
CHICAGO (Reuters) — With expectations rising that China will soon approve imports of a genetically modified corn variety developed by Syngenta AG, the seed maker dropped a lawsuit against Bunge North America over the agribusiness company’s refusal to handle the controversial grain, court documents show. The settlement clears up a long-running legal dispute over Syngenta’s […] Read more
Recent mild weather hurting western Canadian winter wheat
WINNIPEG — The recent milder weather seen in Western Canada was unfavourable for winter wheat crops, and has left the crops more vulnerable to winterkill. “The major impact is that it melted some of the snow cover that the winter wheat had, and in a lot of cases now, some of those fields are bare,” […] Read more
U.S, China making progress on biotech crop talks: USDA’s Vilsack
CHICAGO (Reuters) — The United States and China are making progress in talks over Beijing’s acceptance of new biotechnology for crops, U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said on Wednesday. The countries are “moving toward an understanding of how we might be able to establish a strategic dialogue on biotechnology,” Vilsack told Chinese Vice Premier Wang […] Read more
‘No news is good news’ for Canadian canola exports
WINNIPEG — Steady end user demand and a lack of any problems from a logistics standpoint are keeping Canadian canola exports moving at a solid pace, but a repeat of the record business of 2013-14 is still unlikely. “There is still some demand out there, but it’s probably not as strong as the beginning of […] Read more
China GMO corn approval not seen as windfall for U.S. exporters
CHICAGO (Reuters) — Despite molding corn stocks and unreliable alternate suppliers, China is not expected to immediately revive U.S. corn imports following Beijing’s expected approval of a biotech variety responsible for a year-long halt to shipments. U.S. corn prices hit five-month peaks this week, partly on reports that Chinese approval of Syngenta AG’s Agrisure Viptera […] Read more
Quality of record-large U.S. corn harvest ‘good’
CHICAGO (Reuters) — The quality of the record-large U.S. corn harvest was “good,” with high average test weights beneficial for export prospects for the world’s top shipper, the U.S. Grains Council said in an annual report on Tuesday. Average weight of a bushel of corn was 57.6 lbs, below the three-year average of 58.8 lbs […] Read more
Russia curbs grain exports, traders call it state regulation
MOSCOW (Reuters) — Russia’s food safety watchdog has imposed tougher quality checks on grain exports, a move traders criticized as being little more than the state cutting supplies to only four countries. Russia’s Agriculture Ministry had promised to avoid export curbs on Tuesday, but within hours traders said the watchdog had restricted grain export certificates […] Read more
Wheat up on Russia’s woes, canola little changed
Canola futures closed mixed but Chicago wheat hit a six month high on worries about Russia possibly restricting wheat exports. Trade sources told Reuters today that Russia’s Veterinary and Phytosanitary Surveillance Service has restricted grain export certificates for some countries. The trade is riveted on Russia and how it will react to rapidly rising domestic […] Read more
