Viterra purchase gets go-ahead | The company still has foreign regulations to iron out
Glencore International’s proposed $6.1 billion takeover of Canada’s largest grain company is a step closer to reality. However, the transaction is unlikely to be completed before the beginning of the new crop year as Glencore officials had previously suggested. Glencore officials confirmed July 15 that their plan to acquire Viterra has received approval from Industry […] Read moreNews
Glencore gets thumbs up
New Roundup Ready canola more flexible
The company that brought genetically modified crops to Canada has achieved regulatory approval for its first new trait in canola since 1996. The Canadian Food Inspection Agency and Health Canada have granted food, feed and environmental safety approval to Monsanto Canada’s new line of Roundup Ready canola. The company claims that TruFlex Roundup Ready canola […] Read more
Monsanto nixes separate fee for canola technology use
Genuity Roundup Ready seed | The fee will be included in the bag price, enabling growers to compare prices and calculate costs per acre
Monsanto Canada is getting rid of one of its most despised products. Starting next year, farmers will no longer be required to sign a technology use agreement (TUA) when they buy a bag of Genuity Roundup Ready canola seed. TUAs have been around since the company first introduced genetically modified canola in 1996. It was […] Read moreSaskPower requests rate hike for system improvements
SaskPower has applied for a 4.9 percent rate hike that, if approved, would add an average $10 per month to farm power bills. President Robert Watson said July 10 the increase, set to take effect Jan. 1, is necessary to pay for improvements required to the province’s electrical system. The last rate hike was 4.5 […] Read more
Silage company turns up the heat
Barley silage exports head east | Alberta company heat treats shipments to assuage import concerns
NAMPA, Alta. — Barley silage is the natural cattle feed in Canada, but a northern Alberta company hopes it will soon be the natural choice for Japanese cattle as well. For the past three years, Peace River Timothy has slowly increased its dried barley silage exports to Japan. Last year, the Nampa company shipped 40,000 […] Read more
Growers urged to take up kochia fight
A reminder to watch for glyphosate resistant kochia was issued last week to southern Alberta farmers. Resistant weeds were found last fall near Warner, Alta., and Agriculture Canada researchers Bob Blackshaw and Hugh Beckie have trials underway to assess the ability of 24 tank mixes at various rates to kill the troublesome weed. Those at […] Read more
Arbitrator appointed to resolve CPR labour dispute
The federal government has appointed veteran labour relations expert William Kaplan as an arbitrator to settle a dispute between Canadian Pacific Railway and its Teamsters Canada Rail Conference union. The July 19 appointment comes under the terms of back-to-work legislation passed by Parliament in May. He is supposed to issue a report by mid-October that […] Read more
Heat wave boosts Alberta irrigated crops
Heat wave boosts Alberta irrigated crops
Corn loves heat. Sugar beets like heat. And potatoes are OK with it too, so long as the sprinklers keep running. That means a recent spate of hot weather in southern Alberta has been a boon for irrigated row crops, which are in good condition and in better shape than this time last year. “If […] Read moreCanola rises slightly in volatile trading day
Canola futures prices reluctantly followed soybeans higher Thursday as a crazy day of trading rocked other crops yet again. November canola rose $4.20 to $636.70 ($14.44 per bushel) and January rose $4.10 to $639.70. The U.S. Midwest drought has unleashed a torrent of greed and fear in the crop markets and they are being buffeted […] Read more
Resistant blackleg strain found in Manitoba canola fields
What is likely a resistant variety of blackleg has destroyed 40 percent of a couple of canola fields in Manitoba. Earlier this month, Manitoba Agriculture staff detected blackleg on the stems of canola plants on two fields. However, oilseed and plant disease specialists with the government aren’t disclosing the location of the fields or the […] Read more
