‘Farmers are using less canola to pay for their urea than almost any time in the last two and a half decades’
It might surprise some farmers to hear there are “phenomenal” bargains in the fertilizer market today. Josh Linville, vice-president of fertilizer with StoneX, recently tweeted a chart showing the number of tonnes of canola required to pay for one tonne of urea. That value was 0.4 tonnes as of March 3. “Today is nearly the […] Read moreTag Archives fertilizer — page 14
Fertilizer emissions target is voluntary, says PM
Supply management also discussed as Canadian Federation of Agriculture delegates hear from all federal party leaders
OTTAWA — Prime minister Justin Trudeau reiterated this week that the fertilizer emissions reduction target proposed by his government is voluntary. Speaking to farmers gathered at the Canadian Federation of Agriculture annual meeting March 6 — a surprise late addition to the agenda — the prime minister praised farmers for their hard work and outlined […] Read more
Fertilizer prices drop relative to grain
It might surprise some farmers to hear there are “phenomenal” bargains in the fertilizer market today. Josh Linville, vice-president of fertilizer with StoneX, recently tweeted a chart showing the number of tonnes of canola required to pay for one tonne of urea. That value was 0.4 tonnes as of March 3. “Today is nearly the […] Read more
It’s time to drop emissions caps and re-embrace intensity
The federal government got smart on the firearms law. It’s time it got smart on the fertilizer emissions target as well as its oil emissions reduction targets. It’s time to back away from caps that ignore the role of Canada as a global leader in responsible commodity production. Canada needs to champion low-emissions commodity production […] Read more
Can we be absolutely certain about fertilizer emissions?
“To be absolutely certain about something, one must know everything or nothing about it.” — Olin Miller In the last 20 years working as a journalist, I’ve learned a few mistakes to avoid. Such as: don’t misspell the name of a small town. People in that town will notice. Sorry, again, Aylsham, Sask. Also, I’ve […] Read more
Starter fertilizer sprayed on seed, in furrow
Each seed is detected by a sensor when planted, and then sprayed with liquid fertilizer before the closing wheel
John Deere has rolled out the latest upgrade to its integrated liquid fertilizer system, ExactRate, that was launched in 2020. ExactRate gives planters row by row section control that prevents overlap and enables curve compensation for a uniform, in-furrow liquid fertilizer application, the company says. ExactShot allows users of ExactRate to spray starter fertilizer on […] Read more
Nitrogen plant proposed for Sask.
Saskatchewan has been chosen as the site for a farmer-owned urea fertilizer plant — again. Genesis Fertilizers LP has announced its intention to build a $1.7 billion plant in Belle Plaine. A similar announcement was made a decade ago at the 2013 DTN Ag Summit in Chicago. At that time the project was being spearheaded […] Read more
Gas price shock moderates, but costs remain high
Natural gas prices have fallen sharply, helping to lower the cost of making nitrogen fertilizer, but the critical input remains expensive relative to pre-pandemic norms. Gas futures on the New York Mercantile Exchange for February delivery traded last week at an 18-month low near US$3.10 per million British thermal units (MMBtu) as warmer than normal […] Read more
U of S researcher questions feds’ fertilizer targets
Professor expresses concern over the amount of influence Environment Canada seems to have with Agriculture Canada
Concerned that emotion rather than empirical evidence is driving the federal government’s fertilizer emissions reduction target, researchers at the University of Saskatchewan have gathered baseline data they say Ottawa should use. Stuart Smyth, associate professor in agricultural and resource economics, said he can’t find any evidence that Environment and Climate Change Canada used concrete information […] Read more
Profitability the pathway to emissions reduction
Farmers should be obsessing about how to cut their crops’ nitrous oxide emissions. Every kilogram emitted represents much super-expensive fertilizer just farting away into the air, rather than feeding a money-making bushel. Instead, the divisive and caustic politics of climate change have so poisoned our ability to talk about carbon emissions that most seem to […] Read more
