I have been waiting to see if the weather models were going to come into agreement on the upcoming shift on our weather pattern and for the most part, they have: it’s going to get cold! A large area of low pressure has formed over the eastern Arctic and the counterclockwise rotation around that low […] Read more
Prairie Forecast Update: Cold and some snow coming
Issued Oct. 22, covering Oct. 22 to 25
Former ag minister returns in new Manitoba cabinet
Kinew names Kostyshyn to ag portfolio
Incoming Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew has brought a former provincial agriculture minister back to the cabinet table to handle the ag file. Ron Kostyshyn, who from 2012 to 2016 was then-premier Greg Selinger’s ag minister while serving as MLA for the northwestern riding of Swan River, was sworn in Wednesday as minister of agriculture in […] Read more
Prairie Forecast: Warmer, colder… then snow?
Issued Oct. 18, covering Oct. 18-25
Not surprisingly for this time of the year, the last forecast didn’t play out exactly as expected, but overall, it was pretty darn close. The large area of high pressure that was forecasted to develop over the northern Prairies and slowly drop southward did just as forecast, but over the first few days the high […] Read more
FCC sees calmer waters ahead for crop input market
Have markets steadied, or is it the pause before another storm?
Reading Time: 4 minutes Glacier FarmMedia – Farmers can breathe a sigh of relief knowing crop input prices have stabilized as the world adapts to global supply challenges. That was the message as Farm Credit Canada provided its latest update on input prices for the 2024 crop year. Fertilizer prices reached new highs in 2022 when the war in […] Read more
U.N. held talks in Russia on Monday on grain, fertilizer exports
'Unimpeded access' sought for Ukrainian, Russian grain
United Nations | Reuters — Top United Nations trade official Rebeca Grynspan met with Russian officials in Moscow on Monday for talks aimed at enabling the “unimpeded access” to global markets for grain and fertilizer from Russia and Ukraine, a U.N. spokesperson said. U.N. aid chief Martin Griffiths also attended the meetings virtually, U.N. spokesperson […] Read more
Turning back the clock with grazing
Cattle can help fill the biodiversity void left from the loss of bison
Reading Time: 5 minutes Cattle are often maligned for their contributions to greenhouse gas levels, but Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada’s Tim McAllister says that’s wrongheaded. “We hear about people advocating for the need to eliminate livestock from agriculture production, basically without really understanding the negative connotations that would have,” the researcher said during a recent webinar. “We really need […] Read more
Wheat Growers take new shot at federal fertilizer policy
The federal government wants a 30 per cent reduction in emissions from fertilizer, but says it is voluntary
Reading Time: 3 minutes The Wheat Growers Association says claims that the federal government is threatening to force a 30 per cent reduction in nitrogen fertilizer use, published in a newsletter aimed at consumers, was meant to prove a point. “We aren’t really exaggerating,” said Wheat Growers president Gunter Jochum. “I felt they were not exaggerating because of the […] Read more
Manitoba legislature’s agriculture leaders to return under new management
NDP scores majority over incumbent Tories
Manitoba’s incumbent agriculture minister and lead opposition agriculture critic are headed back to the legislature — but under a new seating plan. Opposition leader Wab Kinew’s New Democrats are expected to form a majority government coming out of Tuesday’s provincial election, unseating incumbent premier Heather Stefanson’s Progressive Conservatives. Just after 1 a.m. Wednesday, NDP candidates […] Read more
Indian Potash sees no Canada supply hit
Diplomatic relations have soured between India and Canada, but it hasn’t spilled into potash trade yet
Reading Time: < 1 minute Indian Potash does not expect supplies of Canadian potash to be affected by the diplomatic row between the governments of India and Canada, its managing director said Sept. 22. At the time, it hoped to extend a contract with Canadian supplier Canpotex beyond the end of September. India is a leading fertilizer importer to support […] Read more
NFU report adjusts sequestration, fuel emissions numbers
Uncertainty about absolute numbers isn’t the same as uncertainty about trends: author
Reading Time: 2 minutes Canadian agriculture is sequestering more carbon than originally thought, but it’s also burning more diesel fuel, according to a new report from the National Farmers Union. In August, the NFU released the third edition of its Agriculture Greenhouse Gas Emissions in Canada report. It reflected updated information from the latest national inventory that the federal […] Read more