MarketsFarm — Grain shipments through the Port of Thunder Bay are running well behind normal through the first two months of the 2022 shipping season, according to a release from the port. However, potash movement through the port is up considerably, with inbound shipments of general cargo also strong. Grain shipments through the end of […] Read more

Thunder Bay grain shipments down on year through two months

U.N. aid chief in Moscow to discuss Ukraine grain exports
Russia says will guarantee grain vessels' safety
Reuters — U.N. aid chief Martin Griffiths is in Moscow on Thursday and Friday to discuss clearing the way for exports of grain and other food from Ukraine’s Black Sea ports, a U.N. spokesperson said. Griffiths will meet Russian officials days after another senior U.N. official, Rebecca Grynspan, had “constructive” talks in Moscow with Russian […] Read more

U.N. had ‘constructive’ talks in Moscow on Russian grain, fertilizer exports
U.S. could offer 'comfort letters' to shippers, insurers
United Nations | Reuters — A senior U.N. official had “constructive discussions” in Moscow with Russian First Deputy Prime Minister Andrei Belousov on facilitating Russian grain and fertilizer exports to global markets, U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric said on Tuesday. The U.N. official, Rebecca Grynspan, is now in Washington for talks on the same issue “with […] Read more

Pulse weekly outlook: More rainfall turns into more seeding delays
MarketsFarm — After southern Manitoba had experienced ideal seeding conditions for most of the previous week, another round of rains created another round of headaches for pulse growers on Monday. “Last week, there were a few dry beans planted here in southern Manitoba. (There was) a lot of prep work being done. Things were really […] Read more

Kremlin says Putin ready to facilitate grain exports via Ukraine ports
Russia says will work with Turkey
London | Reuters — President Vladimir Putin said Monday that Russia was ready to facilitate the unhindered export of grain from Ukrainian ports in co-ordination with Turkey, according to a Kremlin readout of talks with Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan. Besides the death and devastation sown by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the war and the West’s […] Read more

Fertilizer maker Yara says world faces extreme food supply shock
Sanctions cut global fertilizer supply 15 per cent, company says
Davos, Switzerland | Reuters — Norwegian fertilizer giant Yara says donors urgently need to close the U.N.’s $10 billion food programme funding gap to avoid a catastrophe as sanctions on Russian fertilizers and Ukraine’s grain export problems have created an extreme global shock. “The world has realized that food can be a weapon and it […] Read more

Pulse weekly outlook: AAFC projects normal yields, increased pulse production
MarketsFarm — A return to yields closer to long-range averages will result in greater production for most pulse crops in 2022-23, according to Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada’s monthly outlook for principal field crops released last Friday. Many of the projections are based on the assumption that normal weather conditions will return to most of the […] Read more

Good things come in threes as Alberta adds another pulse plant
New $225-million facility in Strathmore will be a major buyer of peas, venture's founder says
Reading Time: 3 minutes Another pulse processing facility is coming to Alberta, this time in the town of Strathmore. And the $225-million fractionation plant is going to need a lot of yellow peas from area producers — 40,000 tonnes annually, said Chris Theal, a Calgary oil patch veteran who founded Phyto Organix, and is the privately-held company’s CEO and […] Read more
Food crisis fuels fears of protectionism compounding shortages
Davos | Reuters — A growing world food crisis is precipitating protectionist moves by countries which are likely to compound the problem and could lead to a wider trade war, business leaders and policymakers at the World Economic Forum said. In a sign of the escalating squeeze on food supplies and rising prices, a government […] Read more

Planting progress picking up in Saskatchewan
MarketsFarm — Overall spring planting across Saskatchewan reached 33 per cent complete as of Monday, according to the latest weekly crop report from Saskatchewan Agriculture. Despite the good progress over the week, that’s still 20 points behind the five-year average. When compared to the excellent progress this time last year, the gap expands to 41 […] Read more