Five Unifor locals representing 361 workers with the St. Lawrence Seaway Management Corp. (SLSMC) have served their 72 hours’ notice of a strike that could shut the waterway to grain and all other traffic just after midnight Sunday at the earliest. Unifor members represented by Locals 4211, 4212 and 4323 in Ontario and Locals 4319 […] Read more
Seaway workers serve strike notice
Waterway would be 'closed to all traffic' in event of strike
Bulk ocean freight at highest level of past year
Container freight rates seen softening
MarketsFarm — Ocean freight rates have shown some strength over the past two months, with the Baltic Dry Index (BDI) at its highest level of the past year. The BDI, a major indicator of bulk shipping rates, settled at 2,058 points on Tuesday, marking the first close above 2,000 points since July 2022. The BDI […] Read more
Pulse weekly outlook: Smaller North American dry bean crops to underpin prices
Canada's edible bean crop estimated smallest since 2016
MarketsFarm — Variable weather conditions during the 2023 growing season cut into edible bean production in some key North American growing regions, with tighter supplies overall likely to keep prices well supported. “The whole world is a little short of beans this year,” said Mitch Coulter, executive director of the Northarvest Bean Growers Association in […] Read more
EU countries fail to agree on extending glyphosate approval
Current approval expires Dec. 15
Brussels | Reuters — European Union governments failed on Friday to give a decisive opinion on a proposal to extend by 10 years EU approval for the use of glyphosate, the active ingredient in Bayer’s Roundup herbicide. A “qualified majority” of 15 countries representing at least 65 per cent of the bloc’s population had been […] Read more
Pulse weekly outlook: Smaller yields than last year in Saskatchewan
Pulse production seen varying by location
MarketsFarm — Yields and crop conditions from this year’s pulse harvest in Saskatchewan largely varied by location, according to SaskPulse executive director Carl Potts. “Generally on the east side of the province and some areas of the south, some pretty good yields. And then in the west-central, southwest regions, some yields that were quite low. […] Read more
Pulse weekly outlook: ‘Average’ dry bean crop in Manitoba
Won't be close to last year's 'pretty phenomenal' crop
MarketsFarm — As Manitoba’s pulse harvest neared completion, a provincial pulse specialist says it will vary as to whether dry bean growers are satisfied with the result. Dennis Lange said that 96 per cent of Manitoba’s dry bean crop has already come off the field. In the central region, 97 per cent of its dry […] Read more
Alberta harvest nearing its finish
Reading Time: < 1 minute MarketsFarm — With a 14-point gain on the week, the Alberta harvest surpassed the three-quarters complete mark. As of Tuesday, Alberta farmers reached 79 per cent finished, just as cooler but drier weather was about to set in, the province reported. While contending with mostly dry conditions, the harvest over the week was 16 points […] Read more
Trimble Ag, Agco’s JCA link up for new precision ag venture
Agco gets majority control of a new precision ag and autonomy firm; Agco's GSI brand and others now under separate review
Global positioning tech firm Trimble is set to sell its precision ag business into a new joint-venture company that will include farm machinery maker Agco’s made-in-Manitoba autonomy arm. From farmers’ perspective, the two companies say their combined technology offering is expected to offer “seamless integration and connectivity across geographies, equipment brands and the crop life […] Read more
Scoular boosts flax processing capacity near Regina
Two other Saskatchewan sites for sale as U.S. firm steps out of pulse packing
U.S. grain handler Scoular is stepping up its Canadian Prairie flax processing game as it completes its exit from the region’s pulse crop sector. The company last year opened up a high-speed flax line at its pulse and special crops site at Richardson, Sask., just southeast of Regina — and it has now moved to […] Read more
Transport Canada to review Bunge-Viterra marriage plans
Competition Bureau also to probe proposed deal
Canada’s federal transport department will conduct its own review of U.S. grain giant Bunge’s plans to buy and merge with Viterra — with an eye particularly on both companies’ stakes in Canadian port terminals. Transport Minister Pablo Rodriguez announced Tuesday that his department will review the deal under the mergers and acquisitions provisions of the […] Read more
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