MarketsFarm — Ocean freight rates have shown some strength in late February, with the Baltic Dry Index (BDI) recovering off two-and-a-half-year lows hit earlier in the month. The BDI, a major indicator of bulk shipping rates, has risen for seven straight sessions to settle Monday at 935 points, up from the low of 530 points […] Read more
Bulk ocean freight rates recover off lows
Container rates remain in downtrend
Cash advance window for farmers now open
Reading Time: < 1 minute Farmers can now apply for cash advances for the 2023 growing season. Producers can get up to $1 million with the first $250,000 interest-free. The latter is worth more this year because interest rates are so much higher, note administrators of the Advance Payments Program. “With rising interest rates, the savings a farmer can realize […] Read more
Pulse weekly outlook: AAFC report makes minor changes
Revisions mainly in dry peas, chickpeas
MarketsFarm — Following the latest supply and demand estimates from Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC), MarketsFarm Pro analyst Mike Jubinville said their numbers “all seem reasonable enough.” There were only a handful of small tweaks to pulses in the AAFC report released Friday. For the most part, the revisions came with dry beans and chickpeas. […] Read more
Multi-million-dollar fund greenlights soil health projects
Eight projects to push soil health practices will get funding for the next five years
Eight soil health projects across Canada will be getting a multi-million-dollar boost in private funding over the next five years. The Weston Family Foundation — the philanthropic arm of the Weston business empire — has slated $10 million for those eight projects through the organization’s soil health initiative, it was announced Feb. 13. The initiative […] Read more
CN’s mechanics, clerical staff taking strike votes
Railway not expecting impact on operations
Canadian National Railway says it’s not expecting any impact on its operations if its unionized mechanics and clerical staff are involved in a work stoppage, depending on the outcome of strike votes starting this week. Unifor represents about 3,000 CN workers in mechanical, intermodal and clerical positions across the country through five collective agreements, all […] Read more
AAFC revises crop estimates
Export, new-crop production outlooks revised lower for flax
MarketsFarm — Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) on Friday released its February supply and demand estimates with numerous small changes. AAFC held its projections for 2022-23 grains and oilseeds production at 89.489 million tonnes. As for exports, the department reduced them from 45.715 million tonnes last month to now 45.49 million. Furthermore, domestic usage was […] Read more
A seed show more than a century in the making
Two dozen classes of seeds on display at North American Seed Fair
Reading Time: 2 minutes It’s the new and shiny equipment that gets the lion’s share of attention, but the other part of the Ag-Expo and North American Seed Fair is worth a look, too. This year’s edition of the seed fair is the 126th, making it one of the oldest such fairs in Western Canada. “It’s the oldest ribboning […] Read more
Pulse weekly outlook: Earthquake to have little effect on pulse markets
Such disasters don't often blow back on agrifood commodity costs
MarketsFarm — The earthquake that devastated parts of Turkey and Syria on Monday last week, taking the lives of more than 40,000 people, may not have a major effect on pulse markets, according to one analyst. Jon Driedger from Leftfield Commodity Research in Winnipeg said that while natural disasters like an earthquake can take on […] Read more
Pulse weekly outlook: Chickpea stocks down; lentils, dry peas up
Chickpea prices unchanged before report
MarketsFarm — Statistics Canada on Tuesday tallied up increases in commercial and on-farm stocks of both lentils and dry peas, in its report on grain stocks as of Dec. 31, 2022. Unlike those two pulses, however, StatCan reported total stocks of chickpeas decreased, at 185,000 tonnes in December 2022 compared to 311,000 in December 2021. […] Read more
Absence of issues leads to January record for grain movement
CN, CP so far see 'calamity-free' 2022-23
MarketsFarm — So far this winter grain movement in Canada has yet to incur few — if any — major problems that have stymied rail shipments, according to Mark Hemmes, president of Quorum Corp., which tracks rail movement in Canada. Canadian Pacific Railway and Canadian National Railway (CP, CN) have been doing good jobs during […] Read more
Cyber-Savvy Farmer
