Shortages of sunflower oil caused by the invasion of Ukraine hit Spain in March (the sign at this Barcelona supermarket says customers can only buy two bottles per person) but made headlines when limits were imposed on British shoppers recently. Coupled with a ban on exports from the world’s largest palm oil exporter, veg prices are expected to remain very high for a while. But it will also likely spur more production in many countries, says the general manager of Alberta Canola.

Sold-out shelves are back — but now it’s vegetable oil in short supply

Global supply was tight before Ukraine invasion, and now some countries are imposing limits on shoppers

Reading Time: 4 minutes Toilet paper. Dairy products. Flour. In the early days of the pandemic, everyday staples became near-luxury items as signs went up limiting purchases to one or two per customer. Now, thanks to another global crisis disrupting supply chains, vegetable oil is getting the same treatment in some parts of the world. “There’s already a strong […] Read more

CBOT July 2022 wheat (candlesticks) with 20- and 50-day moving averages (green and black lines), MGEX July 2022 spring wheat (yellow line) and K.C. July 2022 hard red wheat (orange line). (Barchart)

U.S. grains: Chicago wheat firm as worries about global supplies remain

Corn retreats, soybeans also firm

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago wheat futures rallied on Tuesday, even after India said it would allow overseas wheat shipments awaiting customs clearance, as traders focused on an unrelenting question roiling global prices: Where will the world get its grain? The most-active wheat contract on the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) dipped early in the […] Read more


FCC forecasts canola will more than double its price per tonne for the 2022-23 crop year compared to its five-year average.

Sky-high commodity prices to continue

Reading Time: < 1 minute Farm Credit Canada is forecasting that crop prices will continue to remain strong for the rest of the marketing year. “Some prices will ease off their recent highs, while canola, corn and soybean prices should increase,” the lender said in a market update earlier this month. The FCC forecast for canola is $990 a tonne […] Read more

CBOT July 2022 wheat (candlesticks) with Bollinger bands (20,2), MGEX July 2022 spring wheat (yellow line) and K.C. July 2022 hard red wheat (orange line). (Barchart)

U.S. grains: Chicago wheat limit up on India’s export ban

CBOT corn, soybeans also higher

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago wheat futures hit their daily 70-cent trading limit cap on Monday after India banned exports of the grain, an abrupt policy change that fanned concerns about global supplies strained by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The wheat rally sent spillover strength to corn futures, as global buyers, who were banking on […] Read more


CBOT July 2022 soft red wheat (candlesticks) with MGEX July 2022 spring wheat (yellow line) and K.C. July 2022 hard red wheat (orange line). (Barchart)

U.S. grains: CBOT wheat, corn ease off rally on supply concerns

Export outlook, crude oil support soybeans

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Board of Trade wheat and corn futures weakened on Friday, a day after rising on U.S. Department of Agriculture forecasts that indicated tightening global supplies. Traders took some profits ahead of the weekend and on expectations that U.S. farmers are advancing corn plantings thanks to improved Midwest crop weather, analysts […] Read more

Corn seedlings in southern Ontario in 2021. (Farmtario photo by John Greig)

Spring planting well underway in Ontario

MarketsFarm — Farmers are well into seeding their crops for 2022, according to Wednesday’s crop report from Ontario’s Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs (OMAFRA). The report noted planting of corn, soybeans and spring cereals started late last week — the exception being where there are heavier soils. OMAFRA projected planting could be 80 […] Read more


(OceanFishing/iStock/Getty Images)

CBOT weekly outlook: Markets react to USDA supply/demand estimates

Wheat data 'surprisingly supportive'

MarketsFarm — The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) on Thursday released its monthly world agriculture supply/demand estimates (WASDE) — the first to show estimates for the 2022-23 marketing year — and markets reacted quickly. Ryan Ettner, a broker for Allendale Inc. at McHenry, Ill., said that while figures for corn and soybeans were in line […] Read more

K.C. July 2022 hard red wheat (candlesticks) with MGEX July 2022 spring wheat (yellow line) and CBOT July 2022 wheat (orange line). (Barchart)

U.S. grains: Wheats up on ‘indisputably bullish’ cuts to harvest estimates

MGEX July wheat limit up, K.C. July wheat hits contract high

Chicago | Reuters — U.S. wheat futures set contract highs on Thursday as the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) slashed its production forecast for the variety that is grown in the U.S. Plains and used to make bread. USDA, in a monthly crop report, projected hard red winter wheat output at 590 million bushels, down […] Read more


MGEX July 2022 spring wheat (candlesticks) with CBOT July 2022 wheat (yellow line) and K.C. July 2022 hard red wheat (orange line). (Barchart)

U.S. grains: Supply worries, weather spur rallies

Market awaits USDA world crop report; rains delay U.S. spring wheat plantings

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Board of Trade grain and soybean futures jumped on Wednesday, as traders uneasy about world supplies adjusted positions a day before the release of U.S. crop data. Concerns about poor global crop weather helped support gains, with MGEX spring wheat futures setting contract highs as rains prevent plantings in the […] Read more

CBOT July 2022 soybeans (candlesticks) with Bollinger bands (20,2). (Barchart)

U.S. grains: Chicago grains firm after planting-inspired decline

USDA world report eyed for gauge of Ukraine war, harvest prospects

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago soybean futures edged up on Tuesday, a day after sliding on macroeconomic worries, as traders assessed U.S. planting progress. Wheat traded near even, pressured by recent rainfall across the U.S. Great Plains, though global supply concerns underpinned the market, while corn traded near even, supported as the pace of planting […] Read more