Reading Time: < 1 minute Farmers who are able to wait until late spring or early summer to buy fertilizer are likely to see lower prices, the annual Grain World conference in Winnipeg heard last week. David Asbridge, client development manager and senior economist for Doane Advisory Services in St. Louis, Missouri, said his first recommendation to growers is to […] Read more
Fertilizer Costs To Ease Towards Summer?
La Nina May Mean Good Yields
Reading Time: < 1 minute La Nina conditions in the Pacific Ocean this winter could indicate high Canadian wheat yields the following summer, according to a meteorologist speaking at the Grain World Conference in Winnipeg last week Long-term weather conditions can be an inexact science. However, La Nina and El Nino conditions, which relate to Pacific Ocean surface-level water temperatures […] Read more
Few surprises in StatsCan production report
Market participants say there were few surprises in Statistics Canada’s production estimates for 2008, which were released this morning. However, the upward revision to the 2007/08 canola production estimate by the government agency managed to garner some major attention. Statistics Canada pegged 2008/09 canola output at 10.375 million tonnes, which compares with pre-report expectations that […] Read more
Moisture In Alberta Varied, Crops Still Behind
Moisture levels in Alberta continue to vary widely, with some areas in dire need of rainfall while moisture in other regions is adequate. According to Neil Whatley, crop specialist with the Alberta Ag Info Centre, central and southern Alberta have good moisture levels while areas north and northeast of Edmonton are on the dry side. […] Read more
Lower government support hits CWB credit rating
Standard and Poor’s Rating Services announced that it has lowered its long-term issuer credit rating on the Canadian Wheat Board to ‘AA’ from ‘AA+’, citing a lower level of federal government support for the CWB as the main reason. Standard and Poor’s affirmed its other rating on the CWB at the same time and said […] Read more
ICE Futures Canada trade resumes after outage
Trade at the ICE Futures Canada platform is scheduled to resume at 1 p.m. CDT. Steve Teller, manager of the regulatory division of ICE Futures Canada (formerly known as the Winnipeg Commodity Exchange), said the ICE Futures Canada trading platform will close at its normal time Thursday. Activity at the ICE trading platform came to […] Read more
Good seeding progress seen in Ontario: OMAFRA
Favourable weather conditions allowed producers in Ontario to make good seeding progress during the week ended May 7, according to the latest field crop update from Ontario’s Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs. Planting of the province’s spring cereals was nearing completion with 95 per cent of the crop in the ground, the report […] Read more
Winnipeg exchange hikes daily trading limits
Price limits for canola, barley, and feed wheat futures traded on ICE Futures Canada will be revised starting with the March 14 trading session, according to a participant notice Wednesday. The daily limit for canola will increase to $45 per tonne from $30. The daily limits for feed wheat and western barley will both increase […] Read more
Ottawa, railways reach new deal on hopper cars
New agreements between the federal government, Canadian National Railway (CN) and Canadian Pacific (CPR) to operate, maintain and refurbish the federal fleet of hopper rail cars have been reached, according to federal Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz. “These rail cars are an essential link, allowing Canadian farmers to move their products to markets around the world,” […] Read more
Canada adopts farm animal genetics action plan
The Canadian government has adopted the Global Plan of Action for Farm Animal Genetic Resources, an international framework to conserve and use animal genetic resources. “This global plan will help Canadian breeders and researchers access genetic resources from other countries as well as further support the export of Canadian animal genetics,” said Gerry Ritz, the […] Read more
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