Mayo Schmidt, shown here speaking in Winnipeg in 2007, has “left his position” as Nutrien’s CEO and resigned from its board, the company said Jan. 4. (Dave Bedard file photo)

Nutrien makes surprise CEO switch again despite strong profits

Abrupt change 'mighty perplexing' to analysts

Reuters — Canada’s Nutrien, the world’s biggest fertilizer producer by capacity, surprised investors by replacing its chief executive on Tuesday for the second time in eight months, even as the company rakes in strong profits. Nutrien said in a statement it named Ken Seitz, the head of its potash business, as interim chief executive after […] Read more

CF Industries’ UAN plant at Donaldsonville in Louisiana. The company also makes UAN at plants in Ontario, Iowa and Oklahoma. (Thyssenkrupp-industrial-solutions.com)

Fertilizer shortage may lead to spring scramble

'It's next year's prices I'm worried about'

Reuters — A global shortage of nitrogen fertilizer is driving prices to record levels, prompting North America’s farmers to delay purchases and raising the risk of a spring scramble to apply the crop nutrient before planting season. The Texas Arctic Blast in February and Hurricane Ida in August disrupted U.S. fertilizer production. Then, prices of […] Read more


Delivery vans from the Save-On-Foods grocery store chain wait for a police escort to cross through a landslide near Hope, B.C. on Nov. 18, 2021 to restock the local grocery store after rainstorms caused flooding and landslides in the region. (Photo: Reuters/Jesse Winter)

Panicked shoppers clear out flood-hit B.C.’s grocery stores

Reuters — Shoppers in British Columbia have emptied grocery shelves following catastrophic flooding, although the shortages are as much down to panic buying as disrupted supply chains, industry associations said on Thursday. Even as flood waters start to recede, some parts of the province are expected to face to temporary shortages of dairy supplies, with […] Read more

File photo of a canola crop south of Ethelton, Sask. in 2019. (Dave Bedard photo)

Canada’s drought forces canola importers to turn elsewhere

'Importers...are going to be left out in the cold'

Winnipeg | Reuters — Canada’s smallest canola harvest in 13 years, resulting from severe drought, is forcing importers like Japan and Mexico to pay more or scour other countries for the yellow-flowering oilseed. With the scant available Canadian canola fetching high prices, customers of the world’s biggest canola exporter are leaning more heavily on smaller-producing […] Read more


A view of the Crowsnest Pass. While Canada is the world’s third most water-abundant nation, Prairie water supply depends on how much snow collects in the Rockies and how quickly it runs off as it melts.

Water outlook ‘bleak’ as glaciers recede in Rocky Mountains

Loss of glaciers would greatly affect summer flows of rivers, already seeing lower water levels

Reading Time: 3 minutes Reuters – Where fly fisherman Shane Olson once paddled summer tourists around in a boat, he now guides them by foot — carefully navigating shallow waters one step at a time. “Every year, these rivers seem to be getting smaller, faster,” the 48-year-old said as he whipped a fishing line over the Crowsnest River. “We […] Read more

(Dave Bedard photo)

Federated Co-operatives looks to sell oil-producing business, keep refinery

Winnipeg | Reuters — Federated Co-operatives Limited (FCL) put its oil production business up for sale this week, according to a marketing document obtained by Reuters, but the co-op said it plans to keep its Saskatchewan refinery. FCL spokesperson Cam Zimmer did not comment on the reason for offering to sell the production business but […] Read more


A sharply smaller spring wheat harvest due to drought may force bakers to change how they work with flour.  Photo: DanielBendjy/E+/Getty Images

Millers, bakers fret as drought withers North America’s spring wheat

Reuters – Millers and bakers are draining wheat reserves and paying more for spring wheat used in baking, as drought shrivels crops across the Canadian Prairies and northern U.S. Plains that produce more than half of the world’s supply. U.S. and Canadian farmers are bracing for a sharply smaller spring wheat harvest due to the […] Read more

(DarcyMaulsby/iStock/Getty Images)

Potash partnership with BHP ‘not our focus,’ Nutrien executive says

Prices surging on rising demand, Belarus sanctions

Winnipeg | Reuters — Canadian potash producer Nutrien is not focused on any potential collaboration with miner BHP Group, a senior Nutrien executive said Tuesday in the company’s first public comments about reports of possible co-operation. BHP has for years been constructing a potash mine at Jansen, Sask., near Nutrien’s six mines in the province. […] Read more


Nutrien’s potash mine near Rocanville, Sask. (Nutrien.com)

Nutrien to further bump up potash output

'Continued tightening' in market cited as potash producer Belarus sanctioned

Winnipeg | Reuters — Canadian fertilizer producer Nutrien said Monday it would boost its 2021 potash output by 500,000 tonnes, after the European Union and others imposed new trade sanctions on Belarus. Nutrien’s increase takes its potash sales outlook this year to a record-high range of 13.3 million to 13.8 million tonnes, and follows a […] Read more

Mosaic’s potash facility at Esterhazy, Sask. (Greg Berg photo)

Flood risk forces Mosaic to shut Esterhazy potash shaft

Company to restart Colonsay mine

Winnipeg | Reuters — Fertilizer producer Mosaic Co. said Friday it would immediately cut production at its biggest potash mine due to flood risks, and restart an idled mine to offset some of the reduction. Mosaic’s K1 and K2 mine shafts at Esterhazy, Sask., about 75 km southeast of Yorkton, have long been prone to […] Read more