Canada’s largest grain handler said Thursday it has opened its books to potential buyers, setting the stage for a possible bidding war and sending its shares nine per cent higher. Viterra said in a statement it has established a process for considering expressions of interest, including confidentiality agreements. It shed no light on who might […] Read more
Viterra opens up for bidding war
Ottawa signals openness to foreign bid for Viterra
Canada has signaled it would be open to allowing a foreign bidder such as Swiss-based Glencore to take over Viterra, sending shares of the country’s largest grain handler sharply higher for a second session in a row Monday. Glencore is one of a handful of parties eyeing a bid for Viterra, a Swiss-based industry source […] Read more
Open interest tiny amid CWB doubts, timing
Reading Time: 2 minutes After nearly four weeks of trading, open interest is tiny in the new milling wheat, barley and durum futures and options contracts, even as farmers, grain companies and end-users look to manage price risk this year with the Canadian Wheat Board monopoly ending. “I don’t think it’s fair to say we were looking for a […] Read more
CHS buying Canadian durum
The largest U.S. grain co-operative, CHS Inc., is buying Canadian durum and looks to bulk up on other crops there to seize the “phenomenal” opportunity left by the end of the Canadian Wheat Board marketing monopoly later this year, a CHS executive told Reuters on Monday. In mid-December, a federal bill became law that will […] Read more
Ritz sees CWB gaining grain handling deals
Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz said Monday he is confident the Canadian Wheat Board will strike agreements with grain handlers to allow it to start buying farmers’ 2012 crops for future delivery. A new federal law will strip the board’s marketing monopoly for Prairie wheat and barley as of Aug. 1. The Wheat Board plans to […] Read more
CWB aims to expand sales to China
The Canadian Wheat Board is aiming to expand the types of crops it sells to Chinese buyers, as Ottawa opens Western Canada’s grain market later this year, the board’s chief executive said Friday. In August, the CWB is set to lose its monopoly to buy and sell Western Canada’s wheat and barley for export or […] Read more
ICE Winnipeg launches new Canadian spring wheat contract
Reading Time: 2 minutes IntercontinentalExchange (ICE) marked the impending end of Western Canada’s grain monopoly and the start of competition with the Minneapolis Grain Exchange when it launched new Canadian wheat, durum and barley futures and options contracts in Winnipeg on Monday this week. ICE Futures Canada’s milling wheat contract will compete for trades with the Minneapolis (MGEX) hard […] Read more
Canada cattle herd to shrink despite trade wins
Canada’s cattle herd should keep shrinking for several years, making it tough for the No. 3 beef exporter to capitalize fully on new overseas opportunities, the head of the country’s new beef industry group said. The Canadian herd fell to an 18-year low of 13.87 million head midway through last year, even as Chicago live […] Read more
Port group to close as CWB monopoly ends
The 103-year-old organization that co-ordinates shipments through Canada’s two biggest grain-shipping ports is winding down, saying it may not be needed once the Canadian Wheat Board loses its monopoly. The Winnipeg-based Canadian Ports Clearance Association (CPCA) will cease operations this summer on Aug. 31, one month after the Wheat Board loses control over western Canada’s […] Read more
Judge reserves decision on CWB directors’ request
Suspending a new law that ended the Canadian Wheat Board’s monopoly would sow confusion in Western Canada’s grain industry, lawyers for the federal government said in court on Wednesday in a hearing on a plea from eight former directors. The onetime CWB directors, Prairie farmers ousted when the bill to revamp the CWB became law […] Read more
Cyber-Savvy Farmer
