File photo of a Chinese cornfield. (Baona/iStock/Getty Images)

China proposes new rules to ease GMO approvals

Leadership seeks 'turnaround' in seed sector

Beijing | Reuters — China is planning changes to its seed regulations that will make it easier to approve genetically modified crops, a move seen as a critical step toward commercializing GM corn. The ministry of agriculture and rural affairs published a draft document late on Friday proposing a series of amendments to several different […] Read more



The Co-op Ethanol Complex at Belle Plaine, Sask. (FCL.crs)

Co-op to capture carbon at ethanol plant, refinery

FCL, Whitecap sign agreement to sequester fuel plants' CO2

A major Prairie ethanol and fuel producer is posed to spend just over half a billion dollars on a system to capture and sequester carbon dioxide from its operations in Saskatchewan. Federated Co-operatives announced Thursday it had signed a memo of understanding with Calgary-based ‘clean energy’ company Whitecap Resources, in which the latter company will […] Read more

A cornfield in Mexico’s Chihuahua state. (Undefined undefined/iStock/Getty Images)

Mexico won’t limit GMO corn imports from U.S., ag minister says

Ankeny, Iowa | Reuters — Mexico’s agriculture minister said the country would not limit imports of genetically modified (GMO) corn from the United States during a meeting with U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack in Iowa on Wednesday. Mexico published an executive order late last year that sought to ban in three years the use of […] Read more


Detail on the Chicago Board of Trade building. (Kevinstack22/iStock/Getty Images)

CBOT weekly outlook: Soy, corn strength impressive for time of year

MarketsFarm — Soybean and corn futures at the Chicago Board of Trade have posted solid gains over the week ended Wednesday, recovering after bearish yield and stocks data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture sparked a selloff a week earlier. Terry Reilly of Futures International in Chicago used “pretty impressive” to describe the latest strength […] Read more

(Photo courtesy Canada Beef Inc.)

Feed weekly outlook: Shortages leading to price increases

MarketsFarm — Prices for feed grains are swinging higher because of shortages, according to Mike Fleischhauer of Eagle Commodities Ltd. in Lethbridge. “One thing we are sure of is we are running out of inventory, barley for sure, and we’re 11 months away from new crop,” he said. This year’s severe drought and excessive heat […] Read more



Photo: Thinkstock

Feed weekly outlook: Canadian markets firm, waiting on U.S. corn

MarketsFarm — Canadian feed grain bids remain strong, although end-users are only buying on a hand-to-mouth basis as they await an influx of cheaper corn imports from the U.S. “Everybody is waiting on the corn situation to figure out where we’ll go,” said Suzanne Leclerc, owner of Market Master Ltd. in Edmonton. “Buyers are buying […] Read more


Photo: Thinkstock

Feed weekly outlook: U.S. corn imports to supplement tight supplies

Feeders seeking barley would 'have to pay up'

MarketsFarm — The looming corn harvest in the United States should keep a lid on rising feed grain prices in Western Canada, with more corn expected to make its way into Canadian feedlots this winter. “U.S. corn should start landing in Lethbridge sometime in October or early November,” said Jim Beusekom, of MarketPlace Commodities at […] Read more

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USDA’s September supply/demand data contain few surprises

MarketsFarm — There was few, if any, surprises to be found for grain traders in the latest supply and demand report from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). The September world agriculture supply and demand estimates (WASDE) was pretty much stand-pat in terms of U.S. corn and soybeans, according to trader Andrew Mages of Progressive […] Read more