Crops
Reading Time: 3 minutes Here are excerpts from the Crop Logistics Working Group (CLWG) on its eight recommendations to improve the grain-handling and transportation system. The full report can be found here. Recommendation 1: Enhance Transparency in the Rail Market CLWG members request that the government encourage CN and CP to accurately report car order fulfilment data in a […] Read more
Eight fixes for an ailing grain shipping system
U.S. grains: Soy, corn tumble after USDA hikes U.S. yield forecasts
Chicago | Reuters –– U.S. soybean futures plunged six per cent and both corn and soybeans briefly fell their respective daily limits on Wednesday after the U.S. Department of Agriculture surprised traders by raising its estimates for domestic corn and soybean crops in a monthly report. Analysts surveyed by Reuters had expected USDA to lower its […] Read more
Kraft Heinz to cut 2,500 jobs in Canada, U.S.
Reuters — Kraft Heinz Co. said it will eliminate 2,500 jobs in the U.S. and Canada, including about 700 at its Chicago-area headquarters. Heinz, backed by Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway and Brazilian private equity firm 3G Capital — known as an aggressive cost-cutter — combined with Kraft in March in a $46 billion deal that […] Read more
USDA sees bumper corn, soy crops despite floods
Washington | Reuters –– U.S. corn and soybean harvests were pegged above expectations this year as strong yields in areas west of the Mississippi River will make up for problems caused by excessive rains in eastern production states, the government said Wednesday. The U.S. Department of Agriculture forecast the 2015-16 soybean harvest at 3.916 billion […] Read more
Prairie pea yields appear lower in early harvest
CNS Canada — Western Canada’s pea harvest has begun and yields appear to be down, according to a crop management specialist with Saskatchewan Agriculture. “Once farmers cut into the peas they began finding yields maybe half of what they typically expected,” said Shannon Friesen. Excess dryness in the early summer seems to have taken its […] Read more
CVR to buy Rentech arm in N fertilizer merger
Reuters — Nitrogen fertilizer producer CVR Partners said Monday it would buy Rentech Nitrogen Partners for US$533 million, excluding debt, as global fertilizer makers scale up at a time when increased supplies weigh on nitrogen prices. The deal creates North America’s fifth-largest nitrogen producer, vaulting the companies past Norway-based Yara International. It comes less than […] Read more
After food, now Russia burns Dutch flowers
Moscow | Reuters –– A week after angering many in Russia by burning illegally imported Western food, authorities have started feeding Dutch flowers to the flames. Officials say blooms from the Netherlands, which supplies much of Russia’s US$2.5 billion flower market, pose safety risks because they may be infected. Critics say the “flower war” marks […] Read more
U.S. grains: Corn follows broad weakness as crop ratings stabilize
Chicago | Reuters –– U.S. corn and soybean futures fell on Tuesday from two-week highs as stable crop ratings eased concerns about dry Midwest weather, while China’s devaluation of the yuan led to broad weakness in commodity markets. Wheat also slipped, one day after rallying in step with corn and soybeans despite signs of large […] Read more
K+S says retail shareholders back rejecting PotashCorp
Frankfurt | Reuters –– German salt and fertilizer company K+S AG says a survey of its retail investors shows they strongly support its rejection of a 7.9 billion euros (C$11.4 billion) takeover offer from Canada’s PotashCorp. K+S said on Monday it had surveyed retail, or non-institutional, shareholders, who hold about 30 per cent of its […] Read more
Prairie cash wheat bids edge higher
CNS Canada — Canada Western Red Spring (CWRS) wheat cash bids across Western Canada were stronger during the week ended Friday, as basis levels and U.S. futures markets also showed some improvement. Average CWRS wheat prices were up by C$7-$10 per tonne over the week, with bids ranging from about $212 per tonne in the […] Read more