Crops
London | Reuters — The insecticide lindane, once widely used in agriculture and to treat human lice and scabies, causes cancer and has been specifically linked to non-Hodgkin lymphoma, the World Health Organization said on Tuesday. The WHO’s International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) also said that DDT (dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane) probably causes cancer, with scientific […] Read more
WHO agency says insecticides lindane, DDT linked to cancer
Canada ratifies UPOV ’91 seed treaty
Canadian crop commodity groups are hailing the federal government’s move to ratify Canada’s participation in the international UPOV ’91 treaty as a signal the country is “open for national and international investment.” Canada’s representatives to the World Trade Organization, on Friday in Geneva, deposited the government’s “instrument of ratification” for the 1991 Act of the […] Read more
The damage to crops is done — but how much worse will it get?
It’s not a writeoff yet, but recovery potential is limited and a late harvest seems inevitable, says crop expert
Reading Time: 3 minutes After one of the “driest Mays on record,” producers across the Prairies are wondering how their crops are going to fare this growing season. It’s not looking good. “The crops are going to be substantially smaller than they have been over the past few years,” Bruce Burnett, CWB crop and weather specialist, said in an […] Read more
Canola crush margins keep dropping
CNS Canada — Canola crush margins remain in free-fall as canola seed becomes more and more expensive relative to the product values. “They’re not deteriorating, they’re flat-out disintegrating,” said a canola trader, pointing to the $20 drop over the past week alone. Crush levels have only been lower than they are now a couple times […] Read more
Patchy canola points to smaller crop, harvest dilemma
Winnipeg | Reuters — Canola crops are rising across the Prairies like bad haircuts, reflecting multiple plantings and growth stages during a spring of frost and dry conditions. The most uneven canola crop in roughly a decade, according to provincial oilseed specialist Murray Hartman at Lacombe, Alta., points to lower yields in the world’s top […] Read more
Groups urge tighter controls as U.S. considers GM crop regulation
Reuters — Dozens of consumer and food groups and businesses asked the U.S. government on Monday for tighter regulation of genetically engineered crops, calling the current system a “failure.” The U.S. Department of Agriculture has said it was considering changes to the way it regulates biotech crops and set a public comment period that expired […] Read more
U.S. grains: Soybeans hit six-week high on weather jitters
Chicago | Reuters — U.S. soybean futures climbed to a six-week high on Monday on concerns about tightening old-crop supplies and excessive rains trimming new-crop yield prospects, traders said. Wheat and corn also rose. At the Chicago Board of Trade, the July soybean contract settled up 18 cents at $9.89-1/2 per bushel after reaching $9.90, […] Read more
The five keys to assessing rangeland health
The old adage about not being able to manage what you can’t measure applies to rangelands
Reading Time: 3 minutes Native rangelands are key assets to livestock producers — and rangeland health assessments allow them to adjust grazing practices to achieve productive, sustainable grazings. A rangeland assessment system looks at the five key functions of rangelands: integrity and ecological status; community structure; hydrologic function and nutrient cycling; site stability, and noxious weeds. And in all […] Read more
Dryness stalls Sask., Alta. fababeans
CNS Canada — Fababeans are increasing in popularity across the Prairies, but much like other crops in Alberta and Saskatchewan, dry weather is taking its toll — and if it continues, yield could be impacted. Fababeans require a lot of moisture to produce well, according to Dale Risula, a Saskatchewan provincial specialist for special crops […] Read more
Prairies’ dry fields good, if you’re a grasshopper
CNS Canada –– Dry conditions causing production concerns across large areas of Alberta and Saskatchewan are certainly bad for the crops, but the weather could prove ideal for grasshoppers. Grasshopper forecast maps put out over the winter were not initially all that bad for Alberta and Saskatchewan, given the conditions in 2014, but weather in […] Read more