Crops
CNS Canada — A mixture of extremely wet conditions in 2014 and a projected dry outlook for southwestern Manitoba are leading one corn expert to predict fewer corn acres in the province in 2015. “The southwest was wet, wet, wet and now they’re expecting to be dry, dry, dry. Neither of those conditions is great […] Read more
Manitoba corn acres expected to be ‘down or flat’
Kevin Auch new vice-chair of Alberta Wheat Commission
Irma producer Kent Erickson continues as chairman of the organization
Reading Time: < 1 minute Carmangay producer Kevin Auch is the new vice-chairman of Alberta Wheat Commission. Auch replaces Henry Vos as vice-chair. Vos remains on the board of directors, while Kent Erickson continues as chairman. “The AWC board of directors is made up of passionate people who have strong industry experience,” said Auch. “The AWC board has taken a […] Read more
Streamlined variety registration system set to launch in 2016
A streamlined system would allow new varieties to hit the market sooner, but less performance testing sparks concerns
Reading Time: 3 minutes A new variety registration system could be in place and fully operational by next year — if the players in the value chain can agree on doing away with the current three-part system. “The system needs to be efficient, it needs to be transparent, and it needs to be predictable,” said Erin Armstrong, director of […] Read more
The recipe has to be just right when fertilizing your crops
Phosphorus and potassium work well when placed in the seed row — but nitrogen and sulphur are mobile
Reading Time: 3 minutes Nitrogen may be the first thing producers think of when they want to bump up their yield — but don’t neglect the other nutrients. “In order to get the maximum benefit out of all of our fertilizer nutrients, we need to have a balanced supply,” said University of Saskatchewan soil scientist Jeff Schoenau, who drew […] Read more
Alberta’s first bean grower honoured with inaugural industry innovator award
Reading Time: 2 minutes The man who first introduced dry beans to Alberta has been recognized as an industry innovator by the very organization he helped form 25 years ago. Idaho farmer Lud Prudek received the inaugural Alberta Pulse Industry Innovator Award at the Alberta Pulse Growers’ recent annual general meeting. “We invited nominations for individuals and organizations that […] Read more
Brazilian grain trucker blockade continues, threatens harvest
Sao Paulo | Reuters –– Truckers protesting high diesel prices in Brazil used road blocks to restrict the flow of soy, corn and other commodities in a key grain-growing region for a third day on Friday, threatening what is expected to be a record harvest. A group of transport companies and independent truckers are blocking […] Read more
Deere cuts profit forecast as farm equipment sales decline
Reuters — Farm equipment maker Deere and Co. posted a 43 per cent fall in first-quarter profit and cut its full-year profit forecast as lower corn prices and weak farm income weighed on demand for agricultural machinery. The company, which gets nearly two-thirds of its revenue from farm and turf machinery, cut its 2015 net […] Read more
CN set to lock out 4,800 mechanical, clerical staff Monday
Canadian National Railway (CN) plans to lock out about 4,800 unionized employees across Canada starting Monday night (Feb. 23) unless their union agrees to arbitration for a new contract. Montreal-based CN’s move follows Thursday’s announcement by Unifor — the union representing CN’s mechanical, intermodal and clerical workers — that it will hold a strike vote […] Read more
U.S. grains: Wheat, corn, soybeans close week lower
Chicago | Reuters — U.S. wheat futures plunged 3.3 per cent on Friday, their biggest decline in nearly two months, on more signs of poor export prospects for U.S. supplies, traders said. Corn and soybean futures also fell, weighed down by a round of end-of-week profit-taking following solid gains on Thursday. But wheat notched the […] Read more
Farmers are the front line for slowing herbicide resistance
Weed scientist says producers need to extend rotations, not overuse glyphosate, and employ the most effective tank mixes
Reading Time: 2 minutes Herbicide resistance is like a forest fire — only you can prevent it. That was the message from weed scientist Linda Hall, who said producers need to step up to prevent a situation like that in the U.S. where glyphosate-resistant weeds are now epidemic in corn, soybeans and cotton crops. “It’s easy to say that […] Read more