CNS Canada — Diesel prices in North America aren’t likely to come down to the levels of gasoline anytime soon, according to an analyst. “It’s probably going to trade at a premium to gasoline for some time,” said Phil Flynn, energy market analyst for Price Futures Group in Chicago. One of the main challenges facing […] Read more
Regulatory requirements seen keeping diesel prices high
Grain shippers’ data show ongoing rail supply/demand gap
Numbers newly crunched by a clutch of Canadian grain shippers paint a picture of a gap that’s wide, and getting wider, between the numbers of rail cars they say they need and what they say they’re getting. The Ag Transport Coalition — which so far includes eight Canadian grain-handling and crop commodity groups, working with […] Read more
Deere to cut over 900 U.S. workers as ag economy weakens
Chicago | Reuters — Deere and Co., the world’s largest maker of farm equipment, will lay off more than 900 employees at plants in Iowa and Illinois in the latest round of job cuts spurred by a decline in grain prices that is hurting demand for agricultural machinery. The layoffs, which represent about three per […] Read more
CP books record profit, more grain revenue in 2014
Increased revenue from Canadian and U.S. grain traffic alike helped boost Canadian Pacific Railway (CP) to a record full-year profit in 2014. Calgary-based CP on Thursday reported net income of $1.476 billion on $6.62 billion for the year ending Dec. 31, up from $875 million on $6.133 billion in 2013. For its fourth quarter, the […] Read more
N.S. puts feed-in-tariff program on hold
Nova Scotia will stop taking applications for its local-level renewable electricity program pending a review. The province on Thursday announced seven new approvals under its Community Feed-In Tariff (COMFIT) program, but also that it will “pause and evaluate” the program. The pause, the province said, is meant to see that COMFIT “continues to be community-based, […] Read more
Outdoor Farm Show owner sets sights on Saskatchewan
The owners of the biggest outdoor farm show in Canada have announced plans to put the business model to work northwest of Saskatoon. Farm publishing house Glacier FarmMedia, owners of the Woodstock, Ont.-based Canada’s Outdoor Farm Show and this website, on Wednesday announced its chosen site and date for the inaugural edition of what it’s dubbed Ag in […] Read more
St. Lawrence floated ‘blowout’ grain volumes in ’14
Having shut its locks for the season on New Year’s Day, the operators of Canada’s St. Lawrence Seaway system report moving a “blowout volume” of grain during the 280-day 2014 shipping year. The St. Lawrence Seaway Management Corp. (SLSMC) on Monday reported having moved a total cargo volume of 40 million tonnes during the season, […] Read more
CP to appeal federal fine on September grain handle
Citing post-Labour Day pains at the West Coast, Canadian Pacific Railway (CP) plans to appeal a $50,000 federal fine over the company’s Prairie grain handle. Transport Canada said last week it had issued notices of violation and administrative monetary penalties (AMPs) of $50,000 each against CP and Canadian National Railway (CN) for falling short of […] Read more
CN, CP face fines for summer grain handle
Both of Canada’s big two railways have been slapped with fines for missing the federal government’s mark this summer on weekly Prairie grain handling. A Transport Canada spokesperson confirmed by email Thursday that Canadian National and Canadian Pacific Railway (CN, CP) have been served notices of violation including administrative monetary penalties (AMPs) of $100,000 and $50,000 […] Read more
Verticillium wilt makes jump to Canadian canola
A Manitoba canola field has been confirmed as the first in North America with Verticillium wilt, a fungal disease well known to northern Europe’s canola and vegetable growers. With no seed treatments or foliar fungicides yet registered against it — and with no resistant canola varieties available — the disease, if here to stay, may […] Read more
