Seasonal highway load limits that govern when Manitoba farmers can move large loads of grain or livestock may soon be based more on the actual weather than on the calendar. The provincial government said Friday it will introduce amendments to its Highway Traffic Act allowing farmers and other businesses to roll heavier trucks sooner, if […] Read more
Manitoba to build more leeway into roads’ load limits
Irradiating ground beef a decade-old hot potato
Staff with Canada’s cattle producer body once thought it would be just a matter of time before Canadian food companies would get the green light to start irradiating ground beef. That was a decade ago, when the Canadian Cattlemen’s Association submitted a petition to Health Canada seeking regulatory approval for use of irradiation as another […] Read more
U.S. upholds ethanol mandate
The United States on Friday upheld its program to turn a large share of the corn crop into ethanol for motor fuel, saying it did not cause undue economic harm despite steep competition for depleted U.S. grain supplies after the worst drought in 50 years. In August, as drought seared the Midwest, the governors of […] Read more
Farmers seek ‘smarter’ equipment, crops
Farm leaders, asked about their "innovation needs" for the next decade, want to see their machinery get "smarter" — but not necessarily smart enough to take the wheel. The Prairie Agricultural Machinery Institute (PAMI) recently released results from a "vision session" with about 30 "agriculture leaders" from across Saskatchewan, representing producer groups, processors and manufacturers. […] Read more
Pearce: New autonomous tractor designs turn heads
More equipment manufacturers are introducing their latest offerings to the autonomous tractor system that Deere introduced (in Canada) in 2011, with Kinze and the Spirit the latest to join the trend. Specifically, Kinze Manufacturing introduced its new system in an experimental exhibition at its headquarters in Iowa, in 2011 while the makers of the Spirit […] Read more
Behlen and Sakundiak now Meridian
Meridian Manufacturing and Winnipeg-based parent company WGI have announced that effective Jan. 1, all agricultural products manufactured by Behlen Industries, Sakundiak Equipment and Meridian Manufacturing will be branded Meridian. “Our new product line will now include a full offering of SmoothWall hopper bins, bulk seed tenders, augers and conveyors, commercial and oilfield tanks, fuel tanks, […] Read more
Grain revenue per carload up for CN, CPR in Q3
Canada’s two major railways both booked higher revenue per carload of grain and fertilizers for their third fiscal quarters, toward improved bottom lines at both Canadian National (CN) and Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR). CPR on Wednesday reported grain revenue of $296 million in its quarter ending Sept. 30, up $6 million from the year-earlier period, […] Read more
Argentina’s ethanol mandate just nibbles at corn harvest
Argentina is expected to help replenish global corn supplies with a record harvest this season, even as a fast-growing domestic ethanol industry puts new demands on the world’s No. 2 exporter. Ethanol output in the South American country should more than double next year as new corn-fueled plants come on line to meet demand generated […] Read more
Rocky Mountain buys Peace-region Case dealer
A pair of Case IH farm equipment dealers in northwestern Alberta are set to build up the reach of Calgary’s Rocky Mountain Dealerships group in the Peace region. Publicly-traded Rocky Mountain on Thursday announced a deal to buy the Case IH dealership assets of Houlder Automotive, which runs dealerships at Grimshaw and Falher, 25 km […] Read more
CME to buy rival Kansas City exchange, head off ICE
CME Group Inc. on Wednesday agreed to buy the Kansas City Board of Trade for US$126 million in cash, cementing CME’s dominance in world grain futures markets and keeping rival IntercontinentalExchange (ICE) from gaining an important foothold. It is CME’s first exchange purchase in five years since it wrapped up a buying spree that put […] Read more
