Kansas City December 2021 wheat (candlesticks) with CBOT December 2021 wheat (orange line) and MGEX December 2021 wheat (green line, left column). (Barchart)

U.S. grains: Wheat, corn, soy ease on profit-taking

Canada's latest export disruptions supportive

Chicago | Reuters — U.S. wheat futures closed lower on Thursday, with K.C. hard red winter wheat and MGEX spring wheat falling from multiyear peaks on a round of profit-taking. Declines were kept in check by concerns about tight supplies and strong demand, factors that pushed Paris wheat to a 14-year high. Profit taking also […] Read more

A view near the Canadian end of the Ambassador Bridge, which connects Windsor and Detroit and is considered one of North America’s busiest trade routes. (Steven_Kriemadis/iStock/Getty Images)

U.S. border reopens to Canadian land travelers

Travel business sees 'tremendous pent-up demand'

Toronto | Reuters — A steady stream of Canadian visitors, particularly retirees headed to U.S. sun spots, crossed the U.S. border by car on Monday for the first time in 20 months as Washington lifted travel restrictions. Traffic was heavy at times at some U.S. border posts such as Bluewater Bridge, Michigan near Sarnia, Ont., […] Read more


Beef is on display at a Walmart in Beijing on Sept. 23, 2019. (File photo: Reuters/Tingshu Wang)

Beef cattle producers ‘encouraged’ by new CPTPP applicants

U.K., China, Taiwan seek memberships; no additional dairy, feather access on table

With their exports on an upswing, the organization for Canada’s beef cattle producers says it’s “encouraged to see other countries’ interest” in joining the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade bloc. The Canadian Cattlemen’s Association on Oct. 18 noted the official applications to the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) from the United Kingdom, China and […] Read more

Federal Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland appears at a news conference in Ottawa on Sept. 24, 2020. (Photo: Reuters/Blair Gable)

Canada to wind down broad-based COVID aid programs

Feds opt for targeted measures as economy recovers

Ottawa | Reuters — Canada will not extend existing broad-based COVID-19 support programs for companies and individuals when they expire on Saturday because the economy is recovering well, Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland said on Thursday. Instead, Ottawa will introduce more targeted and less costly measures for hard-hit sectors such as the tourism industry. The new […] Read more


(Dave Bedard photo)

Canada’s small, high-protein malt barley crop poses challenges

MarketsFarm — The hot and dry 2021 growing season cut significantly into Canada’s barley production, with the weather also leading to higher protein levels for what was harvested. “It will be an extremely tight and difficult year for the malt processors and ultimately for the brewers as well,” said Peter Watts, managing director of the […] Read more

(Dave Bedard photo)

Feds tighten forecast for wheat carryout

MarketsFarm — Canadian wheat carryout for the 2021-22 crop year will be even tighter than earlier forecasts, according to updated supply/demand estimates from Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC), released Wednesday. The October report included only minor adjustments for most crops, with the most notable change from September being a 500,000-tonne reduction in projected wheat ending […] Read more



A view near the Canadian end of the Ambassador Bridge, which connects Windsor and Detroit and is considered one of North America’s busiest trade routes. (Steven_Kriemadis/iStock/Getty Images)

U.S. to lift restrictions Nov. 8 for vaccinated foreign travelers

Washington | Reuters — The White House on Friday will lift COVID-19 travel restrictions for fully vaccinated international visitors starting Nov. 8, ending historic restrictions that had barred much of the world from entering the U.S. for as long as 21 months. The unprecedented travel restrictions kept millions of visitors out of the U.S. from […] Read more


A view near the Canadian end of the Ambassador Bridge, which connects Windsor and Detroit and is considered one of North America’s busiest trade routes. (Steven_Kriemadis/iStock/Getty Images)

White House heeded pressure to reopen Canada border, U.S. lawmaker says

Washington | Reuters — A U.S. congressman from New York said on Wednesday that political pressure had persuaded the White House to end a historic 19-month closure of its land borders with Canada and Mexico to millions of non-essential foreign visitors. Representative Brian Higgins, a Democrat representing a district along the Canadian border, said: “You […] Read more

(File photo by Dave Bedard)

Walmart stakes big claim on Canadian sustainable beef

Retailer pledges to take over 680 tonnes in 2022

The Canadian arm of the world’s biggest retailer has put a number to its previous commitment to source certified-sustainable beef for its grocery business. Walmart Canada on Thursday announced it has committed to buy 1.5 million pounds of beef sourced from farms and ranches certified to Canadian Roundtable for Sustainable Beef (CRSB) standards over the […] Read more