MarketsFarm –– Canadian canola carryout supplies for the current marketing year will likely end up tighter than earlier expectations, according to updated supply/demand balance sheets from Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) that account for recent production and stocks data from Statistics Canada. Canola ending stocks for 2023-24 are now forecast to tighten to only one […] Read more
Tightening canola stocks projected, AAFC says
Wheat, barley, oat, pea stocks also projected lower
Canola crush shows solid start in new crop year
Soybeans see lowest August crush ever
MarketsFarm — Statistics Canada on Tuesday reported Canada’s second largest August canola crush on record. The 829,490 tonnes of the oilseed processed last month is only bested by the 830,335 tonnes in August 2020. The July 2023 canola crush set a new all-time record of 961,683 tonnes. Last month’s canola crush was 31 per cent […] Read more
Pulse weekly outlook: India dispute leaves lentils’ future uncertain
India was Canada's top customer in 2022-23
MarketsFarm — As tensions between Canada and India remain very high, the future direction for Canadian lentils continued to be uncertain. “Your guess is as good as mine,” Marcos Mosnaim of Export Packers said as to what could happen, adding “Canada has to be careful. I don’t know what India will do.” Prime Minister Justin […] Read more
High pasta prices set to boil over as Canada’s wheat withers
Drought in Prairie durum-growing region is adding to existing global supply woes
Reading Time: 3 minutes Pasta lovers must brace to pay higher prices for their favourite dish, as drought in Canada and bad weather in Europe damages durum wheat crops and reduces supplies available to flour millers and food companies. Italy’s government called a crisis meeting in May as prices for the staple food jumped by more than double the […] Read more
High-path avian flu pops back up in Saskatchewan, Alberta
Canada keeps sights on 'country-level freedom' from virus
Even after 21 months of highly pathogenic avian influenza cases in Canada — including three new cases in domestic birds so far this month — Canada’s “stamping out” policy for the virus remains in effect. Canada’s active caseload of the virus now comes down to just eight of the 325 premises affected since December 2021. […] Read more
Pulse weekly outlook: Canada’s prices well supported given smaller crops
Dispute between Canada, India to be watched closely
MarketsFarm — Canadian pulse production came in well below average in 2023, keeping prices supported for the time being. Total pea production was pegged at 2.27 million tonnes by Statistics Canada on Thursday. That was up slightly from the 2.19 million tonnes forecast in August, but well off the 3.42 million tonnes grown the previous […] Read more
Major grocery chains agree to help stabilize prices, feds say
Any moves must not undercut farmgate prices, government warns
Ottawa | Reuters — Canada’s five major grocery chains have agreed to help the government in its bid to stabilize soaring prices, a senior minister said on Monday, following talks to address an issue that is hurting the ruling Liberals. Innovation Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne made the announcement after two hours of what he said were […] Read more
Trudeau summons top grocers over rising food prices
Major grocers' level of profit 'does not make sense,' PM says
Ottawa | Reuters — Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Thursday said he had summoned the country’s top grocers to help find solution to the surging food prices and vowed to cut federal taxes on new rental buildings, as he fights an affordability crisis that has dented his party’s opinion poll ratings. After meeting with Liberal […] Read more
UN rapporteur calls Canada’s TFW system ‘breeding ground for modern slavery’
Tomoya Obokata says government needs to better protect worker rights and provide better residency path
A United Nations special rapporteur on modern slavery has called out Canada’s temporary foreign worker (TFW) programs, including those in the agriculture sector. Tomoya Obokata, who was appointed by the UN’s Human Rights Council, spoke in Ottawa Sept. 6 following a 14-day visit to Canada. He called the programs “a breeding ground for contemporary forms […] Read more
USDA adjusts soy, corn outlooks in September report
U.S. wheat usage, carryout estimates shift
MarketsFarm — The U.S. Department of Agriculture made a number of slight changes to its forecast on soybeans and corn for 2023-24, while keeping its domestic wheat numbers from August. USDA on Tuesday issued its monthly world agricultural supply and demand estimates, adjusting its forecast on this year’s soybean yields at 50.1 bushels per acre, […] Read more