Photo: File

Pulse weekly outlook: Healthy demand for heat-stricken Manitoba pulses 

MarketsFarm – If Manitoba’s pea harvest is any indication, the province’s pulse crops will be largely deteriorated by the hot and dry weather affecting all of Western Canada, according to Manitoba Pulse & Soybean Growers executive director Daryl Domitruk. “It has affected (pulses) like it has affected most of the other crops, in that severe […] Read more

This pasture, photographed on July 14, still had some green but feed is already a huge challenge for many producers. Cattle groups want government to take action on several fronts, and to move quickly.

Cattle groups lay out a four-part drought action plan to government

Livestock tax deferral, AgriRecovery, and quick access to withered crops are all priorities

Reading Time: 3 minutes The Canadian Cattlemen’s Association and provincial cattle organizations have a plan to help drought-stricken beef producers. But quick action is needed, they say. The groups outlined a four-part strategy for immediate relief measures requested from federal and provincial governments during a CCA virtual Town Hall on July 19. All provincial cattle organizations, including Alberta Beef […] Read more


In normal times, farmers like John Guelly can look forward to a bountiful crop. The Westlock farmer hopes to have a crop after getting a much-needed inch of rain in mid-July but he fears for those who won’t have a harvest but have sold a portion of their crop.

Heatwave wreaks havoc on Alberta crops

Governments are rushing to help but fears are mounting as the crisis grows

Reading Time: 6 minutes July’s devastating heatwave has destroyed crops and pastures across Alberta, leaving producers in all corners of the province wondering what their options are at this point of the growing season. “It’s been pretty hard,” said Valerie Ehrenholz, who runs a mixed operation near Barrhead with her father. “I haven’t been farming that long — the […] Read more

You can’t see the heat in this July 14 photo but the meagre cut of hay from this field west of Okotoks is clearly visible along the smoke from wildfires  in B.C. drifting in over the Rocky Mountains. And this area actually has received more moisture than ones to the south and east.

DISASTER: Hope dries up along with the pastures and fields

Everyone is hurting but the fallout for the cattle sector may be felt for years to come

Reading Time: 6 minutes The effect of the arid spring and the blistering July heatwave will be felt “for years to come.” “On a scale of one to 10, I’d put this at a 10 — it’s extremely severe,” said Melanie Wowk, chair of Alberta Beef Producers. “The herd will shrink — not just out of this province, but […] Read more


CBOT November 2021 soybeans (candlesticks) with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages (yellow, green and black lines). (Barchart)

U.S. grains: Corn, soybeans lower on the week

Traders look at long-term weather; wheat flat

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago corn and soybean futures slipped on Friday, pressured by extended forecasts calling for cooler weather into August, though hot, dry weather in the coming week across the U.S. Midwest underpinned prices. Wheat ended lower as concerns over unfavorable weather in key exporting countries countered pressure from corn and soybeans. The […] Read more

Webinar on drought and cattle

Webinar on drought and cattle

Reading Time: < 1 minute With much of the Prairies suffering drought, the Beef Cattle Research Council is putting on a webinar to answer questions about topics such as non-traditional feeds, grazing something new, water quality, animal health concerns and general questions about managing cattle during a drought. A panel of nutrition and animal health experts will answer drought-related nutrition […] Read more



Manitoba Beef Producers president Tyler Fulton speaks in Winnipeg on July 22, 2021 at a federal/provincial announcement including planned changes to crop insurance against this summer’s drought, alongside federal Agriculture Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau and Winnipeg MP Kevin Lamoureux (r). (Dave Bedard photo)

Manitoba triggers hay disaster benefit

Per-tonne rate lifted to cover feed, transport costs

Manitoba’s crop insurance agency is set to lift the per-tonne rate paid out on insured forage crops to help cover livestock producers’ bills to buy and truck in replacement feed. Manitoba Agricultural Services Corp. (MASC) on Thursday announced a 2021 hay disaster benefit to provide another $44 per tonne, for every tonne below coverage, to […] Read more


Federal Agriculture Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau, shown here with Craig Riese (l) of Keystone Agricultural Producers and Manitoba Beef Producers president Tyler Fulton, speaks on July 22, 2021 at The Forks in Winnipeg. (Dave Bedard photo)

Tax deferrals, crop insurance changes en route against drought

Assessments underway for AgriRecovery, minister says

Updated — As the federal government looks to manage impacts of ongoing drought conditions in Canada’s West, producers in parts of five provinces can already expect to be eligible for the livestock tax deferral program. Agriculture Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau announced Thursday in Winnipeg that producers in drought-designated areas of southern Alberta, southeastern British Columbia, northwestern […] Read more

Beyond crop insurance, AFSC is looking at options such as increasing interim payments for AgriStability.

Alberta crop insurance payout could exceed $1 billion

It’s too early for accurate estimates but the scale of the disaster is massive, says provincial crop insurer

Reading Time: 3 minutes Crop insurance payouts could top a billion dollars for the devastating drought that has hit much of Alberta. “We collected about $600 million in premiums this year, so we’re looking potentially at payments twice that amount,” said Darryl Kay, CEO of Agriculture Financial Services Corporation (AFSC.) “It’s really early yet, so it’s hard to speculate […] Read more