Gavilon in October last year opened a new southern Montana grain elevator, shown here, at Huntley, just northeast of Billings. (Gavilon.com)

Viterra to buy Marubeni’s U.S. grain firm Gavilon

Grain handler looking to expand reach in Americas through acquisitions

Grain firm Viterra’s plans to buy an expanded global reach are about to move forward with a 10-figure deal for the bulk of U.S. ag commodity firm Gavilon’s grain business. Viterra, owned by commodities firm Glencore and two Canadian public-sector pension funds, announced Wednesday it will pay $1.125 billion to buy Omaha-based Gavilon from the […] Read more

Floodwaters cover the Trans Canada Highway near Abbotsford, B.C. in an aerial view taken Nov. 16, 2021. (Photo courtesy BC Hydro via Reuters)

Grain flow uncertain as floods halt B.C. rail, road traffic

MarketsFarm — It’s too early yet to determine the effect of massive floods in British Columbia’s Lower Mainland on grain movement, according to the company monitoring Canada’s grain handling and transportation system. Up to 200 millimetres of rain earlier this week have triggered mudslides and cut access to rail lines and highways east of Vancouver. […] Read more



Don’t forget to harvest sample

Don’t forget to harvest sample

Reading Time: < 1 minute Even though grain is in high demand, producers should still be taking samples of each load so they have a representative sample for each bin, says provincial crop market analyst Neil Blue. “The goal is to have a sample that has the same characteristics as the large volume of product it represents,” said Blue. “Producers […] Read more


Charred remnants of a rail bridge destroyed by a wildfire on June 30 are seen during a media tour by authorities in Lytton, B.C. on July 9, 2021. (Photo: Reuters/Jennifer Gauthier)

Lytton bridge re-opened but grain movement ‘hit and miss’

B.C. wildfires continue to disrupt Prairie grain movement

Canadian National Railway’s fire-damaged bridge at Lytton, B.C. reopened for traffic Tuesday — but all train movement, including for grain, through British Columbia’s wildfire-ravaged southern Interior, is “hit and miss” and will remain so until the fire risk lessens. “Both (CN and Canadian Pacific Railway) are having troubles because there are so many fires in […] Read more

Screenshot from an Alberta Agriculture video profiling Innisfail-based pulse and grain handler W.A. Grain & Pulse Solutions.

W.A. Grain & Pulse Solutions has licences suspended

Company says it was in ‘constant contact’ with the Canadian Grain Commission over financial situation

Reading Time: 3 minutes Glacier FarmMedia – W.A. Grain & Pulse Solutions has had its licences temporarily suspended by the Canadian Grain Commission and the company’s owner says the firm is facing “a worst-case scenario.”  The Innisfail company, which has two elevators in Alberta and three in Saskatchewan, had its licences suspended by the grain commission on April 20 […] Read more


The Canadian Grain Commission building on Main Street in Winnipeg. (File photo)

Virtual town hall on federal Grain Act set for Friday

Time is running out on consultations, but the April 23 event gives farmers a chance to provide input

The deadline for submitting comments to the federal government’s review of the Canada Grain Act and Canadian Grain Commission (CGC) is April 30, but farmers can also offer feedback at a ‘virtual’ town hall meeting this Friday. The Grain Act and its regulations provide the framework for Canada’s grain quality assurance system and it’s the […] Read more

(Video screengrab from Richardson.ca)

Richardson to upgrade western Manitoba elevator

High-throughput to replace wooden crib structure at Swan River

Prairie grain handler Richardson Pioneer plans to start work this spring on a new high-throughput elevator “effectively replacing” its Swan River Valley unit in northwestern Manitoba. The Winnipeg company’s current site, on Canadian National Railway (CN) track about six kilometres north of the town of Swan River, is anchored by a wooden crib workhouse and […] Read more


Grain exporters say inspection certificates from the grain commission can be redundant and should be phased out in favour of regulated private contractors.

Grain act, grain commission review revived

Mandatory inspection fees and the powers of the grain commission will be hotly debated

Reading Time: 6 minutes Two pillars of Canada’s $26-billion grain industry are again under review — a process reviving long-standing divisions between some farmers and grain companies over industry regulations. The Canada Grain Act and Canadian Grain Commission, which administers it, deal with grain buyer licensing, grade standards, grading disputes, quality control and producer payment protection. Some submissions are […] Read more

Ottawa is putting in $5 million to expand the Alberta Midland Railway Terminal northeast of Edmonton.

Alberta Midland Railway Terminal expanding

Reading Time: < 1 minute The federal transportation department is putting in $5 million to increase the efficiency of rail logistics at the Alberta Midland Railway Terminal northeast of Edmonton. It will provide additional capacity to assemble trains, storage space, and access to both CN and CP rail networks. The upgrades will improve fluidity and reduce bottlenecks for both railways. The […] Read more