Yuri and Oleksiy, farmers wearing body armours and helmets, prepare for field work in Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia region amid Russia’s invasion, on April 26, 2022. (Photo: Reuters/Ueslei Marcelino)

Worsening global food security needs Ukraine, Russia production, UN chief says

Abuja | Reuters — U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said Wednesday the problem of global food security could not be solved without restoring Ukrainian agricultural production and Russian food and fertilizer output to the world market. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February has added to volatility in financial markets, sending commodity prices higher and affecting logistics, […] Read more

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U.S. EPA allows temporary summer sales of higher-ethanol fuel

Waiver seen as score for corn growers

New York | Reuters — The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency issued an emergency waiver for a higher-ethanol gasoline blend on Friday, allowing summertime sales of the fuel in an attempt to help lower gasoline prices at the pump. The move represents a temporary win for the biofuels industry and corn farmers, as it will likely […] Read more


With costs increasing, are there ways to maintain yields and ensure a healthy environment?

Schoepp: Rising input costs offer a chance to rethink our approach

The benefits of biodiversity are increasingly well known and offer an alternative to the status quo

Reading Time: 3 minutes Gas and diesel prices are heading into record territory, while producers are facing shortages of basics such as seed, herbicide and fertilizer. With costs increasing, the question becomes one of field performance. Are there ways to hold the yields without compromising the environment while on the journey to better climate behaviour? One could argue that […] Read more

“We’re experiencing significant increase in our calls that we’ve been getting from producers.” – Syeda Khurram.

It’s looking like a bumper crop of cash advances this spring

Cash flow a major issue as drought has left producers with less money while inputs have shot up

Reading Time: 4 minutes Groups administering cash advances are expecting a flood of applications from cash-strapped producers grappling with the sky-high costs of putting a crop in the ground. “We certainly think there is going to be demand because of how nasty last year was,” said Dave Gallant of the Canadian Canola Growers Association. “There’s going to be so […] Read more


A shipping container fix may be coming

A shipping container fix may be coming

Reading Time: < 1 minute Bulk shipping rates are way down but getting past the pandemic is likely key to fixing the shipping container mess, says a provincial crops market analyst. “Relief in container shipping rates should occur within months following a decline in COVID-19 cases and easing of restrictions, as consumers turn more of their attention to out-of-home spending […] Read more



What’s over the horizon? After two years of one unexpected event after another, forecasters are increasingly saying, ‘Who knows? But keep watch.’

Crystal balls are especially wonky, so watch your news feed

There’s been so much upheaval on every front, watchlists are replacing predictions

Reading Time: 2 minutes Farm Credit Canada is steering clear of predictions and instead offering producers a short list of things to monitor in 2022. The pandemic, weather disasters, supply chain disruptions, labour issues and the reappearance of inflation are among the many things that are making “trends increasingly difficult to forecast,” FCC said in a recent release. But […] Read more

(Video screengrab from CBSA-asfc.gc.ca)

Vaccine mandate to lead to inflation, empty shelves, trucking executives say

Parallel mandate for U.S. entry starts Saturday

Ottawa | Reuters — Canadian consumers should soon see higher prices and some empty shelves in supermarkets and other retail outlets because of disruptions stemming from a COVID-19 vaccine mandate for cross-border truckers, top trucking executives warned this week. The mandate, imposed by Ottawa to help curb the spread of the virus, has cost six […] Read more


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Canada economy seen weaker than expected as supply chain woes weigh

Ottawa | Reuters – The Canadian economy most likely underperformed expectations in the third quarter amid ongoing supply chain woes and a brutal drought, official data suggested on Friday, prompting analysts to forecast the Bank of Canada could move slower on rate hikes. The economy expanded by 0.4 percent in August, missing estimates, and looked […] Read more

File photo of a Conagra production facility at Oakdale, Calif., about 150 km east of San Francisco, on Dec, 18, 2015. (Photo: Reuters/Fred Greaves)

Conagra flags price increases to cushion inflation impact

Prepared foods firm raises sales forecast

Reuters — Conagra Brands said on Thursday it would increase prices again on its frozen meals and snacks to help cushion the blow of higher inflation, after the diversified food maker raised its annual sales forecast and topped quarterly results. Packaged food companies are grappling with inflation as the U.S. economy rebounds, while spending heavily […] Read more