Clubroot has made its presence known in the far northwest of Saskatchewan’s canola-growing region, with the discovery of a “heavily infested” field. SaskCanola on Monday reported the discovery of the disease in a field in crop district 9B, but didn’t give its specific location. District 9B is a group of 16 rural municipalities east of […] Read more
Clubroot ‘heavily’ infests NW Saskatchewan field
Harvey’s floods scatter cattle in Texas, swamp cotton fields
Chicago | Reuters — South Texas ranchers are scrambling to relocate cattle from massive flooding spawned by Tropical Storm Harvey, with many hauling livestock up to the north of the state while others rush to move the animals to higher ground nearby. About 1.2 million cattle are located in a 54-county disaster area drenched by […] Read more
Koch to seek Saskatchewan Party leadership
A long-time Prairie agriculture policy player who last year became Saskatchewan Premier Brad Wall’s seniormost bureaucrat has joined the race to replace him. Alanna Koch, who farms with her husband at Edenwold, Sask., about 40 km northeast of Regina, announced her candidacy Monday for the leadership of the province’s governing Saskatchewan Party. Koch was the […] Read more
Enterprising young farmers are the hope of a new Africa
The beleaguered continent has the potential to feed the world — if it can rise above the divisions created by its troubled past
Reading Time: 3 minutes The concept of a united Africa feeding the world is often considered. With a massive land base, Africa has an estimated 632 million hectares of arable land of which only 179 million hectares are currently being utilized. More than 40 per cent of these lands are in Nigeria, DR of Congo, and North and South […] Read more
Greig: Southern Ontario farmers protest high-speed rail impact
A power corridor that runs from London to Kitchener, Ont. has been a silent neighbour for many who farm in that area. But it’s looking a lot more menacing to them lately, as the likely route for a proposed high-speed rail line from London to Toronto, with stops in Kitchener-Waterloo and Guelph. Farmers in the […] Read more
BHP said exploring stake sale in Saskatchewan potash mine
Toronto/New York | Reuters — Anglo-Australian mining giant BHP Billiton is considering selling a 25 per cent interest in its Saskatchewan potash mine project, a stake that could be worth close to US$2 billion, people familiar with the matter told Reuters. The move comes as activist investor Elliott Management Corp. has been pushing the company […] Read more
Trio of groups proposes Alberta-based agrifood ‘supercluster’
Agrium, Olds College and global satellite communications corporation MDA have submitted an application to the federal government to form an agrifood “supercluster.” The Liberal government committed up to $950 million (over five years) in its March budget to create hubs that would focus on key economic sectors in an effort to kickstart investment, boost exports […] Read more
EU starts in-depth probe of Bayer-Monsanto deal
Brussels/Frankfurt | Reuters — The European Commission has started an in-depth investigation of Bayer’s planned US$66 billion takeover of U.S. seeds group Monsanto, saying it was worried about competition in various pesticide and seeds markets. The deal would create the world’s largest integrated pesticides and seeds company, the Commission said, adding this limited the number […] Read more
Farmers markets a ‘business incubator’
Reading Time: < 1 minute Farmers markets can give businesses the opportunity to test market their products and grow their businesses with less expense, says a provincial marketing specialist. “Farmers markets have always been seen as a business incubator where new businesses can start selling direct to consumers,” said Eileen Kotowich. “They get that immediate feedback and learn quickly how […] Read more
U.S. seeks WTO dispute panel on China’s grain import quotas
Geneva | Reuters — The United States has requested a World Trade Organization panel be set up to investigate Chinese tariff-rate quotas (TRQ) for agricultural products, the WTO said on Monday, setting up a showdown between the two largest economies. The row, which includes tariffs for wheat, rice, and corn, was initiated under the Obama […] Read more
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