Researchers in the southern U.S. have found what they say is the first broadleaf weed in the world to beat the active ingredient in BASF’s Liberty herbicide. The University of Arkansas last week announced its ag researchers had found glufosinate-resistant Palmer amaranth in crops in two eastern Arkansas counties across the Mississippi River from Memphis. […] Read more
Arkansas confirms first-ever glufosinate-resistant broadleaf
Researchers find Palmer amaranth strains in two counties
Grain handler group seeks Vancouver port governance overhaul
The WGEA, whose members ship most of Western Canada's grain, complain the port is in a conflict of interest as both developer and regulator
Vancouver, Canada’s biggest port and the most important to Western Canada’s economy, needs major changes in how it operates, the Western Grain Elevator Association (WGEA) says. As a statutory monopoly the port authority is both a port developer and regulator putting it in a conflict of interest, according to WGEA executive director Wade Sobkowich. “We […] Read more
Nutrien beats profit expectation on strong potash sales
Reuters — Canadian fertilizer maker Nutrien posted fourth-quarter profit above analysts’ estimates on Wednesday as potash demand rose amid rising crop prices, sending its U.S.-listed shares up in extended trade. Fertilizer producers have benefited from high U.S. crop exports, including record-large corn sales to China. With crop prices touching multi-year highs, farmers are poised to […] Read more
High fertilizer prices likely to climb more
MarketsFarm — Expect fertilizer prices to resume increasing, despite having fallen back recently. Prices began their sharp rise around the middle of December and beginning of January. “They will go higher as demand goes up at seeding time,” Mike Jubinville of MarketsFarm Pro in Winnipeg said. Jubinville reported urea prices have jumped $100 per tonne […] Read more
German cabinet approves legislation to ban glyphosate from 2024
Law would still need parliamentary approval
Berlin | Reuters — Farmers in Germany will have to gradually reduce their use of glyphosate and stop using it completely from 2024 in order to preserve clean habitats for insects, under draft legislation passed by the country’s cabinet on Wednesday. “The exit from glyphosate is coming. Conservationists have been working toward this for a […] Read more
Cash-strapped pot producers raise billions in market rally
Cannabis firms seen as down in the weeds until recent surge
Reuters — A political shift in the United States has unlocked an estimated US$1.38 billion jackpot for struggling pot producers who have cashed in on a surge in their shares since President Joe Biden’s election in November. Cannabis producers have issued stock worth this amount in the first five weeks of 2021, investment firm Viridian […] Read more
Big crop insurance premium cut may last for years, says AFSC
Barring a big crop wreck, this year’s 20-per-cent cut in premiums will continue for five years, says CEO
Reading Time: 5 minutes Alberta farmers will see a 20 per cent cut to crop insurance premiums this year — and if all goes well, those savings could continue over the next five years. “We’re providing a premium break right now that will lower the cost to producers in the program — (but) even doing that, we still find […] Read more
UN urges ‘maximum restraint’ as India farm protesters widen blockade
Mumbai | Reuters — The United Nations human rights office called on Indian authorities and protesting farmers to exercise “maximum restraint” hours before the growers impose a nationwide road blockade on Saturday seeking a repeal of new agricultural laws. Tens of thousands of farmers have camped out on the outskirts of New Delhi for more […] Read more
Kraft Heinz reported in talks to sell Planters snack business
Pandemic-based surge in snack demand wanes
Reuters — Kraft Heinz is in talks to sell its Planters snack business to Skippy peanut butter maker Hormel Foods for about US$3 billion, the Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday, citing people familiar with the matter. The deal could be announced as soon as next week if talks do not fall apart, the Journal […] Read more
Carbon tax will increase costs by $12 an acre, says farm group
Costs for drying and shipping grain will soar as carbon tax rises, says APAS
Reading Time: 2 minutes Boosting the carbon tax to $170 per tonne will push up the cost of producing and transporting wheat by $12.50 an acre, says the Agricultural Producers Association of Saskatchewan (APAS). Three-quarters of that cost will come from the additional cost for propane for drying wheat and from a surcharge that CN and CP Rail will […] Read more
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