Farmers Edge says it’s making satellite imagery a practical and affordable agronomic tool for farmers through a new strategic partnership with Planet, the company with the largest fleet of Earth-imaging satellites. “We think this will be game-changing,” Farmers Edge president and CEO Wade Barnes said in an interview Oct. 3. “I think it’s going to […] Read more
Farmers Edge expands satellite imagery offering
Trudeau to tell Trump: We’re not your problem at NAFTA
Ottawa | Reuters — When Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau meets President Donald Trump on Wednesday, he will try to persuade the U.S. leader to focus on Mexico as a source of potential problems at talks to update NAFTA. Although Trudeau officials were confident Trump would mostly target Mexico as the three nations started to […] Read more
Farmers need to be ‘heroes’ to win over consumers
People respond to powerful stories centred around people they can admire, says Monsanto official
Reading Time: 3 minutes Producing food isn’t enough these days — you’ve got to be a hero, too. That was one of the messages delivered at the recent Public Trust Summit put on by the Canadian Centre for Food Integrity. The conference, in its second year, attracted a diverse crowd of farmers, food processors, retailers, communications experts, and even […] Read more
U.S. top court lets Conagra cooking oil class action proceed
Washington | Reuters — The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday refused to hear a bid by Conagra Brands to escape a class-action lawsuit accusing it of falsely labeling its cooking oil as 100 per cent natural even though it had genetically modified ingredients. Conagra had asked to the justices to hear its appeal of a […] Read more
Unilever spreads business whets private-equity appetite
London | Reuters — Anglo-Dutch consumer group Unilever has invited private-equity bidders to submit tentative offers for its US$8 billion margarine and spreads business by a deadline of Oct. 19, two sources close to the matter told Reuters. The business includes the brands Stork and Flora, the latter of which is sold under the name […] Read more
La Nina could return cold, snowy tradition to Prairies
CNS Canada — The world’s major weather forecasters predict a slightly better than 50 per cent chance that a La Nina weather pattern will occur this fall and winter. Most Prairie farmers could see good things happening if the system does materialize, because La Nina systems tend to bring what many people think of as […] Read more
EU set to delay vote on glyphosate
Brussels | Reuters — Health experts from European Union countries are expected to discuss whether or not to extend the licence for herbicide glyphosate at a meeting starting on Thursday, but will only vote on the issue later this year. The EU has been debating for two years whether to allow the herbicide, used in […] Read more
Metro to buy Jean Coutu to stave off looming risks
Toronto | Reuters — Metro Inc., Canada’s third-biggest food retailer, on Monday agreed to buy pharmacy chain Jean Coutu Group for $4.5 billion in cash and stock, paying what analysts said was a “steep” premium to protect against risks facing the retail sector. The deal comes at time when global retail giants like Amazon.com, Wal-Mart […] Read more
Ottawa urged to quickly pass transport bill
Reading Time: < 1 minute The Alberta Wheat Commission is urging the federal Liberal government to quickly pass Bill C-49, which will overhaul the Transportation Act. In a presentation to the standing committee on transport earlier this month, commission reps also recommended amendments to make interswitching more effective and requiring railways to provide more detailed volume forecasts and operational plans […] Read more
Shutdowns planned for two PotashCorp mines
Fertilizer firm PotashCorp plans to temporarily halt production at two Saskatchewan potash mines this winter to curb excess supply. The Saskatoon company, in the midst of seeking regulatory approvals for a merger with Calgary competitor Agrium, announced last week it will “curtail” production at its mines at Allan and Lanigan, Sask. The shutdowns will run […] Read more
Cyber-Savvy Farmer
