CME April 2020 live cattle with 20- and 50-day moving averages. (Barchart)

Klassen: Feeder market remains volatile

Compared to last week, western Canadian feeder cattle markets traded $3-$5 on either side of unchanged. Many auction barns were closed last week and the ones holding sales had smaller numbers. Quality packages of yearlings were on the higher end of the range while smaller groups of fleshier replacements were discounted. Alberta feedlots were focusing […] Read more



Emerging corn plants in Canada. (Sophie-Caron/iStock/Getty Images)

Saskatchewan offers up corn rainfall insurance plan

Saskatchewan’s crop insurance offerings for 2019 will include a new program allowing corn growers to insure against a substantial drop in moisture. The provincial and federal government on Feb. 26 rolled out Saskatchewan’s 2019 crop insurance program, in which coverage levels on average are to reach a record $230 per acre, up from $216 last […] Read more



“Throughout much of southern Alberta, accumulations have been below average, ranging from about one-in-three to six-year lows for those areas east of Highway 2.” – Ralph Wright, Alberta Agriculture

Southern Alberta suffering from lack of precipitation this winter

While much of the province has seen average snowfall, the south has been below or well-below average

Reading Time: < 1 minute It’s a mixed bag when it comes to the soil moisture situation in the province. Most of the area north of Calgary has “experienced at least near-normal precipitation accumulations,” said Ralph Wright, manager of the agro-meteorological applications and modelling section with Alberta Agriculture and Forestry. “In contrast, throughout much of southern Alberta, accumulations have been […] Read more



Prairie harvest window possible next week

Prairie harvest window possible next week

CNS Canada — Cold and wet conditions on the Prairies are expected to clear up over the next week, allowing a window of opportunity for harvest, though the size of that window remains to be seen. “Western and northern parts of Alberta have some serious issues,” said Drew Lerner of World Weather Inc. in Kansas […] Read more