A farm worker unloads Ukrainian-made fertilizer from a truck on April 5, 2022 to use on a wheat field near the village of Yakovlivka, outside Kharkiv, after it was hit by an aerial bombardment. (Photo: Reuters/Thomas Peter)

Ukraine faces lack of herbicides, pesticides for spring seeding

About a third of needed chemicals reported to be at hand

Kyiv | Reuters — Ukrainian farmers, which have already started the 2023 spring sowing, have only around 35 per cent of the herbicides and pesticides they need, analyst APK-Inform quoted on Monday official data as showed. The Russian invasion has left Ukraine seriously short of finances, seeds and crop protection products, which could have a […] Read more

A dried-out corn crop next to cotton planted into a dried-out cornfield at Tostado in Argentina’s northern Santa Fe province, on Feb. 8, 2023. (Photo: Reuters/Miguel Lo Bianco)

CBOT weekly outlook: Argentina estimates lowered, but attention soon shifting north

U.S. corn, soyoil export outlooks 'a little concerning'

MarketsFarm — Sizeable reductions to Argentina’s soybean and corn crops were confirmed in the latest supply/demand estimates (WASDE) from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, with more reductions likely in future reports. However, attention in the markets is starting to shift to North American weather, with spring seeding just around the corner. “The USDA was a […] Read more


Yellow peas. (Victoria Popova/iStock/Getty Images)

Pulse weekly outlook: Manitoba growers not worried about Merit situation

Pea, canola protein processor in receivership

MarketsFarm — After Manitoba-based plant protein processor Merit Functional Foods went into receivership last Wednesday, Manitoba Pulse and Soybean Growers (MPSG) executive director Daryl Domitruk said it is not a microcosm of the province’s pulse industry. Domitruk said MPSG learned about Merit’s financial situation through the media. He also added that some Manitoba pea growers […] Read more

Gary Millershaski, a farmer and scout on the Wheat Quality Council’s Kansas wheat tour, inspects winter wheat stunted by drought near Syracuse, about 170 km west of Dodge City, on May 18, 2022. (File photo: Reuters/Julie Ingwersen)

U.S. winter wheat growers seed into dust as Plains drought persists

Chicago | Reuters — With seeding roughly halfway complete, the 2023 U.S. hard red winter wheat crop is already being hobbled by drought in the heart of the southern Plains, wheat experts said. Seeding plans may be scaled back in the U.S. breadbasket despite historically high prices for this time of year, reflecting rising global […] Read more


A sunflower crop north of St. Adolphe, Man. on Sept. 19, 2021. (Dave Bedard photo)

Manitoba’s sunflower crop smaller, better

Global supply, demand outlooks remain uncertain

MarketsFarm — If Canada’s 2022 sunflower seed harvest is to be the lowest in five years, you wouldn’t know it talking to producers of the crop. In its July satellite image-based principal field crops estimates released Monday, Statistics Canada projected sunflower seed production for the 2022-23 marketing year at 61,996 tonnes, 24.2 per cent lower […] Read more



(Dave Bedard photo)

StatCan raises Canada’s canola plantings from earlier estimate

Farmers seen returning to 'steady Eddie' wheat

MarketsFarm –– Canadian canola plantings are projected to come in above earlier expectations but would still be well below what was seeded to the crop in 2021, according to updated acreage estimates from Statistics Canada released Tuesday. Meanwhile, wheat area in the country is forecast at its highest level in nearly a decade. After a […] Read more

Photo: File

Wet weather affecting acreage numbers: analysts

MarketsFarm – With some parts of Western Canada experiencing delayed seeding due to wet weather, many analysts believe the conditions have caused a ripple effect on acreage totals for the 2022-23 marketing year. Statistics Canada (StatCan) will release its second survey-based acreage report for the 2022-23 marketing year on July 5. Traders and analysts are […] Read more


Photo: Getty Images

Saskatchewan Crop Report: Rain falls on most of the province

MarketsFarm – Rain fell on all growing regions of Saskatchewan during the week ended June 20 improving growing conditions, according to the province’s weekly crop report released on June 23. Most areas received at least 20 millimetres of rain during the week, with the communities of Prince Albert, Nipawin, Spiritwood and Kindersley all getting more […] Read more

Photo: File

Manitoba Crop Report: Plantings advance, crops threatened by weeds, insects

MarketsFarm – Seeding continues to advance in Manitoba, but recent rains have also hindered progress and emergent crops are being threatened by weeds and insects. Plantings in the province are 91 per cent complete as of June 21, four points higher than the previous week according to Manitoba’s weekly crop report. Typically, the third week […] Read more