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
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
U.S. livestock: Live cattle hit contract highs on storm forecast
Chicago | Reuters — Live cattle futures rose to life-of-contract highs at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange on Tuesday, lifted by worries that severe winter weather could prompt beef packers to pay higher prices for animals in the U.S. Plains, traders said. Technical buying and short-covering also buoyed cattle prices while lean hog futures finished narrowly […] Read more
Alberta farmers try to wrap up ‘very unusual year’
CNS Canada — As winter approaches, producers in Alberta are still in the fields trying to wrap up the last bit of the 2018 harvest. According to the final crop report issued by Alberta Agriculture and Forestry, about six per cent of all crops were still in the field at the end of October. The […] Read more
In a year of extremes, soil moisture rebound a bright spot
The rain, snow, and cold in early fall had one upside — it recharged soil moisture reserves in much of the province
Reading Time: 4 minutes This year’s harvest was tough, but there is one good thing about it: Soil moisture and subsoil moisture are at almost normal levels in most of the province. “The soil moisture is looking better than it was at the end of August,” said Harry Brook, a crop specialist with Alberta Agriculture and Forestry. “It’s closer […] Read more
Feed weekly outlook: Grains flood Alberta market
CNS Canada — Feed grain prices in Alberta have come down as producers have rushed to sell downgraded crops. “Last week the phones were blowing up… right now I think we’re seeing some better weather, so everyone’s outside and the phones are probably going to light up again next week,” said Nelson Neumann, grain trader […] Read more
Cold weather, snowfall, slow harvest progress further
Alberta crop conditions as of October 2, 2018
Reading Time: 2 minutes The month of September has been exceptionally cold across the province and, for many areas, unusually wet. Although cool damp weather conditions have halted harvest operations in many areas, this has led to normal precipitation accumulations for most areas of the province. Adding to this was the large snowfall event in the southern and western […] Read more
It was more Standstill than September for many
Many weren’t able to ‘turn a wheel’ during what should be the golden days of autumn
Reading Time: 4 minutes It was a September that will be remembered for all the wrong reasons. “Harvest is at a standstill and it’s been that way for about three weeks now,” Alberta Wheat chair Kevin Bender said as the month came to a close. “For the most part, guys haven’t been able to turn a wheel yet.” Bender, […] Read more
Opinion: A cheerful wave or sympathetic ear this harvest season really does help
A little empathy will be much appreciated during this year’s long and difficult harvest
Reading Time: 2 minutes Please don’t read this as a complaint; this isn’t meant to be a complaint. With the recent snows in Alberta over the past two weeks, there are a lot of farmers on edge. So many farmers haven’t even turned a wheel in their fields, or if they have, they are either drying their grain or […] Read more
Pulse weekly outlook: Lentil yields look good, worries grow over peas
CNS Canada — It’s a mixed bag in many ways for Saskatchewan’s pulse crops this year, as a dry summer and late rains have meant different things for various crops. According to one industry expert, though, the overall picture doesn’t look bad. “I think overall, if you assess the entire province, it will come in […] Read more
Feed weekly outlook: Downgrades likely for Alberta crops
CNS Canada — Snow and wet weather through a large swath of northern and central Alberta are causing havoc for farmers and will likely put more feed grains into the market. But normal harvest price discounts are still not as great as expected, said Susanne Leclerc of Market Master Ltd. in Edmonton. Feed grain prices […] Read more
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