The Global Agricultural Information Network of the United States Department of Agriculture issued a series of reports during the week ended Jan. 26. Of those, some of them could have an affect on the North American markets.
USDA attaché reports from Canada, other countries
Drought, grasshoppers among concerns cited for Canadian Prairies
More penguins dying of avian flu at Cape Town colony
Visitors urged to disinfect shoes to prevent virus' spread elsewhere
Cape Town | Reuters — More penguins have died from avian flu at the colony at Cape Town’s Boulders beach, a popular tourist attraction and an important breeding site in South Africa, raising concerns for the species and for other seabirds. David Roberts, a clinical veterinarian at the South African Foundation For The Conservation Of […] Read more
South Africa looking at another large corn crop in 2022-23
MarketsFarm — South Africa is reported to be well on its way to producing another 15 million-plus-tonne corn crop in 2022-23, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) attaché in Pretoria. However, it will be far less than the USDA’s current estimate of 17.3 million tonnes. Nevertheless, if the attaché’s forecast were to hold, […] Read more
South African plan to allow land expropriation fails to pass
Constitutional amendment defeated by ruling ANC's opponents on both sides
Johannesburg | Reuters –– A proposal to change South Africa’s constitution to explicitly allow expropriation of land with no compensation failed to win the two-thirds of parliamentary votes that it needed on Tuesday. Lawmakers debated whether to change Section 25 of the constitution to enable authorities to seize land to address racial land inequalities left […] Read more
South African white farmers, Black protesters face off over farm murder
Two suspected killers of farmer attend court hearing
Senekal | Reuters –– White South African farmers and Black protesters hurled abuse and threats at each other on Friday during a court hearing in a murder case that has exposed still simmering racial tensions 26 years after the end of apartheid. The killing of Brendan Horner, a white man whose body was found tied […] Read more
U.S. livestock: CME live cattle down as weather fears ease
Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle futures closed lower on Wednesday for a second straight session as worries eased about a blizzard disrupting feedlots in the U.S. Plains, traders said. “The storm system for the most part moved further to the north — more to South Dakota, and missed a lot of […] Read more
Agritourism sustains central Alberta sheep farm
Reading Time: 3 minutes Susan de Rosemond had three strikes against her when she decided to become a sheep farmer in the late 1970s. First, she was an immigrant. Second, she was a woman. And the killing blow? She wanted to be a sheep farmer in beef country. “When I went to apply for my mortgage, the bank managers […] Read more
African farms are vastly different but share common bonds
Subsistence farming is still the norm in Africa, but agriculture is the key to changing its economic fortunes
Reading Time: 3 minutes Africa is a world apart but as in Canada, farming is increasingly being recognized as a key driver of economic growth. “There’s no other way to fight poverty than to create wealth,” South African farmer Theo de Jager told an international gathering of farm journalists here last month. “And there’s no other sector in this […] Read more
There’s a lot to love about Sussex cattle — but try finding any
Sussex cattle thrive in countries as diverse as England, South Africa, and Australia, but haven’t made it to Canada
Reading Time: 3 minutes I recently toured a South African farm that is home to the country’s most highly valued Sussex bull — a beautiful stud that recently appeared on the cover of one of the nation’s leading agricultural publications. South Africa is in the worst drought in 100 years, so bad that cattle farmers in other provinces have […] Read more
Bayer to sell Liberty brands to get Monsanto deal passed
Frankfurt | Reuters –– Bayer has agreed to sell its Liberty herbicide and LibertyLink-branded seeds businesses to win antitrust approval for its acquisition of Monsanto, it said on Monday. The divestment of the two global brands, a requirement imposed by South Africa’s Competition Commission on Sunday, will account for the bulk of asset sales worth […] Read more
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