A canola field in northwestern Saskatchewan on Oct. 5, 2016 after the area was blanketed by wet snow.  (Lisa Guenther photo)

Canadian wheat, canola crops seen weathering snow

Winnipeg | Reuters — Canada’s wheat and canola crops withstood wintry weather that stalled the autumn harvest, and production topped last year’s output, according to Reuters’ industry survey of 13 analysts and traders. Statistics Canada on Tuesday will issue its final crop production estimates for the 2016-17 marketing year. The industry expects, on average, all-wheat […] Read more

(Dave Bedard photo)

Farm gate prices fall in August on meat, dairy

Ottawa | Reuters — Canadian producer prices unexpectedly fell in August as meat and dairy products saw the largest decrease in nearly nine years, while lower prices for energy and petroleum products also weighed, data from Statistics Canada showed on Friday. The 0.5 per cent decline in producer prices fell well short of analysts’ expectations […] Read more


The Northern Lights over Winnipeg as seen from the International Space Station in January 2012. (NASA.gov)

Grain trade still wary of satellite-based StatsCan estimates

CNS Canada — Statistics Canada’s second attempt at using satellite imagery to determine the size of the country’s crops is in line with trade guesses when it comes to canola — but market participants are still taking the new methodology with a grain of salt. The model-based principal field crop estimates, released Tuesday, are calculated […] Read more

Brown mustard. (Peggy Greb photo courtesy ARS/USDA)

Mustard bids drop with demand, harvest progress

CNS Canada — Mustard spot prices are trending lower, with limited demand for the commodity as harvest progresses. Weather conditions may have curbed yield potential, to an extent, though production is still expected to be large, according to one market participant. Bids for mustard have dropped from the levels seen in July and August into […] Read more



(Dave Bedard photo)

ICE weekly outlook: Export uncertainty dogs canola

CNS Canada — Canola futures don’t appear ready to climb drastically higher anytime soon as uncertainty over Chinese buying weighs on the market, according to a Winnipeg trader and analyst. The recent grain stocks report compiled by Statistics Canada has become a source of pressure for canola, said Ken Ball of PI Financial. StatsCan’s report […] Read more


(Photo courtesy Canola Council of Canada)

Large old-crop canola stocks raise new-crop questions

CNS Canada — Canada grew a million more tonnes of canola in 2015-16 than originally reported, according to updated numbers from Statistics Canada, released Wednesday in connection with the Stocks of Principal Field Crops as of July 31 report. The unexpected revision to the old-crop production now has many industry participants questioning just how large […] Read more

Durum wheat. (Gipsa.usda.gov)

Quality Canadian durum may be in short supply

CNS Canada — Quality issues with the Canadian durum crop currently being harvested should see the price spreads between top- and low-end grain widen considerably, especially as the carryout from the previous year is also poor quality. Canadian durum stocks, as of July 31, were pegged at 1.1 million tonnes by Statistics Canada in a […] Read more


(Dave Bedard photo)

ICE weekly outlook: Stocks add softer undertone to market

CNS Canada –– A stocks report from Statistics Canada has changed the dynamic of the canola market, one analyst says, though prices are not expected to plummet. Statistics Canada estimates canola stocks at 2.016 million tonnes as of July 31. The government agency also upwardly revised year-ago production numbers. “It causes a fairly significant shift […] Read more