(Stephen Ausmus photo courtesy ARS/USDA)

New report shows poultry sector burdened by expectations

Simpson Centre paper calls for increased research, financial sustainability for sector

Updated, May 17 — The Simpson Centre for Food and Agricultural Policy has released a report detailing its findings on challenges now facing Canada’s poultry sector. The report, co-authored by research assistant Shawn Wiskar and centre director Guillaume Lhermie and released Thursday, used a focus group of six stakeholders in the Canadian poultry industry. It […] Read more

Four-wheel-drive tractors and air seeders have been in short supply all year, says an official Rocky Mountain Equipment, which has 36 dealerships across Western Canada.

The shortage of farm equipment may not ease until 2024

Dealers — and a new report from FCC — suggest tight supplies are the ‘new normal’ and unlikely to change soon

Reading Time: 5 minutes Glacier FarmMedia – Farm equipment dealer Guy Deroche was pleasantly surprised about parts orders this fall when delivery was better than expected. Supply chain disruptions were a hallmark of the year, forcing producers and agri-businesses to scramble for inputs, for equipment components, for livestock ear tags and a long list of consumer products. There were […] Read more


(Canest-transit.ca)

Feds back Montreal port grain terminal for upgrades

CanEst crop container terminal funded for equipment, capacity improvements

CanEst Transit’s grain container terminal at the Port of Montreal is putting $8 million in federal funding toward new equipment and improvements to current infrastructure. Transport Canada, in a release Wednesday, said the goal of the terminal project is to “increase the number of containers stored onsite, improve the quality of the grain-cleaning service, optimize […] Read more

tractor seeding in a field

The buyers are willing but the equipment supply chain is weak

Farm equipment sales jump but availability of new machines and parts for older ones remain an issue

Reading Time: 4 minutes Driven by high commodity prices and low interest rates, sales of farm equipment shot up last year — but getting delivery was a huge headache for many. Sales of four-wheel-drive tractors in Canada rose 33 per cent, 100+ horsepower tractors were up 34 per cent, and combines were up 23 per cent, according to data […] Read more


You may have heard that glyphosate could be in short supply, but that’s not all.

Be prepared for all sorts of supply shortages this spring

There’s a long list of ag products in short supply as the busy spring season begins to ramp up

Reading Time: 5 minutes Glacier FarmMedia – This isn’t going to be one of those springs where you can stroll into your local ag retailer and then walk out with everything you need. The list of products facing supply issues is long, and growing longer — herbicides, fertilizer, parts, certain feeds and even ear tags. “Our message is simple: […] Read more

(File photo by Dave Bedard)

Canadian and U.S. shippers brace for possible CP strike

Strike notice not yet given

Winnipeg | Reuters — Thousands of workers at Canada’s second-biggest railway, Canadian Pacific Railway, have threatened to strike this week, potentially disrupting the movement of grain, potash and coal at a time of soaring commodity prices. The strike is the latest risk to Canada’s battered supply chain, which last year weathered floods in British Columbia […] Read more


A shipping container fix may be coming

A shipping container fix may be coming

Reading Time: < 1 minute Bulk shipping rates are way down but getting past the pandemic is likely key to fixing the shipping container mess, says a provincial crops market analyst. “Relief in container shipping rates should occur within months following a decline in COVID-19 cases and easing of restrictions, as consumers turn more of their attention to out-of-home spending […] Read more

(File photo by Dave Bedard)

Link broken in glyphosate supply chain, Bayer says

Company provides heads-up on 'force majeure event'

No one is yet using the word ‘shortage’ but farmers may need to get ready for less Roundup temporarily, following a “force majeure” event at a plant supplying an ingredient in the recipe for glyphosate. Bayer, the chemical company whose Roundup brand remains the best known of the glyphosate herbicides, reported as much in an […] Read more


File photo of a pea crop south of Ethelton, Sask. on Aug. 1, 2019. (Dave Bedard photo)

Pulse weekly outlook: Slow demand pulls down pea prices

MarketsFarm — Slow demand has been behind the declines in green and yellow peas, according to Marcos Mosnaim of Mercais Commodities in Toronto. Over the last week, prices for western Canadian green peas have lost 30 cents per bushel at $14.50-$16.20 per bushel delivered, according to Prairie Ag Hotwire. Those for yellow peas have dropped […] Read more

CF Industries’ UAN plant at Donaldsonville in Louisiana. The company also makes UAN at plants in Ontario, Iowa and Oklahoma. (Thyssenkrupp-industrial-solutions.com)

Fertilizer shortage may lead to spring scramble

'It's next year's prices I'm worried about'

Reuters — A global shortage of nitrogen fertilizer is driving prices to record levels, prompting North America’s farmers to delay purchases and raising the risk of a spring scramble to apply the crop nutrient before planting season. The Texas Arctic Blast in February and Hurricane Ida in August disrupted U.S. fertilizer production. Then, prices of […] Read more