File photo of the facade of the U.S. Department of Agriculture building in Washington, D.C. (Camrocker/iStock/Getty Images)

U.S. farmers plant more corn, less soybeans in 2023

Total U.S. wheat acres estimated up about 8.5 per cent

Reading Time: < 1 minute MarketsFarm — Farmers in the United States seeded more corn and less soybeans than earlier intentions in 2023, according to updated acreage data Friday from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Total corn plantings in the country were estimated by USDA at 94.1 million acres, which was a million acres above the top end of trade […] Read more

File photo of a BNSF grain train in Montana. (Photo courtesy BNSF Railway)

Feed weekly outlook: U.S. corn keeps making way into Canadian rations

Ease of sourcing corn by rail an attractive feature

Reading Time: < 1 minute MarketsFarm — The size and quality of the 2023 Canadian grain crop is still very much in the air, but domestic feeders intend to keep at least some corn from the U.S. in their rations going forward no matter what is grown on the Prairies. Canadian buyers have already booked 78,500 tonnes of U.S. corn […] Read more


CBOT December 2023 corn with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages. (Barchart)

U.S. grains: Corn futures near three-week low

Soy mostly firm ahead of USDA reports; wheat follows corn lower

Reading Time: 2 minutes Chicago | Reuters — U.S. corn futures fell to their lowest in nearly three weeks on Thursday as rains bolstered production prospects in the Midwest and traders braced for key acreage and stocks data due Friday from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Wheat followed corn lower, pressured by a stronger U.S. dollar, which tends to […] Read more

CBOT December 2023 corn with Bollinger bands (20,2). (Barchart)

U.S. grains: Corn, soy tumble on forecasts for much-needed rains

CBOT September wheat also lower

Reading Time: 2 minutes Chicago | Reuters — U.S. corn futures fell more than four per cent and soybeans more than two per cent on Wednesday, pressured by forecasts for beneficial rains in the Midwest where crops have struggled with dry conditions, analysts said. Wheat also declined, pressured by the expanding U.S. winter wheat harvest and a larger-than-expected Canadian […] Read more


Corn in progress just east of Blumenort, Man. on July 20, 2022. (Dave Bedard photo)

CBOT weekly outlook: Corn could surprise in USDA’s acres report

Eyes on dry conditions in the Dakotas

Reading Time: 2 minutes MarketsFarm — Although grains analyst Terry Reilly of Futures International said he isn’t expecting any big changes in two upcoming reports from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, he suggested there’s an opportunity for couple of notable alterations. USDA is scheduled to release its planted acreage and quarterly grain stocks reports on Friday at 11 a.m. […] Read more

Wheat in progress west of Pathlow, Sask. on Aug. 1, 2022. (Dave Bedard photo)

Canadian canola, wheat area up on the year: StatCan

More soybean, corn acres also estimated

Reading Time: 2 minutes MarketsFarm — Canadian farmers planted more canola than earlier intentions, according to updated acreage estimates from Statistics Canada released Wednesday. Meanwhile, wheat plantings hit their highest level in more than two decades. Total canola plantings were estimated at 22.1 million acres by the government agency, which compares with the 21.6 million expected in April and […] Read more


CME October 2023 live cattle with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages. (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: Live cattle end higher, lean hogs mixed

Wholesale beef prices seen softening

Reading Time: 2 minutes Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle futures rose on Tuesday, rallying after a two-session slide as corn prices dropped and feeder cattle surged, but softening wholesale beef prices hung over the market, traders said. Benchmark CME August live cattle futures settled up 1.9 cents, at 172.5 cents/lb. (all figures US$). October futures […] Read more

CBOT December 2023 corn with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages. (Barchart)

U.S. grains: Corn, soy slide as Midwest rain outlook improves

Wheat drops on Russia production outlook

Reading Time: 2 minutes Chicago | Reuters — U.S. new-crop corn and soybean futures fell on Tuesday to their lowest in more than a week, pressured by forecasts for much-needed rains in the Midwest where crops have been deteriorating under dry conditions, analysts said. Wheat futures tumbled more than five per cent as worries subsided about political instability in […] Read more


If you already have a precision planter for corn, it can work for other crops. Although it produces better, more even emergence, the yield benefit isn't always there, says Gurbir Dhillon, who has been conducting precision planting trials for several years.

Good looks and high yields don’t always go together

Precision-planted crops look great at emergence, but lose that edge if timely rains don't come

Reading Time: 3 minutes If your greatest joy in farming is seeing nice, even emergence, you can’t beat a precision planter. “We tried a bunch of pulse crops, including field peas, chickpeas, lentils, faba beans, soybeans, and we also tried it on irrigated durum and hemp,” said Farming Smarter researcher Gurbir Dhillon. “Seedling emergence and stand establishment improved across […] Read more

(Dave Bedard photo)

Net short drops in canola as funds cover positions

Traders expand net longs in soy, corn

Reading Time: < 1 minute MarketsFarm — Speculative traders were busy covering short positions in ICE Futures canola during the week ended June 20, taking the net short position in the market to its smallest level in four months, according to the latest Commitments of Traders report from the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC). As of June 20, the […] Read more