(Country Guide file photo)

Input costs to chip away at farmers’ shrinking income

Reading Time: 2 minutes CNS Canada — An anticipated downturn in farm income and higher input costs mean Canadian producers will be in a tough financial position this year, the head of the National Farmers Union (NFU) predicts. Farmers’ net cash income is expected to move lower in 2016, declining nine per cent to $13.6 billion in 2016, according […] Read more

(Gov.sk.ca)

Saskatchewan to halt winter weights early in southwest

Reading Time: < 1 minute Weight allowances that let heavier grain trucks roll on more southwestern Saskatchewan highways over the winter will end a week early, thanks to recent mild weather. The province’s highways ministry announced Friday it will remove the winter weight allowances on secondary-weight highways in the southwest region effective Monday (Feb. 22). “While frozen roads provide a […] Read more


(Dave Bedard photo)

Farm incomes set to fall from record high

Reading Time: 2 minutes Reuters — Canadian farm incomes look set to fall in 2016 after a year of record profits, but will still reach above-average levels, according to a report from the federal government. Rising receipts for crops and livestock have boosted incomes in recent years, due to greater demand in developing countries and a weak Canadian dollar, […] Read more

(Photo courtesy Arla Foods)

Arla CEO says world dairy market in crisis

Reading Time: 2 minutes Copenhagen | Reuters –– Arla Foods, one of Europe’s biggest dairy companies, said on Wednesday the global milk market was in crisis due to oversupply, but it expected demand, particularly from China, to pick up at the end of the year. Headquartered in Denmark, Arla is Britain’s largest and the world’s seventh-largest dairy company. It […] Read more


(Dave Bedard photo)

Burger King, Tim’s owner says 2016 off to ‘great start’

Reading Time: 2 minutes Reuters — Restaurant Brands International said it was off to a “great start” this year, after new product launches at its Burger King and Tim Hortons chains in 2015 helped boost sales in a highly competitive market. Shares of the Ontario-based company, which reported a better-than-expected quarterly profit on Tuesday, rose as much as nine […] Read more

(Natrel.ca)

Agropur plans three years of deeper cost cuts

Reading Time: 2 minutes Having beat a three-year, $75 million goal for cost cuts, Canadian dairy co-operative Agropur has set the bar at nine figures for the next three-year period. The Quebec-based co-op on Wednesday booked net earnings of $47.5 million on sales of $5.875 billion in its fiscal year ending Oct. 31, 2015, up from $38.31 million on […] Read more


Averaged sea surface temperatures and sea surface temperature anomalies worldwide for the week centred on Feb. 3. (CPC.ncep.noaa.gov)

Timing of La Nina to play key role in Prairie moisture

Reading Time: 2 minutes CNS Canada –– As the El Nino weather phenomena slowly loosens its grip across Western Canada, many weather watchers say its impact has been somewhat underwhelming. However, one meteorologist said its lingering presence, coupled with the pending arrival of the La Nina weather event, may still play a large role in determining how much moisture […] Read more

Averaged sea surface temperatures and sea surface temperature anomalies worldwide for the week centred on Feb. 3. (CPC.ncep.noaa.gov)

First La Nina since 2012 expected in coming months

Reading Time: 2 minutes New York | Reuters –– Even as the El Nino weather phenomenon continues to impact global temperatures and crops, its counterpart La Nina is increasingly expected to emerge in the coming months for the first time in four years. The return of La Nina, Spanish for “the girl” and characterized by unusually cold ocean temperatures, […] Read more


(Dave Bedard photo)

Agropur eyes further U.S. acquisitions

Reading Time: 2 minutes Reuters — Canada’s second-biggest dairy, Agropur Co-operative, said it is looking to grow in the U.S., possibly through acquisitions, in the face of an expected erosion of its market share at home due to recent international trade deals. Agropur, whose brands include Iogo yogurt and Oka cheese, and larger rival Saputo have already built U.S. […] Read more

Saputo’s Canadian dairy division includes brands such as Dairyland, Neilson, Nutrilait, Baxter and Armstrong. (Dave Bedard photo)

Saputo earnings up with weaker loonie

Reading Time: < 1 minute Reuters — Saputo, one of Canada’s largest dairy producers, reported higher than expected adjusted earnings on Thursday, helped by weakness in the Canadian dollar. For its fiscal third quarter, adjusted net income rose 13.5 per cent to $175.4 million, or 44 cents a share. Revenue during the quarter, which ended Dec. 31, rose 2.8 per […] Read more