Processing plants are being built across the country to convert farm crops into bioproducts for essentially every sector.

The booming bioeconomy — Part 2

In part one of this feature, we introduced the bioeconomy and how Canada is working to become a world leader. In part two we look at specific sector developments from coast to coast — there are lots of them!

Reading Time: 7 minutes It’s a surprise to most of us. What’s the hottest bioeconomy subsector on the planet? Replacements for plastic. Worldwide demand for biodegradable products is urgent and it’s growing, especially to replace single-use plastic items like straws, utensils, cup lids and plastic bags. The race is on. France banned plastic cups in 2016, and Queen Elizabeth […] Read more


The only in-crop products registered for grass control in flax are Group 1 chemistries: sethoxydim (Poast Ultra), clethodim (e.g. Centurion) and quizalofop (e.g. Assure II), and broadleaf products such as clopyralid and MCPA (Curtail M).

Don’t rely completely on the herbicide’s label for advice when seeding flax

Making sure the crop receives good fertility, planting into warm, moist soils and bumping up seeding rate can all help improve the outcome.” — Michelle Beaith, Sask Flax

Reading Time: 5 minutes If your flax isn’t looking as healthy as it should, you might consider the usual suspects — disease, insects or nutrient deficiency. But you might add another to the list — residual herbicides. “The main concern is impact on the crop such as decreased emergence and reduced plant stand,” says Michelle Beaith, an agronomist with […] Read more

Hay yields were well below normal for many producers and will be in short supply this year in several areas.  Photo: File

Development behind normal for many Saskatchewan crops: report

Reading Time: < 1 minute MarketsFarm – Development for roughly a third of the spring cereals and nearly half of the oilseed crops in Saskatchewan are behind normal, according to the latest provincial crop report. About 55 per cent of the canola crop is at its normal stage of development, with 44 per cent behind. Spring cereals are at 67 […] Read more


(Dave Bedard photo)

Flax prices muted

Reading Time: < 1 minute MarketsFarm — Flax yields are expected to be average at harvest season, thanks to the combination of more seeded acres and inclement growing conditions. Export numbers have been lower in recent years, due in part to China having opted to import flax from other countries besides Canada. According to an early 2019 report from FarmLead, […] Read more

(Botaneco Inc. photo)

Supercluster backs oilseed protein joint venture

Reading Time: 2 minutes A project to extract new high-protein ingredients from canola, hemp and other such crops for use in the food, feed and aquaculture markets will be the first to get funding from Canada’s plant protein supercluster. Protein Industries Canada (PIC), set up last year as one of five federally-backed research and innovation superclusters, announced Wednesday it […] Read more


(Dave Bedard photo)

StatsCan: Less canola and durum, more barley and oats

Reading Time: 2 minutes MarketsFarm — Canadian farmers seeded fewer canola and durum acres than they originally intended, but more barley and oats, according to updated acreage estimates from Statistics Canada that largely came within expectations. StatsCan pegged planted Canadian canola area for 2019-20 (August to July) at 20.952 million acres, down by about 300,000 from the March survey […] Read more

(Dave Bedard photo)

Less canola, more barley area expected in next StatsCan report

Reading Time: 2 minutes MarketsFarm — Canadian farmers will likely grow less canola and more barley in 2019, though the jury is out on exact acreage numbers ahead of Statistics Canada’s seeded area estimates due out Wednesday. Barley prices have hit “historic highs” thanks to inclement corn-growing weather in the United States, which has buoyed most feed grain prices. […] Read more


Prime Minister Justin Trudeau meets with steel workers at Stelco in Hamilton on March 13, 2018. (File photo: Reuters/Mark Blinch)

U.S. boosts trade pact’s outlook lifting tariffs on Canadian, Mexican metals

Reading Time: 3 minutes Washington/Ottawa | Reuters — The United States struck deals on Friday to lift tariffs on steel and aluminum imports from Canada and Mexico, the three governments said, removing a major obstacle to legislative approval of a new North American trade pact. The separate agreements, which will not impose U.S. quotas on Canadian and Mexican metals […] Read more

(Dave Bedard photo)

StatsCan confirms smaller canola acres, more wheat

Reading Time: 2 minutes MarketsFarm — Canadian farmers intend to seed more spring wheat and less canola in 2019, according to Statistics Canada survey results released Wednesday. Additional shifts are also likely in subsequent reports, as dry conditions in southern Alberta and Saskatchewan may alter some intentions. Statistics Canada forecast canola area for 2019 at 21.3 million acres, which […] Read more