Reading Time: 4 minutes (Resource News International) — Despite speculation that hundreds of thousands of Manitoba weanling pigs would be euthanized over the spring and summer due to a crisis in the hog industry, an official with Manitoba Pork Council said relatively few piglets have been put down. The speculation had been triggered by reports in the early spring […] Read more
Manitoba weanlings survive contract crisis: MPC
New Bunge unit not seen hitting fertilizer prices
Reading Time: 2 minutes (Resource News International) — Bunge’s decision to enter the North American fertilizer market is unlikely to have an impact on fertilizer prices in Western Canada, according to a Canadian farmers’ purchasing group. Bunge North America, a branch of U.S.-based agricultural giant Bunge Ltd., announced Thursday that a new unit had been created to distribute and […] Read more
Average canola yields seen amid maturity concerns
Reading Time: 2 minutes (Resource News International) — Canola crop development in Western Canada has improved in recent weeks despite a slow start, but industry sources still only anticipate average yields. Uneven germination and late crop maturity were cited as potential yield-lowering risks. Generally, canola crops are roughly 10 days behind normal development, but advanced considerably in the past […] Read more
Average winter wheat yields expected
Reading Time: 3 minutes (Resource News International) — Average yields are expected for the Canadian winter wheat crop this year but industry sources say warm weather is needed in the coming weeks in order to speed up crop development. Jake Davidson, executive manager with Winter Cereals Canada at Minnedosa, Man., said winter wheat crop development is a week to […] Read more
Oat prices firm though U.S. demand to fall
Reading Time: 2 minutes (Resource News International) — U.S. demand for Canadian oats will be lower in the 2008-09 crop year; however, prices are expected to generally resist downward pressure due to soaring U.S. corn values, according to industry sources. Oat production in Canada for 2008-09 was pegged at 3.65 million tonnes by Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada on May […] Read more
Canola acres up unexpectedly, barley down
Reading Time: 3 minutes (Resource News International) — Canadian farmers seeded more canola than they originally said they intended to, bringing Western Canada up to a record 15.812 million acres, according to Statistics Canada’s updated 2008 estimates of principal field crop area. “It seemed like almost nobody thought there would be any big shifts but canola is a surprise,” […] Read more
Better certificates boost pork access to Russia
Reading Time: 2 minutes (Resource News International) — Enhanced security features on Canadian meat certificates played an important role in recently improving Canada’s access to Russian pork markets, federal Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz said Tuesday. Ritz was in Russia to participate in a meeting of the Russia-Canada agriculture working group of the Intergovernmental Economic Commission. In response to a […] Read more
High ocean freight rates limit crop exports
Reading Time: 3 minutes (Resource News International) — High ocean freight rates are limiting Canada’s grain and oilseed export program and those rates aren’t expected to decline significantly anytime soon. “In the last few weeks you’ve seen rates increase by 15 to 25 per cent depending on the destination. When you combine that increase in freight rates with the […] Read more
Ethanol capacity soon to hit billion-litre mark
Reading Time: 2 minutes (Resource News International) — Production capacity in the Canadian ethanol industry is expected to hit one billion litres per year by the middle of this month, with yet another ethanol plant expected to be fully operational shortly. Total 2008 ethanol production capacity, which Canada is expected to realize in the next week or two, will […] Read more
Volatility may curtail multi-year contracts
Reading Time: 2 minutes (Resource News International) — The price volatility that has crept into the Canadian ag industry may have long-term implications for multi-year contracts, with farmers less willing to sign onto agreements that look attractive one season and inadequate the next, an agricultural analyst said. Ron Frost, a marketing specialist with Pike Management Group in Calgary, said […] Read more
A message from April Stewart, Country Guide's Associate Editor
