Reading Time: 2 minutes CNS Canada –– Spring wheat cash bids across Western Canada recorded minor losses during the week ended Friday. The declines were traced to weakness in U.S. futures and some minor strengthening in the Canadian dollar. Depending on the location, average Canada Western Red Spring (CWRS) wheat prices were down $3 per tonne, according to price […] Read more
Prairie wheat bids tick downward
Japan, Korea block certain U.S. wheat varieties
Reading Time: 2 minutes Chicago | Reuters — Japan and South Korea have both taken steps to block certain imports of U.S. wheat after unapproved genetically-modified (GMO) plants from Monsanto seeds were found growing in Washington state, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) said on Monday. Japan’s Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry said it will […] Read more
Northern port supporters appeal to government
Reading Time: 2 minutes A consortium supporting continued operation of the Port of Churchill met with federal and provincial government representatives this week in search of ways to keep the port open. “This is an emergency for our community, our region and indeed our country,” Churchill Mayor Mike Spence in a release. “We’ve been told by farmers that there […] Read more
Tour shows wheat yields in central, Northwestern North Dakota near to or above average
Reading Time: 2 minutes Reuters – Spring wheat prospects in central and northwest North Dakota are near to or above average, aided by favourable weather, scouts on one leg of an annual crop tour said on Wednesday. Crop scouts on the Wheat Quality Council’s tour travelling one route in west-central North Dakota made three stops and projected an average […] Read more
North American farmers top up rye plantings as whiskey sales soar
Reading Time: 2 minutes Winnipeg / Reuters – North American farmers are turning back to a neglected crop, sowing fields with the largest rye crop in years partly as consumers satisfy a growing thirst for whiskey. Rye, planted in autumn and harvested in mid-summer, fell out of favour during the past decade as other crops produced bigger profits. But whiskey […] Read more
New crop year reminders for western producers and industry
Reading Time: < 1 minute The Canadian Grain Commission is reminding the grain industry and producers about grain grading changes that come into effect on August 1, 2016 in Western Canada. Primary and export grade determinant tables for the new Canada Northern Hard Red and Canada Western Special Purpose wheat classes take effect. Canada Western Feed, Canada Western General Purpose […] Read more
Weak U.S. wheat futures watching European crops
Reading Time: < 1 minute Commodity News Service Canada – U.S. wheat futures are trading just above their weakest levels in 10 years, but the lows may be in for the time being as funds are already holding large short positions and attention turns to problems with the European crop. “We’re really just following the EU,” said wheat-broker Austin Damiani, of […] Read more
SunOpta pressured by shareholders after sluggish sales
Reading Time: 2 minutes Reuters – Canadian organic food company SunOpta Inc, already under pressure from U.S. hedge fund Tourbillon Capital Partners LP, is being prodded by a second activist shareholder to explore the sale of all or part of the company, according to sources familiar with the matter. Canadian hedge fund West Face Capital, which pushed SNC-Lavalin to sell […] Read more
A marketing strategy for stored grain
Is it worthwhile to store your grain on the farm while you wait for commodity prices to rise?
Reading Time: 5 minutes Storing grain on the farm can be a good marketing strategy because, if managed carefully, it can increase a producer’s profits, but it’s important to have a handle on your storage and opportunity costs to assess if it’s actually going to put money in the bank. The capital costs of storage vary depending on whether […] Read more
Poor-quality world wheat headed for feed
Black Sea export shipments are discounted $25 a tonne to corn
Reading Time: 3 minutes Reuters — From the heart of the U.S. big farm belt to Colombia, Vietnam and Indonesia, livestock producers are snapping up wheat damaged by bad weather or low in protein, providing pigs and poultry with grain more often milled for making bread. The increased global purchases of cheap, poor-quality wheat for animal feed comes as a […] Read more
A message from April Stewart, Country Guide's Associate Editor
