Reading Time: 2 minutes Glacier FarmMedia’s summer farm show Ag in Motion is coming in from the outdoors to operate in cyberspace for 2020. The event — which was due to run July 21-23 at the Glacier FarmMedia Discovery Farm on Highway 16 west of Langham, Sask., about 40 km northwest of Saskatoon — has been rebranded for 2020 […] Read more
Ag in Motion outdoor farm show going online instead for 2020
Showrunners plan free 'Ag in Motion Discovery Plus' online event
Trump asks U.S. Justice Department to look into meat price disparities
Reading Time: 2 minutes Washington | Reuters — U.S. President Donald Trump said on Wednesday he had urged the Justice Department to look into allegations that the meatpacking industry broke antitrust law because the price that slaughterhouses pay farmers for animals had dropped even as meat prices rose. “I’ve asked the Justice Department to look into it. … I’ve […] Read more
Nutrien cuts 2020 forecast as corn demand, potash prices hit
Reading Time: < 1 minute Reuters — Fertilizer maker Nutrien said Wednesday it has seen limited impact from the COVID-19 outbreak, but cut its annual forecast as oil downturn hit corn demand and potash prices are hard-pressed outside North America. Biofuel producers have been hit by plummeting demand for gasoline and jet fuel after severe global travel restrictions were imposed […] Read more
COVID-19 aid ‘falls short,’ farm groups warn
Aid package includes AgriRecovery for cattle, hog sectors
Reading Time: 5 minutes Ottawa — Despite Prime Minister Justin Trudeau saying more money will be provided if needed, the agriculture sector continues to criticize Ottawa’s $252 million in COVID-19-related financial aid offered to producers and processors. “If we have to add more, we will,” said Trudeau, after announcing new funding and programming. The federal government is offering an […] Read more
Thunder Bay sees increased port traffic to start season
Reading Time: < 1 minute MarketsFarm — The Port of Thunder Bay reports “a surge in grain throughput” as the global COVID-19 pandemic has led to tight grain supplies in some countries and an increase in demand. Grain moved through Thunder Bay, on the northern shore of Lake Superior, is loaded onto “laker” vessels that transport to North American destinations […] Read more
U.S. grains: Corn gains with rising crude, limited by early planting
Soybeans rise on sale to China, despite tariff talk
Reading Time: 2 minutes Chicago | Reuters — Chicago corn futures gained on Tuesday, following energy markets higher on hopes of renewed ethanol fuel demand as lockdowns ease, but were capped by ahead-of-schedule planting across the U.S. Midwest, analysts said. Soybeans climbed on confirmation of new sales to China, even as the United States renewed tariff threats over China’s […] Read more
Trudeau pledges $252 million in COVID-19 aid for farmers, processors
Dairy commission's credit line extended for storage program
Reading Time: 2 minutes Ottawa | Reuters — Canada will invest $252 million to help some of the country’s farming and food processing sectors weather the coronavirus outbreak, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Tuesday, adding more money could come later if needed. The Canadian Federation of Agriculture, one of Canada’s biggest farm groups, asked Ottawa last week for an […] Read more
Smithfield starting to reopen Sioux Falls hog plant, union says
Major plant was shuttered by COVID-19 outbreak
Reading Time: 2 minutes Chicago | Reuters — Smithfield Foods, the world’s biggest pork processor, resumed limited operations on Monday at a massive South Dakota slaughterhouse it closed last month because of the coronavirus pandemic, the union representing plant employees said. The closure of the plant and other slaughterhouses due to coronavirus cases among employees has led to temporary […] Read more
Cargill’s High River plant reopens with two slaughter shifts
Cutting line to resume Wednesday
Reading Time: 2 minutes Cargill’s southern Alberta beef packing plant, estimated to be responsible for over a third of Canada’s beef processing capacity, restarted Monday after a two-week COVID-19-related shutdown — but at a quicker pace than previously expected. The company said in a statement Monday it is resuming operations at the High River plant “with two shifts” in […] Read more
U.S. livestock: Cattle, hog futures inch up as plants reopen
Rising wholesale prices support futures
Reading Time: 2 minutes Chicago | Reuters — U.S. lean hog and live cattle futures closed higher on Monday, as meat processing facilities began to open after closures of more than 20 plants due to coronavirus illnesses among workers. Rising pork and beef cutout prices have also helped give futures a boost on Monday, said Mark Schultz, chief analyst […] Read more
A message from April Stewart, Country Guide's Associate Editor
