A trade war could be just as damaging to farmers as a drought, so business risk management programs should be adapted to reflect this, said Tyler McCann from the Canadian Agri-Food Policy Institute. | Getty Images

Policy institute calls for open review of ag spending

It’s been 13 years since agricultural spending was reviewed, and some programs may no longer meet producer needs

Reading Time: 4 minutes A full-scale review of Canadian agricultural spending should be a top priority in this time of global uncertainty, said a new report from the Canadian Agri-Food Policy Institute.

(Manitoba Co-operator file photo by Alexis Stockford)

Drought leaves Canadian farmers unpaid

Failure of unlicensed companies, complaint deadline, insufficient security seen as holes in farm support

Reading Time: 4 minutes Hundreds of Canadian farmers have received delayed payments for their crops or not been paid at all, as a growing number of grain-buying firms declare bankruptcy amid drought and low commodity prices, according to interviews with dozens of farmers, a government agency, and a review of bankruptcy documents.


Photo: SusanneSchulz/iStock/Getty Images

Cereals withstood storms better: CCHA

Approximately 1,000 crop damage claims made from storms between June 23 and July 1

Reading Time: < 1 minute “Numerous early season storms have resulted in a number of claims for the industry,” CCHA Chairman Scott McQueen of Palliser Insurance said in a statement. “Cereals have generally fared better as many were hit in the grassy stages of development and minimal damage to the plant was caused with environmental conditions being favourable so that crops that were hit by hail are able to recover.”



Hail-damaged cereals in one of Eric McLean’s fields in Westman.

Hail claims in Manitoba surpass 2022

Several hailstorms struck the southwest, south-central and other areas of the province in the first part of the growing season

Reading Time: 2 minutes Glacier FarmMedia – Half-way into a stormy summer, hail insurance claims have already surpassed last year’s total, according to the Manitoba Agricultural Services Corporation. As of July 20, it had seen 1,206 hail claims. This compares to 513 at the same time in 2022. Last year saw 1,121 registered hail claims throughout the year. Why […] Read more

An intercrop of forage peas and canola grown in Ontario.

Crop insurance considering coverage on intercrops

Intercrop trials continue at Saskatchewan’s South East Research Farm

Reading Time: 5 minutes At South East Research Farm in Redvers, Sask., research manager Lana Shaw is constantly cooking up new intercrop combinations. It’s a matter of great interest to the growing numbers of farmers who have adopted the practice. In 2019 there were about 70,000 intercropped acres documented by Saskatchewan Crop Insurance Corporation (SCIC). In 2021, just 25,000 […] Read more


Wheat in progress west of Pathlow, Sask. on Aug. 1, 2022. (Dave Bedard photo)

Crop, livestock prices offset reduced marketings in 2022

StatCan data on farm cash receipts tracks recovery off 2021 drought

Reading Time: 2 minutes New full-year data on Canada’s farm cash receipts in calendar 2022 show how increased commodity prices last year more than offset the drop in quantities sold. Statistics Canada on Tuesday released figures showing Canadian farm cash receipts in 2022 at $94.9 billion, up 14.1 per cent from 2021, including crop receipts of $53.9 billion (also […] Read more

Gary Millershaski, a farmer and scout on the Wheat Quality Council’s Kansas wheat tour, inspects winter wheat stunted by drought near Syracuse, about 170 km west of Dodge City, on May 18, 2022. (File photo: Reuters/Julie Ingwersen)

U.S. winter wheat growers seed into dust as Plains drought persists

Reading Time: 3 minutes Chicago | Reuters — With seeding roughly halfway complete, the 2023 U.S. hard red winter wheat crop is already being hobbled by drought in the heart of the southern Plains, wheat experts said. Seeding plans may be scaled back in the U.S. breadbasket despite historically high prices for this time of year, reflecting rising global […] Read more


(Dave Bedard photo)

Saskatchewan budget aims to spur ag investment

Potash, crude oil resource revenues help cut deficit

Reading Time: 3 minutes Sweetening existing tax credits on big-ticket investments, and setting up a new Crown corporation to support Indigenous investors, are among the items expected to help encourage new value-added ag projects in Saskatchewan’s latest budget. Provincial Finance Minister Donna Harpauer on Wednesday released her 2022-23 budget with $17.6 billion in expenditures on $17.2 billion in revenues, […] Read more

(Lightguard/iStock/Getty Images)

Saskatchewan pushes crop insurance deadline to mid-April

'Logistical challenges' led to extension

Reading Time: < 1 minute Saskatchewan farmers will get an extra couple of weeks to apply for, cancel, reinstate or change their crop insurance contracts for 2022, due to holdups in the delivery of their application packages. That deadline, originally March 31, has now been extended to April 14, provincial Ag Minister David Marit and his federal counterpart Marie-Claude Bibeau […] Read more