Photo: Reuters/Ben Nelms/File

Global crop yields have not kept up with increasing demand 

Sluggish production blamed on adverse weather conditions and high input costs that lead to reduced fertilizer use

Reading Time: 3 minutes The global stocks-to-use ratio for the major crops, excluding China, has been trending down since 2018, Jason Newton, Nutrien’s chief economist, told delegates attending the 24th International Farm Management Association Congress in Saskatoon.



(Photo courtesy Canada Beef Inc.)

More local barley destined for rations, but U.S. corn still moving

Prior to drought year 2021/22, Canadian corn imports had rarely topped two million tonnes

Reading Time: < 1 minute Recently revised supply/demand tables from Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada raised the forecast for domestic barley usage in the current crop year to 6.155 million tonnes. That compares with an earlier forecast of 5.471 million tonnes. If realized, that would be up by roughly 200,000 tonnes from the previous year.

A farmer in China piles wheat.  Photo: Reuters/File

China to push for higher grain yields to ensure food security

Chinese corn breeders are preparing to double the amount of GMO corn planted next year

Reading Time: 2 minutes China, the world's top buyer of soy and corn, will push for higher grain yields across large areas of farmland as it seeks to ensure food security for its huge population, state media reported on Wednesday, citing an annual rural policy meeting.


In 2021 Kyle Jewell won gold in winter wheat yield with 4.04 tonnes (148.4 bu.) per acre.

Maritime YEN takes crop yields to a new level

It’s not just about how much you produce, but how much you could produce on your farm

Reading Time: 5 minutes Kyle Jewell wasn’t sure what he was getting into when he agreed to join the Maritime Yield Enhancement Network (YEN) project in 2019. Now he can hardly imagine doing without its depth of information and the co-operative spirit he’s seen in the past three growing seasons. The YEN concept has become popular, with a Canada/U.S. […] Read more

(Dave Bedard photo)

Trade expects mostly smaller crops in StatsCan report

Reading Time: 3 minutes CNS Canada –– Statistics Canada will release its first survey-based Canadian crop production estimates for 2015-16 on Friday, and figures for most major crops are expected to be down compared to last year. Yields are likely to be all over the map as weather conditions varied vastly from region to region during the growing season. […] Read more


Wade Barnes, CEO of Farmers Edge.

Wade Barnes’ new playbook

Guide Insight: What can farmers adapt from Wade Barnes’ trail-blazing success at Farmers Edge?

Reading Time: 7 minutes In an agriculture that is struggling to figure out what its future will look like, Wade Barnes may at least know how to get there. And, as his example seems to promise, knowing ‘how’ may put you on the path to knowing ‘who,’ which in farming is the question that will eventually answer all the […] Read more

soybean field

A look back at thicker soybean stands

Is 2014 proof that we’ve been going in the wrong direction with soybean populations?

Reading Time: 6 minutes Sometimes it’s best to take a quick look in the rear-view mirror before considering where to go next. In farming, of course, it isn’t that simple. The weather next year will never be exactly the same as it was this year, and pest and disease pressures will vary too. Still, it’s essential to look for […] Read more