Farmer and Grainews columnist Toban Dyck inspects wheat on July 6, 2021 near Winkler, Man., where hot and dry weather has led to thin, uneven stands. (Photo: Reuters/Rod Nickel)

Saskatchewan raises salvage threshold for parched crops

Stock watering program also boosted; APAS, Tories' ag critic had called for more drought aid

Reading Time: 3 minutes Saskatchewan’s provincial crop insurance agency is raising the yield threshold at which drought-damaged crops can be grazed, baled for greenfeed or cut for silage with no penalty on future coverage. Saskatchewan Crop Insurance Corp. said Wednesday it would double the “low yield appraisal” threshold values on cereal or pulse crop acres put to feed. SCIC […] Read more



CBOT August 2021 soybeans with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages (yellow, green and black lines). (Barchart)

U.S. grains: Corn, soybeans up on weather worries

MGEX, CBOT September wheats also gain

Reading Time: 2 minutes Chicago | Reuters — U.S. corn and soybean futures hit their highest in nearly two weeks on Wednesday as forecasts called for dry weather in the Midwest crop belt next week and continued dryness in the northern Plains, threatening crop prospects, analysts said. Chicago Board of Trade December corn settled up 18 cents at $5.58-3/4 […] Read more

(Photo courtesy Canada Beef Inc.)

Klassen: Feeder market consolidates

Reading Time: 2 minutes Compared to last week, western Canadian feeder cattle markets traded $2-$3 on either side of unchanged. In central and southern Alberta, quality yearling steers weighing 800 lbs. continue to hover at the psychological range of $200-$210; lower-flesh steers fresh off grass weighing 900 lbs. are readily quoted in the range of $185-$190. Saskatchewan values are […] Read more


(Qingwa/iStock/Getty Images)

USDA pegs wheat ending stocks to be lowest since 2013-14

Reading Time: 2 minutes MarketsFarm — As the U.S. northern Plains continue to deal with severe drought conditions, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has significantly lowered its 2021-22 ending stocks estimates for wheat — especially durum and spring wheat. According to USDA’s monthly world agriculture supply and demand estimates (WASDE) released Monday, 2021-22 ending stocks for wheat are […] Read more

CBOT December 2021 corn (candlesticks) with MGEX, CBOT and K.C. September 2021 wheats (green, yellow and orange lines). (Barchart)

U.S. grains: Soybeans, corn fall on cool, wet forecast

Wheat supported by dryness in northern Plains

Reading Time: 2 minutes Chicago | Reuters — Chicago soybean futures ended lower on Thursday, pressured by cool, rainy forecasts across the U.S. growing belt, though dryness in the upper Midwest continues to threaten developing crops. Corn eased as beneficial rains aided crops entering pollination, while wheat firmed as sparse moisture reached drought-hit spring wheat regions. The most-active soybean […] Read more


File photo of an Alberta wheat field. (ImagineGolf/E+/Getty Images)

Feed weekly outlook: Alberta feed prices rising

Reading Time: 2 minutes MarketsFarm — Higher-than-normal temperatures and continued demand for feed have caused prices for Alberta feed barley and feed wheat to increase over the past few weeks. However, that demand has pulled back somewhat. According to Prairie Ag Hotwire data from Wednesday, high-delivered bids for Alberta feed barley were at $7.84 per bushel, 48 cents higher […] Read more

(JohnnyMad/Getty Images)

Hot weather cuts into Canadian mustard crop

Price increases already noted

Reading Time: 2 minutes MarketsFarm — Canada is looking at another small mustard crop in 2021, which should keep prices well supported for any unpriced crop, as recent heat stress cut into yields. “That was a very rough week,” said Walter Dyck, the Alberta-based general manager with Wisconsin mustard-processor Olds Products, on the late June/early July heat wave that […] Read more


File photo of a pea crop south of Ethelton, Sask. on Aug. 1, 2019. (Dave Bedard photo)

Pulse weekly outlook: Saskatchewan crops fight off record heat

Reading Time: 2 minutes MarketsFarm — The “heat dome” which enveloped Western Canada last week delivered a blow to Saskatchewan’s pulse crops. Thirty-four temperature records were shattered on Friday, including those at Regina, Prince Albert, Swift Current, Weyburn and Yorkton. Saskatoon and Lucky Lake, northeast of Swift Current, were the province’s hot spots that day at 40 C. Nine […] Read more

Chickpeas. (Grigorenko/iStock/Getty Images Plus)

Pulse weekly outlook: StatsCan acres see little change

Reading Time: 2 minutes MarketsFarm — Canadian pea and lentil acres only saw slight adjustments in the latest acreage estimates Tuesday from Statistics Canada, with little market news to draw in extra area since the previous report in April. “When you see all the hard commodities, their prices are fantastic. That’s the main reason why growers switch,” said Marcos […] Read more