Reading Time: < 1 minute Canada's two big railways will have a $7.1 million Christmas present for the Western Grains Research Foundations following a ruling they exceeded their revenue caps in 2022-23.
Railways blast past revenue cap
Grain moved was up 60 per cent from last season on drought recovery
Seaway workers ratify labour deal
Deal ended one-week strike on waterway
Reading Time: < 1 minute Unionized workers on the St. Lawrence Seaway in Ontario and Quebec have voted their approval of the agreement that brought them in off the picket line. Unifor, which represents about 360 Seaway workers across five locals in the two provinces, announced Thursday its members had voted to ratify a three-year agreement retroactive to April 1. […] Read more
Seaway strike backs up Ontario grain
Prairie grain may follow suit if strike backs up traffic via Thunder Bay, GFO warns
Reading Time: 2 minutes The nature of eastern Canadian grain logistics, and a strike by St. Lawrence Seaway workers who operate the system’s canals, will see cascading impacts across the system if the situation isn’t resolved quickly, according to Crosby Devitt, CEO of Grain Farmers of Ontario. Unifor workers in both Ontario and Quebec walked off the job Sunday […] Read more
Rail interswitching expansion pilot clears Parliament
Grain handlers to press for plan to be made permanent
Reading Time: 2 minutes Last week’s passage of the 2023 federal budget starts a 90-day countdown toward an 18-month test of expanded interswitching on railways in the three Prairie provinces. Bill C-47, the government’s budget implementation bill — which was first read April 20 in the House of Commons and got third reading in the Senate and royal assent […] Read more
CP disputes TSB’s conclusions on fatal grain train crash
Safety board urges automatic parking brakes, 'enhanced' brake testing for conditions
Reading Time: 4 minutes The federal Transportation Safety Board’s report into the fatal derailment of a Canadian Pacific Railway (CP) grain train in the Rocky Mountains in 2019 calls for changes to train braking systems and maintenance. CP, however, is questioning the TSB’s conclusions about the braking performance of the train involved, saying those conclusions are “based on inappropriate […] Read more
Ocean freight index hits five-and-a-half year highs
Reading Time: < 1 minute MarketsFarm — The Baltic Dry Index (BDI) has steadily increased over the past few months, hitting its highest levels in five-and-a-half years. The BDI settled Tuesday at 2,011 points, the highest level for the ocean freight rate indicator since January 2014. The BDI has been on a steady uptrend since hitting a two-and-a-half year low […] Read more
Commodities firm INTL FCStone enters Canadian market
Reading Time: 2 minutes Already handling ag commodities via partners north of the border, U.S. commodities brokerage and financial services firm INTL FCStone is bringing its own name into the Canadian market. The New York firm announced Tuesday it became a member of the Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada (IIROC) effective May 17, clearing the company to offer […] Read more
CTA to bump up Prairie grain freight cost index
Reading Time: 2 minutes Fuel and infrastructure improvements are expected to push up the cost of railroading and, in turn, the index guiding how much money Canada’s big two railways get to keep from hauling Prairie grain in the next crop year. The Canadian Transportation Agency (CTA) on Wednesday announced it will set the volume-related composite price index (VRCPI) […] Read more
Extensions sought for interim grain freight measures
Reading Time: 3 minutes Not expecting federal grain transport reforms to take effect until this fall at the earliest, several Prairie grain grower groups want to see an extension of the previous government’s interim rules and penalties for railways in the meantime. A proposed “Transportation 2030” package of rail reforms, pledged last November by Transport Minister Marc Garneau, is […] Read more
Rail interswitching rule seen already paying dividends
Reading Time: 3 minutes A 2014 federal rule that expanded rail options for some Prairie grain shippers has already made for more competitive freight rates and service and should be renewed this summer, commodity groups say. Pulse Canada, Grain Growers of Canada and Alberta’s crop commissions on Tuesday called on the federal government to extend provisions from the previous […] Read more
A message from April Stewart, Country Guide's Associate Editor
