Starting August 1, 2017, Japan has triggered a safeguard to increase the tariff on its frozen beef imports from countries that it does not have a free trade agreement with. Increasing the tariff on frozen beef imports from 38.5% to 50% will impact Canada and the United States and not Australia, Chile and Mexico who... Read More
Category: Western Canada
Grain prices this week pulled back on some benign weather and profit-taking by funds. ere able to gain a bit on not enough rains falling on key areas in North America. Chicago wheat was the biggest loser, down more than 3.5% for the week. Oats fell 2.3% while corn dropped 1.2% since last Friday. Soybeans... Read More
Driving combine as a custom harvester, Marcel Kringe and a co-worker figured there had to be an easier way to measure how much good seed was being thrown out the back — something more accurate than checking the ground and more safe than running right beside the combine to throw a pan between the wheels.... Read More
Lower cattle prices due to big supplies, a Canadian dollar up over 80 cents U.S., and drought causing higher feed costs — Canadian cattle feeders are hunkering down as we turn the calendar into August. "If I'm a producer at the other end of the spectrum, as far as a cow-calf producer or grass operator,... Read More
I’m sure that with all the sabre rattling going on over NAFTA, our friends in the US understand why Canada and Mexico want to strengthen ties with each other, like we did earlier this month at a meeting in Calgary. There, Lawrence MacAulay, Canada’s Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food, and José Calzada, Mexican Secretary of... Read More
Mental health has been in the agriculture spotlight lately, with a push to break the stigma that often surrounds mental health. And the Agricultural Producers Association of Saskatchewan's Young Agricultural Producers (or YAP) committee is hoping to keep the conversation going. Danny Ottenbreit, southeast Saskatchewan farmer and co-chair of the YAP committee, was in the... Read More
Italy's move to unilaterally impose country of origin labeling (COOL) rules for all packages of pasta sold in the country came as a surprise last week, leaving the Canadian government and durum supply chain exploring options for how they can challenge the measure that threatens Canadian durum wheat exports. Rather than waiting for the European... Read More
The weather continues to be all over the map, whether in Ontario or Western Canada, as RealAg agronomist Peter Johnson leads off this week's edition of Wheat Pete's Word. He gives a quick update on crop insurance coverage, saying there's some good news there. There are also a number of issues to cover in corn,... Read More
Nitrogen in the soil is available to plants in two forms: ammonium (NH4) and nitrate (N03). The problem with nitrate is, unlike ammonium, it's a negatively-charged ion that's not attracted to soil particles or soil organic matter. Nitrate is also water soluble, so it can easily move out of a crop's rooting zone to places... Read More