The USDA took grain markets by surprise with the numbers in its August supply/demand report on Wednesday morning. Corn, soybeans and canola futures dropped sharply following the much larger than expected production and ending stock estimates. Soybean ending stocks for 2015-16 were pegged at 470 million bushels — up from the USDA’s estimate of 425... Read More
Category: Western Canada
There’s been renewed interest in using producer cars to ship grain to customers in recent years, in part due to the backlog in the Western Canadian grain handling system following the bumper crop in 2013, as well as the entrance of new grain buyers after the end of the Canadian Wheat Board’s monopoly in 2012.... Read More
There are only so many hours in a week to get things done. During busy seasons, such as harvest, that means many farms operate seven days a week, trying to make the most of the limited resource we call time. Others still choose to take a break once every seven days, whether it's for faith-related... Read More
Cargill Limited has announced the winners in the company's "Together We Thrive" contest. Six charitable organizations across Canada will each receive a $25,000 grant. With total funding of $150,000, the contest coincided with Cargill's 150th anniversary in 2015. 145 projects were nominated, with the winners selected by a panel of Cargill judges based on financial... Read More
The Hesston 1375 isn’t only the newest of the 1300 series by Massey Ferguson, it’s also the biggest. Weighing in at over 7000lbs, the centre-pivot mower conditioner is 4.6m (15’3?) wide. The machine uses 10 rotary discs, each with 10 free-swinging reversible knives, to cut crops at 1.3 to 3? in height. And just when... Read More
Legend Seeds and Sevita International have signed a distribution agreement to bring each other's corn and soybean genetics to new growing regions. Ontario-based Sevita International will distribute and market Legend Seeds' corn hybrids through its PROSeeds business in Ontario, Quebec and Atlantic Canada. Legend Seeds, which has its headquarters in South Dakota, will bring Sevita's... Read More
Oh to be a fly on the side of the Lagoon Crawler. The amphibious machine, developed by Nuhn Industries Ltd, runs on a Cummins engine and is remote controlled up to 1000 feet, allowing for successful lagoon agitation, even from a smell-safe distance. The header pump is at the bottom of the Crawler, and being... Read More
Grains this week were a bit boring as rain landing in most growing areas across North America and even Australia prompted a few estimate increases despite the lingering threat of an El Niño. Friday did bring some action as a lower U.S. dollar and some strong U.S. export sales helped pull the complex higher for... Read More
Knowing the context in which a plant variety was selected is critical in understanding how it should be managed in the field. As an example, in the video above, Martin Entz of the University of Manitoba explains what happens when cereal crop varieties developed in a conventional breeding system are grown in an organic system,... Read More