Archives for November 2010

It’s a curious strategy. As pointed out in a front page Western Producer story by Adrian Ewins, none of the candidates running in the Canadian Wheat Board election is identifying themselves as being a supporter of marketing choice or a dual market. In all the other CWB elections, virtually all the candidates clearly identified themselves as …

Usually, a subsidy to transport livestock feed isn’t a good policy. However, in the case of the ongoing excess moisture problems faced by some livestock producers, this week’s provincial announcement of a transportation subsidy is a logical approach. During bad drought years, there are often calls for feed freight subsidies, but when feed is in …

A lot of crop and livestock diversification opportunities have not ended up being the panacea that promoters claimed, but there have also been some amazing success stories through the years. On the livestock side, ostriches and wild boars ended up as failures for most producers. The lasting legacy from wild boars is that they’re now …

The Europeans are certainly skilled at inventing new trade barriers. Mandatory eco-labeling legislation has been passed in France. By July of next year, environmental information will need to be made available at point of sale for all high volume consumer goods including food products. The first eco-labeling requirement is expected to include only carbon footprint …

Steve Verheul gave a presentation to the annual meeting of the Manitoba Cattle Producers Association in Brandon over the weekend. Verheul is this country’s chief negotiator in the free trade agreement being attempted between Canada and the European Union. Verheul is an impressive guy and he provides convincing arguments for why the deal would be …

The best overall yields in the province this year were in northwest Saskatchewan. The final crop report of the season from the Saskatchewan Ministry of Agriculture gives yield estimates for the six regions of the province. The northwest is higher in all the crops reported for the region. On spring wheat, the average yield in …

Dicamba-based weed control systems are coming. BASF and Monsanto have announced significant progress in launching dicamba systems for soybeans and cotton. Dicamba is the active ingredient in Banvel. The companies say field testing has demonstrated excellent weed control and crop safety on dicamba-tolerant soybeans in U.S. trials. The new formulation of the herbicide is said …

What would it take for grain prices to become unhinged?  I asked that question of a market analyst yesterday. Since I didn’t ask if he was willing to be quoted, the market analyst will remain anonymous, but his answer was interesting. Back in 2008, grain prices increased dramatically. Spring wheat on the Minneapolis Exchange briefly …

Calf prices were significantly stronger last week. The Saskatchewan Ministry of Agriculture publishes a Cattle Market Update based on the Canfax Market Outlook and Summary. Prices last week were up in all the weight classes, with most ranges up $3 to $6 per hundredweight. It’s unusual to see such a significant increase from one week …

As harvest season gradually switches to meeting season, it’s amazing to hear the stories of cropping successes and failures from this very unusual growing season. A lot of producers were pleasantly surprised by how well their canola did. While there are instances where canola has been badly downgraded by frost, in most cases the quality …