The Canadian government was quick to announce $16.6 billion in retaliatory tariffs after U.S. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross confirmed that Canada, Mexico, and the EU will lose their exemptions to 25 percent and 10 percent tariffs on steel and aluminum, as of June 1. The escalation comes as NAFTA negotiations appear to have stalled. Prime… Read More
Month: May 2018
Hot, humid weather across much of corn-growing areas of Ontario has the crop adding a leaf stage about every four days. As corn pops in to that 4-leaf to 5-leaf stage, it’s time to get some dust on the boots and check three key aspects of early crop establishment: plant health, weed escapes, and planter… Read More
Canada is 9.985 million km² producing a wealth of farm commodities and natural resources. This has been a week dominated by the discussion on the movement of oil, but what about other commodities that cannot flow through a pipe? Wheat, canola, pulses, and soybeans require rail to get from the Prairies to port to be… Read More
Could Western Canadian crops once again be exported through the Port of Churchill? Owner Omnitrax has reached an agreement-in-principle to sell the rail line leading to Churchill and the Port of Churchill to a consortium that includes pulse exporter AGT Food and Ingredients, according to the federal government. The Hudson Bay rail line has been… Read More
Wednesday’s edition of RealAg Radio, with host Shaun Haney leading things off talking about superstitions that may or may not bring rain. From there: Top ag news with Kelvin Heppner, including the quick resolution to the CP Rail strike; NAFTA news; new farm income and debt info; and Ag Minister MacAulay’s comments on farmers’ support… Read More
As the calendar inches ever closer to June, host of Wheat Pete’s Word and resident agronomist, Peter Johnson, is tackling your top agronomy questions for side-dressing N, fusarium nozzle selection, and early season weed control in this week’s edition. From two strategies for planting edible beans into dry ground, to the first of the hay… Read More
Whether he meant to say it or not, the federal agriculture minister is drawing criticism for a comment he made to the Senate on Tuesday regarding how farmers view the federal carbon tax. Responding to a question from Senator Carolyn Stewart Olsen about the impact of the carbon tax on farmers in New Brunswick, Lawrence… Read More
The union representing 3,000 conductors and locomotive engineers who work for CP Rail says it has reached a tentative deal with the railway, less than 24 hours after its members went on strike. “We believe this is a fair contract that our members can feel good about ratifying. I am personally very satisfied with what… Read More
Over 100 farmers from more 30 Ontario counties participated in our ‘roll-call’ on Twitter this past weekend. We asked where they expected to be at with planting corn and soybeans by Sunday evening. Most regions have planted their intended corn acres except regions south of London and the Niagara/Haldimand clay, with some only starting to… Read More
What started as a fascination with craft distilling and a chance discussion about dumping skim milk has evolved into a tasty new business at Almonte, Ontario. Neal McCarten is director of operations for Dairy Distillery, and it was his family’s farm background that led to a discussion with Omid McDonald, founder and CEO, about how… Read More
Canada’s competition regulator says it has reached an agreement with Bayer that lays out the conditions for its proposed acquisition of Monsanto. The announcement comes a day after the U.S. Department of Justice gave its conditional approval to the US$66 billion deal. The Competition Bureau concluded that the deal “would likely substantially lessen and prevent… Read More
Desperate situations require desperate measures. With an estimated 30% of the western Canadian prairies under significant drought threat, farmers in the southern area of the prairies are very concerned about crop and pasture conditions. Mother Nature may have a death grip on the rain tap, but is there something that you can do about it?… Read More
Tuesday’s show, with host shaun Haney, featuring another jam-packed line-up of guests and topics: Top news stories, with Kelvin Heppner, including reaction to the Canadian government’s plan to buy the Trans-Mountain pipeline, the looming strike at CP Rail, Bayer-Monsanto gaining U.S. regulatory approval, Chrystia Freeland’s latest trip to Washington, and more. Chad MacPherson of the… Read More
Around 3,000 conductors and engineers who work for Canadian Pacific Railway went on strike on Tuesday evening after negotiations with the railway failed to yield a settlement prior to the strike deadline at 10pm eastern. Negotiations between the union and the railway are ongoing, with federal mediators involved. The union says it is willing to… Read More
With India closing its border to pulse imports late last year, China is seizing the opportunity to buy competitively-priced protein and ramping up its imports of peas from Canada. The value of pea exports from Canada to China was up 42 percent in January to March of 2018 versus the same period in 2017, according… Read More