There’s plenty of excitement for both economic and environmental reasons about the potential for biological nitrogen fixation for corn and other crops that don’t fix their own nitrogen, but a soil scientist from North Dakota State University says farmers and agronomists should be asking several key questions before counting on added organisms to supply N… Read More
Author: Kelvin Heppner
Kelvin Heppner, field editor for RealAgriculture, has been reporting on Canadian agriculture since 2008(ish). When he's not working on a story, he's usually in a chicken barn or a field, as he also farms with his family near Altona, Manitoba.
Approval of a biotechnology reform bill in the European Parliament last month has been hailed as a major breakthrough toward allowing “new genomic techniques,” such as gene-editing, to be used in crop breeding in Europe. The bill still faces an uphill battle to become law across the European Union, but the vote was one example… Read More
The Canola Council of Canada’s board has elected a new chair following the council’s annual general meeting, which was held on Thursday morning during the 2024 Crops Convention in Winnipeg, Man. Tessa Ritter, who also works as Viterra’s stakeholder relations manager, has been chosen to lead the canola industry group’s board of directors. She succeeds… Read More
There’s a long list of known ways in which wildfire smoke can negatively affect corn and other crops, but could the overall effect of the smoky haze in summer potentially be positive for yields? It’s a complex question to answer, says Dan Quinn, extension corn specialist with Purdue University, in this Corn School episode recorded… Read More
The chief commissioner of the Canadian Grain Commission says he will retire at the end of April. Doug Chorney informed staff at the CGC of his decision earlier this week. Chorney, who also farms at East Selkirk, Man., has served as a commissioner at the CGC for the past seven years. He completed a three-year… Read More
Bayer’s CEO has ruled out the possibility of spinning off the company’s crop science division as a separate business. In a news conference on Tuesday, Bill Anderson said the company has completed a thorough review of its current structure, which includes three divisions: pharmaceuticals, consumer health, and crop science. He said the company will not… Read More
Trade ministers from the World Trade Organization’s 164 member countries can agree on at least one basic thing about the WTO’s dispute settlement process: they’re still committed to fixing the broken system for resolving trade disputes. Beyond that, there were few signs of progress as trade representatives, including Canada’s Mary Ng and the United States’… Read More
Scientists and plant breeders have their sights set on root rots, given the risk that one in particular — aphanomyces — poses to pea and lentil production in Western Canada and the Northern Plains. Federal funding for a new five-year Pulse Crop Research Cluster, leveraged by funding from farmer check-off organizations, was announced earlier this… Read More
After rolling through a boom and bust cycle over the past few years, the oat market is searching for stability in both supply and demand heading into the 2024 growing season. Record high prices and seeded acres in 2022 led to a dramatic decline in prices and production in 2023. Acres are expected to increase… Read More
The federal and Manitoba governments are committing up to $60 million to complete upgrades to the Hudson Bay Railway and to begin redevelopment of the Port of Churchill. The funding, which will go to the Arctic Gateway Group, was announced by Premier Wab Kinew and federal minister Dan Vandal in Churchill on Friday. “The Port… Read More
The race is on among canola processing companies to supply growing demand in the U.S. for canola oil as a feedstock for lower carbon-intensity fuels. Construction is underway on three of five planned canola crush projects in Saskatchewan, notes Chris Vervaet, executive director of the Canadian Oilseed Processors Association (COPA), in the interview below. Cargill,… Read More
The dry bean breeding program at Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada’s Morden Research Centre in Manitoba will continue for at least another five years under a new arrangement involving McGill University in Quebec and AAFC’s Harrow Research Centre in Ontario. An earlier proposal from the federal government would have seen the program cut or moved to… Read More
The odds of much-needed precipitation in Western Canada this spring will depend on how quickly the Pacific Ocean transitions out of El Nino, but even if a switch to La Nina opens the door to more moisture, it likely won’t be enough to replenish low water supplies in the driest areas of the Prairies, according… Read More
The interest-free component of the federal government-backed spring cash advance loan program for farmers is reverting to $100,000 for 2024 after being increased to $250,000 in 2022 and $350,000 last year. Many farmers use spring advances to help cover the cost of planting a new crop, using crop insurance or AgriStability coverage as collateral. Former… Read More
The Senate’s amendments to Bill C-234 in December could result in farmers paying $910 million more in carbon tax, according to updated analysis by the Parliamentary Budget Officer (PBO). After several weeks of contentious debate, a narrow majority of Senators voted to limit the proposed carbon tax exemption for natural gas and propane used on… Read More