The National Farmers Union (NFU) has been throwing stones at Federal Agricultural Minister Gerry Ritz this week about the EU / Canada Free Trade Agreement that should be finalized by the end of the year. In a recent Better Farming story, NFU President Terry Boehm is quoted as saying……. These measures are so draconian that… Read More
Canada has been working at increasing the access of Canadian beef into Europe for quite some time. If the EU / Canada free trade agreement is ratified later this year the benefits will be very positive for Canadian beef producers. Gaining access for hormone free beef into Europe will have large benefits for the industry… Read More
Today the CWB released the October PRO’s and the result was a modest increase in comparison to what some thought. With the recent run in corn, the coarse grain complex has some bullish weight behind it. To wrap up the PRO’s, I talked to Jonathan Driedger from FarmLink Marketing Solutions. (SEE THE VIDEO BELOW) One… Read More
Farmers markets have exploded into the mainstream with the public’s increased attention on the supply of food. Traditionally this has been where farmer’s that are interested in direct marketing their production can gather with consumers to due business. Dr. John Kelly, VP of Erie Innovation and Commercialization discussed his study to improve the distribution of… Read More
In agriculture we are always looking for different uses of the commodities that we produce. Farmers continue to try and diversify the uses of their products with the help of researchers. Ethanol and bio -diesel are good examples of this but it does just end with bio-fuels. Along with several other stakeholders, the Grain Farmers… Read More
Distiller dried grains (DDG’s) have quickly become a very important part of a beef ration and increasingly at dairies. Created by the ethanol industry DDG’s have allowed many livestock feeders to diversify the feeding ration. When DDG’s first came to the market the supply and delivery logistics of corn DDG’s to Canada was a major… Read More
As an exporting nation, Canada has a history of relying on a low currency. Unless you have been hiding under a rock for the past four years, the Canadian dollar no longer enjoys this low value luxury. Many producers who export are very concerned about the value of the Canadian dollar and some of the… Read More
As if 2010 hasn’t brought enough challenges for Western Canadian farmers, now we have the potential of a railway strike in our midst. The conductors at CN rail are talking tough about several issues and a settlement does not seem near. Richard Phillips is the Executive Director of the Grain Growers of Canada and he… Read More
When farmers make decisions on the varieties that they are going to purchase many farmers enact different strategies. For a vast amount of farmers the decision is based on trial results that are published by private companies and independent sources. There is just one problem with that….The prairie canola variety trials have been abandoned by… Read More
The rancher has some decision making to do. Should I bring my calves to market, retain ownership feeding them or hold back the heifers for breeding stock? Everyone has an opinion on this topic but getting a definite conclusive opinion is very difficult. In reality we can only look at the market dynamics and see… Read More
This year will be remembered as the year of expecting the unexpected. Whether you are farming, cattle feeding or ranching the weather and the market has been very wicked and harsh at times. This week on the Beef Market Update with Anne Dunford, we discuss the fact the yearling run is over but we are… Read More
Harry Siemens discusses the Manitoba harvest with me. Every province really has a different story to tell this year and Manitoba is no different. The crop went in quick but the bite of an early fall is providing challenges to many farmers. In the spring Manitoba farmers were able to get the crop in fas… Read More
Earlier in the week Anne Dunford brought up a great question during the Beef Market Update. Will ranchers be holding back more heifers to restock the cow herd or cash in on some higher values and run? With the trend definitely pointing to a continued herd reduction, what will stop it? Is it inevitable that… Read More
This is appearing to be a difficult year to try and execute on a marketing plan that you can have conviction in. Between the late crop, uncertain yields, carry out numbers being questionable and fluctuating basis levels, farmers are really having their marketing plans tested. Even the most experienced analysts are questioning what is the… Read More
There and many different reasons for a company to want to make the “big deal.” Some are looking for efficiency, some strive for an increase in scope, and others just see the value at certain levels. Lately the agri-business sector is under intense media coverage with the running and gunning in the marketplace by company’s… Read More
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