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
Category: audio
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
How many coffee shops in Western Canada are talking about the fall weather. Will we get an early frost? Does late spring mean early fall? Can September be the hottest month of the year again? Weather is always something that occupies a farmers mind because the timing is so critical. For example, if we have… Read More
Just when you think the wheat market is stable and that the supply and demand equation is fully priced in the market……BOOM!!!!!! Russia and some neighbouring countries decide to have a drought and WALLA!!!……The market have decided to go 2007 on us again. Who can stomach this volatility and craziness? Is this real or just… Read More
To say that last weeks release of the Mercy for Animals video from Conklin Dairy Farm was an outrage is being light. My post last week brought on some high amounts of emotion and ridicule for the people at Conklin dairy farm. In that post we also discussed the needed criticism for Mercy for Animals… Read More
Monsanto has been named the company of the year by Forbes magazine for the January 2010 issue. Monsanto is recognized for outstanding innovation in its field and as a result healthy performance on wall street. For me Monsanto is one of those hot button topics that sends off flares and fireworks for all sides of… Read More
As we have discussed on RealAgriculture.com before it seems that there is gaining speculation in the feed market. With only 92% of the corn harvest complete in North America speculation is gaining that we could see a higher run in the corn price if certain factors come to fruition. The USDA estimates that there… Read More
With public research in breeding getting cut back significantly across North America, some added funding is always welcomed. On Wednesday, the Alberta Livestock Meat Agency (ALMA) announced that they are going to invest eight million dollars into feed grains research. This money will fund projects in the area of varietal development and developing use technologies…. Read More
Based on the economic turmoil that the hog industry has been in over recent years, it is no surprise that barns have been de-populated and the industry has retrenched. One of the major events in recent months has been Big Sky Farms entering creditor protection. Big Sky is the largest hog operation in Saskatchewan and to say this is a… Read More