Foam Lake, Saskatchewan, canola processor and biodiesel manufacturer Milligan Biofuels has entered receivership. The company, which was founded by a group of farmers as Milligan Bio-Tech in the ’90s, is known for purchasing heated and off-grade canola from growers across Western Canada, producing biodiesel, fuel conditioners, road dust suppressant, rust inhibitors, and other canola derivatives…. Read more »
Category: Biofuels
Corn School: How much corn residue should you remove?
Do your corn fields yield less than 170 bu/ac? If so, you have to be careful when removing corn residue from those fields because you could be depleting the field’s soil organic matter. That was the message USDA research agronomist Shannon Osbourne shared with those attending the recent Southwest Agricultural Conference at the University of… Read more »
The race is on — Jeff Leal talks ethanol, wages and election prospects
The Ontario Liberal government has had its share of challenges in 2017. For starters, Premier Kathleen Wynne’s approval rating sunk to the low teens as Ontarians continued to gnash their teeth in response to the government’s hydro power plan. And then there was the government’s plan to increase the provincial minimum wage to $15 by… Read more »
Canola Council welcomes continued access to EU biodiesel market
The European Commission published its decision to allow Canadian canola to have continued access to the EU biodiesel market this week. “This decision means continued access to an important market for Canadian canola,” says Jim Everson, president of the Canola Council of Canada (CCC). “The Canola Council has worked hard on this over the past… Read more »
Canadian farm groups and ethanol producers very positive about Clean Fuel standard
The Canadian government has outlined its long-awaited Clean Fuel Standard (or CFS), which Environment Minister Catherine McKenna says will allow Canada to cut its greenhouse gas emissions by 30 million tonnes annually by 2030. A key piece of the CFS is the carbon intensity requirement, which encompasses all facets of biofuel production, measuring carbon emissions… Read more »
More corn needed to meet Wynne government’s proposed new ethanol mandate
The demand side of the Ontario corn balance sheet is poised to grow with the provincial government proposing to double its ethanol mandate for gasoline from five percent to 10 percent by 2020. “We currently have the five percent mandate in place and it takes at least about a third of the corn production in… Read more »
GFO welcomes proposed increase to ethanol mandate in Ontario
Grain Farmers of Ontario (GFO) is welcoming the Ontario government’s proposal to increase its ethanol mandate in gasoline from 5 to 10 percent in 2020. The province’s environment ministry published draft amendments last week to update the renewable fuel regulations under the province’s Environmental Protection Act. “We are pleased to see the Ontario government committed… Read more »
Oilseed outlook: Chinese demand will continue to support soy price
China’s insatiable appetite for soybeans will continue to provide support for the oilseed crop through the next year. It will also be the catalyst for soybean acreage to surpass corn for the first time in 2018, says Bill Lapp, president of Advanced Economic Solutions. He shared his oilseed outlook during a panel discussion at the… Read more »
New Holland unveils ‘methane-powered’ concept tractor
In three years, farmers could be using methane produced on their farms to fuel New Holland methane-powered tractors. In the future, farms could be completely energy independent, producing all the fuel and energy required right on the farm. That’s the vision New Holland unveiled on the first day of the 2017 Farm Progress Show in… Read more »
Why the Canadian ethanol industry could be set to grow
In Canada we do not talk about biofuel production like they do in the United States. I attend many farmer meetings across the country and rarely do I hear talk on the agenda or in the hallways about ethanol or biodiesel production in Canada. In the U.S. ethanol production is a major user of the… Read more »
Setting the Stage for 2017 Grain Market Moves
After starting 2017 in the red, the grains market rallied quite well this week, however, corn and oilseeds are still below their highs seen in October and November. A couple of headlines that gained traction over the holidays were the South American weather (especially in Argentina), Egyptian wheat tenders, Black Sea winterkill risks, and continued… Read more »
This Week in the Grain Markets — Languishing Ideas
Grain markets got an American Thanksgiving boost as an unexpected update from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) surprised the oilseed complex, with soyoil leading, up 7.4% for the week. Soybeans weren’t far behind as they continue their run, up 5.1%, while canola held on a bit to climb 2.6%. Corn was supported by the EPA… Read more »
More Questions Than Answers — John Phipps on the Future of the Ethanol Mandate and NAFTA
With a Trump presidency come many questions and really few answers on what is next. During the campaign many promises were made with little clear understanding of which ones will be followed through on. I chatted with Farm Journal’s John Phipps the morning after the surprise election result. First off, Trump promised a collapse of… Read more »
The Next Revolution In The Farm And Food Sector Has Arrived
Pundits have said the leaders of the next agricultural revolution – the digital revolution — will be big data-powered researchers, with a universe of information in hand to help make farming more efficient than ever. But no one said those researchers would be found in the labs, fields, and classrooms of some of Canada’s main… Read more »
Renewable Fuels Association Gets New Name
The Canadian Renewable Fuels Association has adopted a new name that it says reflects the diversity of companies that operate in Canada’s bioeconomy. The former CRFA re-launched under the name Renewable Industries Canada, or RICanada, on Thursday. “Our industry and membership have been hard at work growing their businesses and diversifying their products beyond liquid… Read more »