Both the federal and Ontario governments are betting on the future of the province’s fledgling hazelnut industry. Last week, both levels of government announced support for the industry, which plans to have 25,000 acres of hazelnut trees in the province by 2027. Ontario Hazelnut Association project coordinator Andrew Nixon notes that the Ontario industry traces… Read More

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency says it has reached a deal with companies selling dicamba to implement new requirements aimed at minimizing the risk of drift damage to neighbouring crops in 2018. The EPA says Monsanto, BASF and DuPont have voluntarily agreed to label changes for “over the top” use of Monsanto’s XtendiMax, BASF’s Engenia and DuPont Pioneer’s FeXapan… Read More

Bayer has signed an agreement to divest some of its crop business to BASF for €5.9 billion (approximately C$8.7 billion) to gain regulatory approval for Bayer’s planned acquisition of Monsanto. The transaction with BASF includes Bayer’s global glufosinate-ammonium business and the related LibertyLink herbicide tolerance technology. BASF is also marking its entry into the seed… Read More

Farmers Edge has announced an exclusive arrangement with San Francisco-based aerospace and data company Planet to offer high-resolution, daily satellite imagery to farmers. With over 180 satellites orbiting Earth, Planet operates the world’s largest fleet of earth imaging satellites. Described as a “multi-million dollar, multi-year global distribution agreement,” Farmers Edge says it is now the… Read More

When it comes to integrated disease management, experts have always considered corn a non-host for diseases like sudden death syndrome (SDS) in soybeans. But that perception is changing says OMAFRA field pathologist Albert Tenuta. In this episode of RealAgriculture Soybean School, Tenuta says there is growing evidence that corn residue can harbour or allow the… Read More

Six years ago, University of Guelph researcher Glen Filson determined that some world crops —such as okra and amaranth — could potentially be grown in Ontario, providing a huge import replacement opportunity for the province’s farmers. He estimated the then-called “ethnic vegetables” represented a $60 million-plus per month market in the Greater Toronto Area alone…. Read More

Whatever you do, get out there and plant your wheat. That’s the message agronomist Peter Johnson has for Ontario wheat growers in this episode of the Wheat School. “Either plant into moisture or plant in dust,” says Johnson, who notes that many growers across the province are hesitant to plant because of widespread dry soil conditions…. Read More

With recent news that 14 independent retailers in Western Canada have joined forces with an Australian entity, and another group of independents forming Winfield United Canada, I’m finding myself wondering what the future of independent ag retailers looks like in Canada. Is there a future? Can someone with one to five outlets make a go… Read More