Venture capitalist Dave McClure made his mark in the branding world when he noted customers don’t care about your solutions, they care about their problems. Reflecting back then on the year that’s passing, as well as thinking towards the one ahead, it made me wonder if McClure’s approach might work for the agri-food sector, too,… Read More
Category: Features
Global markets were blindsided by Russia in the third week of December as Moscow raised its key interest rates to a shocking 17 per cent, up significantly from the 10.5 per cent level they had been just raised to a few days earlier. Why the rate increase? The ruble has been free-falling this year with… Read More
‘Twas the week before Christmas, and down with a crash Came feeder cattle futures and Russia’s cash. CN charged too much to move grain by rail, And we laughed ’cause people got BS in the mail. Here’s TWORA for December 18th, 2014: Related: Happy Holidays from the RealAg Crew to You The Seedpod — Ep…. Read More
Canada’s rules and regulations regarding plant breeder’s rights adhere to a convention that’s over 35 years old, even though there is a more modern, widely accepted convention that’s a mere 23 years old — UPOV ’91. Bill C-18, currently in the parliamentary process, will bring Canada in line with UPOV ’91, a move that has… Read More
Checking nozzles on the sprayer for uniformity can prove rather tedious, as it often means clambering up and down sprayer steps to turn booms on and off, and running behind the sprayer to take a look, all while attempting to avoid drift. SprayTest Controls Inc. has changed that process, with the remote boom control system…. Read More
Rumours are building again that Russia may limit their grain exports (specifically wheat) and the government might start increasing the purchasing price from farmers for the government reserve stocks (the government is definitely worried about rising domestic food prices). This would incentivize producers to sell to the government versus grain merchants/exporters. SovEcon said earlier in… Read More
The latest on the Ontario government’s plan to regulate neonic seed treatments, the avian influenza outbreak in B.C.’s Fraser Valley, changes at the Canadian Grain Commission and a review of the markets, including the sharp drop in feeder cattle futures, over the past week — here’s the TWORA podcast for December 12th: Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify |… Read More
Animosity and mistrust in the food system — or the “agri-food value chain,” as it’s called in some circles — is costing farmers billions of dollars in waste. At a time when the powers-that-be are urging the sector to bolster the economy by pulling together for increased jobs and exports, Oakville-based Value Chain Management International… Read More
Bigger is better. Go big or go home. The push for excess in all things, it seems, knows no bounds. But how big is too big? Or is that the wrong question to ask? From combines, seeding units and land bases, to suburban houses, fast food meals and the cars we drive, there’s been a… Read More
I remember reading an interesting quote that, paraphrased, said society was losing touch with where food came from and that the increase in urbanization was a death knell for rural life. The quote was from the 1920s. Shocking? A little, but it’s also an excellent bit of perspective for where we sit now, nearly 100… Read More