No matter what profession you choose in life, learning opportunities surround you — although it’s up to you to choose to take them. Speaking for myself, jumping into the agriculture world has had its learning curves but it’s also given me the opportunity to explore and learn more about the industry I have grown to… Read More

An announcement regarding the future of seed royalties on Tuesday in Winnipeg could be a turning point in a more-than-a-decade long discussion about the return-on-investment for seed companies and plant breeders in Canada. At FarmTech in Edmonton earlier this winter, both Todd Hyra, of SeCan, and Laurin Comin, of the Alberta Wheat Commission, presented on… Read More

During the annual CropSphere conference held at Saskatoon, Sask., Prairie barley commissions announced the formation of the Canadian Barley Research Coalition (CBRC). The national not-for-profit organization will facilitate long-term investments aimed at improving profitability and competitiveness for Western Canadian barley farmers, according to a news release. The CBRC is made up of the Saskatchewan Barley… Read More

Grain markets found gains the first full week of trading in August, ahead of Monday’s World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates (WASDE) report, a report that the complex has been waiting for since the July WASDE. Going into the report, the sentiment is fairly bullish as there are some major reductions of U.S. acreage, production,… Read More

By Cam Dahl, president of Cereals Canada The world has become protectionist.  There is, justifiably, much focus on issues with China. But it is not just China. Canadian agriculture commodities are blocked in India, Italy, Saudi Arabia, and Vietnam and face issues in key markets such as Peru. Countries are turning inward, finding new ways… Read More

The integration between Alberta Wheat and Alberta Barley has been extremely successful, says Tom Steve, executive director with the now one-year-old Alberta Wheat and Barley Commission. “We’ve realized cost savings of about $350,000 a year,” Steve says. “A lot is related to salaries for sure, but we have a stronger management team now that’s focussed… Read More

Western Canadian cereal commissions from Alberta, Manitoba, and Saskatchewan are asking federal agriculture minister Lawrence MacAulay for more consultation on proposed seed royalty collection models, including consideration of other options. Further consultations must focus on engaging producers with a new value proposition, the commissions say. The groups are calling for major changes in the Government of… Read More

The way farmers support new variety development of most open-pollinated and trait-free crops is set to change. Currently, the federal government is hosting consultation meetings across Canada to garner feedback from farmers, plant breeders, seed companies, and industry on two proposed systems: end point royalty or trailing royalty contracts. The impending change has been a… Read More

BASF employees can officially get to work on the company’s newly-acquired business from Bayer. The company announced Wednesday that it has closed its acquisition of assets from Bayer, which competition regulators required Bayer sell to gain approval of its purchase of Monsanto that closed in early July. The 7.6 billion euro (C$11.5 billion at today’s… Read More

As the dust settles on the recent major crop company mergers and acquisitions, the new, re-branded entities are beginning to emerge. Brand new for this year is the Brevant seed brand, by Corteva. Brad Orr, marketing leader for Corteva explains that, in Western Canada, producers will see canola and soybean offerings under the Brevant brand… Read More

A ruling by the European Union’s (EU) top court states that food produced by a series of new biotechnology breeding techniques, such as CRISPR, should be considered genetically modified organisms (GMO). This ruling means the specific food or food ingredient resulting from these gene-editing techniques falls under the EU’s strict regulations and restrictions on GMO. Any… Read More

The Canadian Agricultural Hall of Fame has announced its slate of inductees for 2018. “We had a tremendous response from the industry with a record of 11 nominations put forward, and have selected five outstanding agricultural ambassadors,” says Hall of Fame Association president Guy Charbonneau. “This year’s inductees exemplify the leadership and vision that continues to… Read More

 

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