The winter of 2013-14 stands out in the minds of many who were involved in growing and marketing grain in Western Canada as the year of the massive grain backlog, as railways struggled to meet demand for moving crops from country elevators to export markets. With no access to water, like the St. Lawrence or... Read More
Tag: Mark Hemmes
Nearly a dozen agricultural commodity groups are joining shippers from other industries in calling on the federal labour minister to step in to prevent a looming strike at the Port of Montreal later this month. After going on a 12-day strike in August 2020, a truce between 1,125 workers with the Longshoremen’s Union CUPE Local... Read More
The vast majority of Canadian grain has to move to port before being exported, and overwhelmingly the majority of crop that heads west is moved by rail. Keeping tabs on how this complex, integrated logistics system works is Mark Hemmes, with Quorum Corp, Canada's grain transportation monitor. For this episode of RealAg LIVE!, host Kelvin... Read More
Even before the COVID-19 pandemic ban began impacting trade flows out — and in — to China and other overseas markets, Canada's railways were struggling to catch up from a challenging shipping season. An 8-day strike, closed western lines due to slides, and then the blockades in solidarity with the Wet’suwet’en people of B.C., meant... Read More
We've made it to Wednesday — it's all downhill from here! On today's episode of RealAg Radio, you'll hear: Mark Hemmes of Quorum Corporation on how COVID-19 is impacting rail movement throughout the country; Leah Olson, newly appointed CEO of the Prairie Agricultural Machinery Institute (PAMI), on why she took the role, why she is... Read More
A repeat of last winter’s logistical nightmare for grain in Western Canada is unlikely. That’s because a combination of factors, including the federal shipping mandates for CN and CP Rail, summer weather and a smaller 2014 crop, have reduced the size of the rail backlog, noted the head of the company that monitors grain movement... Read More