All good things must come to an end, unfortunately. It wasn’t that long ago that crop prices ran up to incredible highs, where it seemed the only wrong selling decision was not hitting the *new* high. But this is not 2022, and those high prices did their job of discouraging demand or sending sales elsewhere…. Read More
Tag: Poll
Wild weeds. Ponding. Carryover damage. Cutworm feeding. What’s the biggest agronomic challenge facing you right now? It’s officially summer and that means the crop is growing rapidly (we hope!), but it also means each crop stage brings a new set of challenges to overcome. While conditions vary wildly between geographies, both Ontario and western Canada… Read More
It only takes a split second of inattention, spurred by rushing or fatigue, for a near-miss to become a life-altering event. If that sounds dramatic, so be it. I’m not sure I’ve ever spoken to someone who has been in a farm accident who said they saw it coming. Too often we think we’re fast… Read More
Unless you count volcanic eruptions out at sea (and we don’t), every year there are fewer and fewer acres available for growing food, building houses, or setting aside for habitat. The decision of what should be built where or how land should be used is a complicated, complex, and controversial topic. In this episode of… Read More
Canada has finally decided on how crop varieties developed with gene-editing technology will be handled in the registration and approval process. Announced last week, crops developed using the technique will not be considered a GMO or “novel” and therefore will have a more streamlined path to approval. Now that plant breeders and seed companies know… Read More
In the last eight years plus, Canadians have been asked to consult on several different proposed policy changes by the federal government. Some of these consultations move a policy forward. Others, like the Grain Act review process or the Sustainable Ag Strategy, results in a “What we heard” document and not much more. Then, there’s… Read More
If current crop prices, input prices, equipment values, and interest rates have you reconsidering a major purchase, you’re not alone. Thinning crop margins and an increasingly more challenging farm financial outlook for the year are showing up in some equipment sales trends and forecasts. Large equipment purchases are rarely snap decisions, however, and many farms need… Read More
Have you ever attended a protest? Would you? If you’ve ever had a chance to tour downtown Ottawa, you’ll know that peaceful protests on Parliament Hill are a daily expectation. At any one time, there could be two or three or more groups on the Hill holding signs and trying to bring awareness to a… Read More
Before the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement, a.k.a New NAFTA, CUSMA, or USMCA, comes up for review in July of 2026, Canada, Mexico, and the United States will all have gone through a federal election. Two of the three countries could have the same leader in place as today; however, that’s unlikely. It is also possible that… Read More
Canada added 40,000 jobs last month, but the unemployment rate actually climbed to 5.8%, since we’re still adding more people than jobs to the economy. For those in the agriculture sector, we know all too well just how tight the labour market has been and will be going forward. On the national scope, the Canadian… Read More