Forage supplies starting to dip on dry Prairies

CNS Canada -- Forage supplies are starting to dwindle across Western Canada following a long, cold, winter and rain is needed soon to make for a good forage crop this year. "People tended to kind of blend hay this year and they managed to get through. But the prolonged cold spring really I think put[...]

Chickpeas seen making Prairie comeback

CNS Canada -- Chickpeas should see a resurgence in Western Canada this spring, as farmers who hadn't seeded the crop for a number of years shift some acres back from other pulses. "We sold a sizeable amount of chickpea planting seed," said Colin Young of Midwest Grain at Moose Jaw. After an excellent quality year[...]


Prairie malt barley prices lower than feed

CNS Canada -- With feed barley in tight supply, the tables have flipped with feed prices now sitting higher than those for malt barley in Western Canada. Feed barley prices "make some of these other prices look a bit ridiculous. There's no demand from the domestic maltsters because they've all been plugged up ever since[...]

Downturn seen in organic markets for malt barley, hemp

CNS Canada -- As organic producers look to clean out the 2017 crop from their bins before seeding, they're finding lower prices than they're willing to sell for. Contracts have been filled up, meaning some producers who were waiting for higher prices are out of luck with no options to sell their crops. Some buyers[...]


Pulse weekly outlook: Farmers selling ahead of road bans

CNS Canada -- Pulse crop producers in Western Canada are looking to sell what's left of last year's crop before spring. Farmers "need to get some cash flow going. They've got payments probably in February and March and then they want to beat the road bans," said Allan Johnston with Johnston's Grain at Welwyn, Sask.[...]

Pulse weekly outlook: Industry adapting to new market reality

CNS Canada -- Pulse growers are facing new questions on the Prairies these days as a trade impasse with India forces many farmers to prepare for new market realities. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau next week will visit India, where the thorny subject of its levies on Canadian pulse exports will be raised. India imposed the[...]


Canola biodiesel processor in receivership

An eastern Saskatchewan biodiesel processor using growers' heated, green, spring-harvested, tough and otherwise off-spec canola for feedstock is in receivership. Saskatchewan Court of Queen's Bench on Thursday appointed Calgary-based insolvency trustee Hardie and Kelly as the receiver for Milligan Biofuels, which operates at Foam Lake, about 90 km northwest of Yorkton. Alberta's Crown lending agency[...]

Fossil fuels here to stay... for now

Winnipeg | CNS Canada – Renewable sources of energy may be the future, but that future is not coming any time soon as fossil fuels will be needed to continue to power the world for generations, according to author and professor emeritus Vaclav Smil, speaking at the Grain World conference in Winnipeg, Nov. 14. “We[...]


Farm fuel to be exempt from Manitoba carbon tax

Farm fuel will be exempt from a carbon tax, Manitoba Premier Brian Pallister said in an interview Thursday on the eve of announcing his government's Made-in-Manitoba Climate and Green Plan. "It does exempt some farm costs -- farm fuel, for example," he said. "I know we'll get pushback from some industry groups that are not[...]

Hay shortage could make for difficult winter

CNS Canada -- Many cattle producers looking for local feed this winter might have a difficult time, according to a Saskatchewan provincial forage specialist. However, producers further north in the grey and black soil zones, and those in Alberta producing high-quality feed for export, saw near-record hay production. Terry Kowalchuk of Saskatchewan Agriculture in Regina[...]