News & Opinion — page 2

Beijing | Reuters — China is still a long way from forking out US$50 billion for farm goods from the United States, agriculture industry analysts said on Monday, cautioning that getting there is contingent on removing substantial technical and political hurdles. Outlining the first phase of a deal to end a trade war with China, […] Read more

Chicago | Reuters — U.S. soybean futures neared a four-month high on Monday, supported by fears that wintry weather over the weekend threatened Midwest production at a time of tightening U.S. soy supplies, analysts said. Wheat futures firmed on short-covering and worries about frosty temperatures in the U.S. Plains wheat belt, while corn ended steady, […] Read more

Chicago | Reuters — U.S. live cattle futures rose more than one per cent on Monday, with the benchmark December contract touching a 2-1/2-month top after cash cattle traded late last week about US$2/cwt higher than the previous week, traders said. The five-area average price for cash cattle last week was just above $109/cwt, according […] Read more

Fertilizer firm Mosaic Co. is dialing back production at another of its potash mines in eastern Saskatchewan as its potash inventories rise. Minnesota-based Mosaic Co. said Thursday it will “temporarily curtail” potash production at its Esterhazy mine, bringing the company’s total production curtailments up to 600,000 tonnes. The added curtailment, the company said, is based […] Read more

MarketsFarm — Manitoba’s Red River Valley is very wet heading into the winter freeze, but it’s still too early to say if the saturated soils will lead to flooding in the spring, according to provincial forecasters. The Manitoba government on Wednesday took the unprecedented step of opening the Red River Floodway, marking the first time […] Read more

A federal Conservative government would postpone major amendments to animal health regulations dealing with livestock transport, otherwise due to come into effect in February next year. Andrew Scheer’s Conservatives on Friday released a platform promising a number of regulatory changes of interest to grain and livestock producers ahead of the federal election on Oct. 21. […] Read more

Washington | Reuters — U.S. regulators on Friday gave the green light for genetically modified cotton to be used for human consumption, paving the way for a protein-packed new food source — edible cottonseed that tastes a bit like chickpeas — that its developers said could help tackle global malnutrition. The Food and Drug Administration’s […] Read more

Chicago | Reuters — U.S. farmers cheered the Trump administration’s announcement of a potentially dramatic increase in U.S. agricultural sales to China on Friday but warned they needed to see a follow-through of actual purchases. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said the agricultural purchases could scale up to $40 billion-$50 billion annually as part of a […] Read more

Chicago | Reuters — U.S. corn futures surged more than four per cent on Friday while wheat and soybeans also firmed, buoyed by expectations for a partial U.S.-China trade deal and worries about wintry weather threatening crops in the Midwest, analysts said. Chicago Board of Trade December corn settled up 17-1/2 cents at $3.97-3/4 a […] Read more