A12-car train jerks to a steady rhythm every few seconds as part-time engineer Travis Long ever so slowly “stretches” the newly connected cars, while a roaring hum fills the locomotive’s cab. It’s the satisfying sound of grain moving to market via producer cars on the Boundary Trail Railway Company’s (BTRC) short line — 23 miles
Producer car shippers bypass plugged elevators
Ritz announces proposed changes to Plant Breeders Rights Act
Canada intends to sign onto an international convention to give increased variety protection to plant breeders, federal Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz told the Canadian Seed Trade Association’s semi-annual meeting in Winnipeg on Wednesday. Ritz said the government plans to sign on to the International Union for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants convention (UPOV
Manitoba farmers seek extension on fertilizer deadline
Manitoba’s Keystone Agricultural Producers (KAP) farm group is still seeking a blanket extension of the province’s Nov. 10 deadline for applying fertilizer and manure to fields — but the government is betting the blast of winter in the current forecast will render the request moot. KAP president Doug Chorney said he saw lots of farmers
Agricultural economist Daryl Kraft remembered
The Daryl F. Kraft Memorial Endowment Fund was established in the memory of respected University of Manitoba agricultural economist Daryl Kraft who died in 2003. In addition to funding an annual lecture on agricultural policy, the endowment provides a prize for an agricultural policy paper prepared by an undergraduate student and a fellowship for a
Big opportunities in agriculture, GM crops
Feeding an exploding population is a problem that’s attracting investment and revenue to the sector, says the Fifth Annual Daryl F. Kraft Lecture series speaker
The “nine billion people problem” is a big opportunity for agriculture, especially developers of genetically modified crops, including wheat, North Dakota agricultural economist Bill Wilson says. Crop consumption is growing at a faster rate than yield increases and agricultural research is earning a 25 per cent return on investment. “That’s why agriculture is booming today,”Go slow on variety registration changes
The Keystone Agricultural Producers (KAP) doesn’t want any radical changes to how Canada registers new crop varieties, especially milling wheat. “We’re really just looking for some tweaking of the registration process,” said Ste. Rose du Lac farmer Rob Brunel who chairs KAP’s Grain, Oilseeds and Pulse Committee. “We feel there are ways to improve upon
Record crop meets plugged system
Record crop? Meet plugged elevator. Shippers say it’s a match made in purgatory for farmers and exporters trying to get this year’s harvest to market — and the railways are to blame. “We’re not getting enough rail capacity to move the crop right now,” Wade Sobkowich, executive director of the Western Grain Elevator Association said
Manitoba farmers will seed more soybeans than canola in five years: Burnett
Manitoba farmers will plant more acres of soybeans than canola within five years, says Bruce Burnett, the CWB’s director of weather and market analysis. It’s a bold prediction that Burnett admits is intentionally provocative. But he also says it isn’t all that far fetched, unless between then and now there’s an early killing frost or
Canadian Grain Commission issues reminder about storing grain outside
Abumper crop has the Canadian Grain Commission reminding grain companies of the rules for storing grain outside. “Before storing grain on the ground, a licensed elevator must request an exemption in writing, advising the Canadian Grain Commission of the kind of grain to be stored on the ground and the date the grain to be
Record crop meets plugged system
Record crop? Meet plugged elevator. Shippers say it’s a match made in purgatory for farmers and exporters trying to get this year’s harvest to market — and the railways are to blame. “We’re not getting enough rail capacity to move the crop right now,” Wade Sobkowich, executive director of the Western Grain Elevator Association said