Ontario MP Bruce Stanton has introduced a private members’ bill to end the Canadian Wheat Board’s singledesk marketing authority. Bill C-619 would give farmers the ability to “opt out” of having to market their wheat and barley destined for export or domestic human consumption through the CWB for at least two years at a time.
Voluntary CWB Proposed In Bill C-619
High Grain Prices Won’t Last Forever
High grain prices make farmers happy, but they make market analyst Chuck Penner nervous. It’s not that Penner, with LeftField Commodity Research, doesn’t like high prices. His apprehension comes from knowing sometime those prices will fall. When prices last spiked in 2007-08 at close to these levels, they went a bit higher and then fell
Phosphorus Calculator Under Development
Aphosphorus calculator is being developed for wheat, barley and canola grown in Manitoba to help farmers assess the economics of applying phosphorus, Rigas Karamanos, Viterra’s agronomy manager, told the 54th annual meeting of the Manitoba Soils Society in Winnipeg Feb. 3. The phosphorus calculator will work much like the nitrogen calculator, an interactive, spreadsheet- based,
McKnight Farms Wins Corn Competition Again
McKnight Farms of Roland has won the Manitoba Corn Growers Association’s (MCGA) annual corn yield contest for the second year in a row with a yield of 245.29 bushels an acre. That’s almost five per cent higher than McKnight’s 2009 winning yield of 198.17. It was with the same corn hybrid, Pioneer Hi-Bred’s 39D97, grown
CWB Is Buying Boats
The Canadian Wheat Board (CWB) defended its controversial decision to buy into the Great Lakes shipping fleet last week, saying it will ultimately mean higher returns for farmers. The board’s goal is not only to get the best returns for farmers, but to cut their costs too, said CWB chair Allen Oberg. Oberg said the
Push Back On Doubling Cgc Service Fees
Canada’s grain industry, including farmers, are questioning the Canadian Grain Commission’s (CGC) proposal to go to full cost recovery by more than doubling user fees that have been frozen since 1991. Currently about half of the CGC’s $80-million budget comes from fees charged for its services, most of which are ultimately paid for by farmers.
CGC Tracking Shifts In Fusarium Head Blight
Toxin levels in fusariuminfected Manitoba wheat have been increasing rapidly relative to the number of fusarium-damaged kernels (FDK). But this crop year, the levels of the toxin DON (deoxynivalenol) are closer to the old one-to-one ratio with FDK, says Canadian Wheat Board (CWB) agronomist Mike Grenier. “The DON levels aren’t as high (relative to FDK)
Perennial Crops Key To GHG-Neutral Crop Production
Reducing greenhouse gas emissions is more than a public service – it can save farmers money, a soil scientist with the University of Manitoba says. Mario Tenuta says farmers don’t seem worried about the greenhouse gases (GHGs) they produce while growing food, despite the link with climate change. But farmers can benefit from reducing emissions
RR Soybeans Off Patent But Still Restricted
The one company committed to selling off-patent Roundup Ready 1 soybeans in 2012 says it will use contracts to ensure farmers don’t save and reuse the seed. But Pioneer Hi-Bred will continue to make the seed available for one-time use only once it comes off patent in August, 2011 at least until 2014, a company
Roundup Ready Soybeans Going Off Patent
Monsanto’s Canadian patent on its current generation of Roundup Ready soybeans expires soon, but whether farmers get their hands on any so they can save their own seed, is an open question. Monsanto Canada spokeswoman Trish Jordan says Monsanto’s seed company DeKalb is switching to the new, patented Genuity Roundup Ready 2 Yield soybeans, which