Warm and dry weather conditions seen across Western Canada this winter may be leading to some talk of an earlier-than-normal start to spring seeding. However, crop specialists in the three Prairie provinces say weather over the next month will play a key role in determining when producers actually get out on their fields. The lack
Prairie seeding still a month away
Analysts advise making sales into canola rally
ICE Futures Canada canola contracts remained pointed higher during the week ended Feb. 24, as bullish technicals and solid end-user demand kept values well supported. Canola has moved higher every week for the past month, and while every advance heightens the chance of a profit-taking correction, that inevitable downturn has yet to rear its head.
Grain World: High- quality Canadian wheat grades questioned
Canadian wheat exports are known for their quality internationally, but the country may be able to sell more grain and receive better returns by growing different classes of wheat or adjusting current grading standards, said presenters at the Wild Oats Grain World conference in Winnipeg, Feb. 27. Lawrence Yakielashek, president of Alfred C. Toepfer (Canada)
Analysts wonder when, how feeder demand will break
Feeder cattle moving through Manitoba’s auction yards continued to see good demand and firm prices during the week ended March 2. “Prices are staying very strong,” said Keith Cleaver of Heartland Livestock Services at Brandon, citing the continued firmness in U.S. futures together with a reduction in cattle numbers in Western Canada as supportive influences.
Prairie shortline railways look ahead to new reality
The looming end of the Canadian Wheat Board’s single desk for marketing wheat, durum, and barley in Western Canada on Aug. 1 may lead to changes to the shortline railways in the region. The shortlines predominantly move CWB grains, but industry participants expressed confidence in their viability and the continued use of producer rail cars
Which wheat market best?
The end of the Canadian Wheat Board’s single desk Aug. 1, 2012, will create an increased need for a viable futures market to manage risk and aid in price discovery, said representatives of the Chicago Board of Trade, Minneapolis Grain Exchange, and ICE Futures Canada as they highlighted the benefits of using their respective contracts
Prairie farmland demand strong
Optimism in the agricultural sector has many Prairie farmers looking to add to their land-base this spring. That strong demand, together with a lack of willing sellers, is causing land prices to continue to move higher across Western Canada, according to real estate agents specializing in farmland. "There seems to be new people every day
European rapeseed problems support canola
Adverse weather conditions in Europe this winter will likely cut into rapeseed production in the region, which would provide some indirect support for the Canadian canola market. "Any loss in Europe would tighten up world supplies… which would support our prices," said Chris Beckman, oilseed analyst with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada’s market analysis division in
Expect canola industry to seek even more acres
ICE Futures Canada canola contracts remained pointed decidedly higher during the week ended Feb. 17, showing no real signs of slowing down. Similar gains in the Chicago soy complex did provide some underlying support to the Canadian futures, but canola was also benefiting from its own bullish fundamental and technical factors. Depending on the chart
Grain World: Pooling, other options discussed for Prairie wheat
Western Canadian farmers will be marketing their wheat, durum and barley in an open market for the first time in generations with the end of the Canadian Wheat Board (CWB) single desk at the start of the 2012-13 crop year on Aug. 1. Some farmers may choose to continue marketing their wheat through new voluntary
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