The Canadian National Railway has no intention of buying OmniTrax’s defunct route or working to reopen the Port of Churchill, despite calls from some Manitoba producers. “We didn’t close the Port of Churchill, somebody else did,” said Sean Finn, CN’s executive vice-president of corporate services and chief legal officer. “We don’t think it’s a viable network
CN gets rough ride at Harvest Gala
Canadian National Railway promises producers that it is ready to move this year’s bumper grain crop, won’t reacquire Churchill line and port
Cattle stranded, nerves fraying
As the water keeps rising, cattle producers question pump operation guidelines around The Pas
Tim Berscheid is exhausted and his cattle could soon be hungry. Flooding in and around his ranch in the Rural Municipality of Kelsey, near The Pas, have left 400 of his cattle stranded, reachable only by canoe. Berscheid has fed them the last of his accessible feed stock and he is now weighing the possibility
Winnipeg councillor seeks to promote Grain Innovation Hub
Farmers are doing more than just feeding cities, they are also filling their coffers
Agriculture isn’t usually an agenda item when it comes to City of Winnipeg committee meetings, but one city councillor is trying to change that. Last week St. Vital Councillor Brian Mayes proposed that the city use some of the cash earmarked for innovation to promote the province’s Grain Innovation Hub, created in 2014 to bring
New milk-processing plant on deck
Manitoba milk producers will have the option of joining the Gay Lea Co-operative as the processor expands into Manitoba
A newly announced milk-processing plant is expected to allow Manitoba dairy farmers to increase production and make use of their entire quota allotment. Last week, Vitalus Nutrition and Gay Lea Foods announced they would partner in the refurbishment of an egg-processing facility in Winnipeg’s Fort Garry Industrial Park. The plant is already equipped with an
Cattle stranded in The Pas flood fight
Fall flooding at and around Tim Berscheid’s ranch in the Rural Municipality of Kelsey, near The Pas, has left 400 of his cattle reachable only by canoe. Berscheid has fed the stranded cattle the last of his accessible feed and is now considering letting them forage a partially-flooded cornfield. Berscheid and his wife Michelle have
Excess moisture issue for remaining canola
Late season canola harvesting could mean difficulties for those trying to lower moisture levels
While most Manitoba canola growers already have their crops in the bin, some producers have been caught by late-season precipitation, including snow. “There is the odd field that is unharvested and most of those acres would be concentrated in the northern part of Manitoba — when we look farther south and east the vast majority
Antibiotic bean coatings under scrutiny
With growing concerns over antibiotic resistance in mind, bean blights will have to be tackled with blight-resistant varieties
For nearly three decades Health Canada has been threatening to end the importation of streptomycin sulphate-coated bean seeds. Now it is one step closer — sort of. “Health Canada’s Pest Management Regulatory Agency (PMRA) has not banned the import of streptomycin-treated bean seeds,” the federal department said in an emailed statement. “It should be noted,
Another fumigation derogation granted
After years of six-month-long port-of-origin fumigation reprieves, Pulse Canada wants certainty
The Canadian pulse industry has been granted another stop-gap extension for a key fumigation requirement, but nobody is mistaking this development for a permanent solution. India, a key market for the crops, fears shipments could be contaminated with nematodes, something they say could put their domestic crops at risk. Therefore they require shipments to be
Latin America no longer a sure market
As the region’s population grows, so do the opportunities for Canadian wheat sellers
Latin American markets are continuing to expand and Canada wants a piece of not just the pie, but breads, pasta and crackers too. “We have been there for many years, the market knows how good we are, but we have to create and keep that fidelity to the Canadian brand,” said Juan Carlos Arriola, head
Pulses toward back of research pack
While biotechnology has made big changes to some types of crop production, pulses remain underfunded
When competing against staple crops like corn, wheat and rice, pulses get the short end of the research funding stick. Speaking to a crowd of biotechnology insiders at the Agricultural Bioscience International Conference in Fargo, North Dakota last week, Professor Irvin Widders said the sheer variety of pulse crops guarantees funding will be spread across
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