Cargill Profit Drops 68 Per Cent As Economy Hurts

Agribusiness giant Cargill said on April 15 that quarterly profit fell 68 per cent, hurt by the weak global economy and troubles in the financial sector. Cargill, one of the world’s largest private corporations, said it had earned $326 million in the third quarter ended Feb. 28, down from $1.03 billion a year earlier. The

U. S. Soybean Stockpile Reduced

U. S. soybean exports will hit a record 1.21 billion bushels this marketing year, helping whittle the U. S. stockpile to 165 million bushels, the smallest in five years, the government forecast on April 9. “That is a tight number,” Don Roose, analyst for U. S. Commodities, said of the stockpile, roughly a three-week supply.


Screwing Up Plots… On Purpose

“Some of the winter wheat in the plots looks poor now, but it might be OK by July.” – KIM LIVINGSTON-BROWN While most farmers were headed for their fields trying to beat the rain May 12, John Heard and his colleagues were busy preparing to screw up some plots at the University of Manitoba’s Ian

Flooded Farmers Can Still Get Crops In On Time

Some Manitoba producers in flood-affected areas are still a few weeks away from seeding but specialists say there is no reason for panic assuming weather co-operates through May. As of May 5, the amount of flooded Manitoba farmland had retreated from its April 24 peak of 86,400 hectares to 64,600 hectares, a Statistics Canada report


Canadian Wheat Board Sees Balanced Contingency Fund

The Canadian Wheat Board expects its contingency fund to balance this year after volatile grain prices caused a $28.9 million ($24.7 million) deficit last year and fuelled fresh government criticism of the grain-marketing agency. The fund underwrites the risk of non-traditional payment programs that are designed to give farmers flexibility to price some of their

In Brief… – for May. 14, 2009

N calculator online: Anitrogen rate calculator for spring wheat, barley and canola can be downloaded from Manitoba Agriculture, Food and Rural Initiatives at http://www.gov.mb.ca/agriculture/financial/farm/nitro gencalc. html. Users can evaluate different net-return per-acre scenarios involving N source and cost, the expected crop price and soil nitrogen (nitrate-N in pounds per acre to 24 inches deep). Users


Letters – for May. 14, 2009

Open market would not change wheat acreage Would wheat acreage in Western Canada really soar if there were an open market for Prairie wheat? The Western Canadian Wheat Growers Association (WCWGA) says so, and points to Ontario as evidence. In fact, the general upward trend in Ontario’s wheat acreage began decades before the end of

Why We Need CWB Election Reform

The CWB voters’ list does not accurately reflect the farm community. It gives far too much clout to those who do not depend on farming as their main source of income. In the 2007-08 crop year, the CWB issued 84,403 permit books. Some would suggest that this should be the makeup of the voters’ list


Canola Hits Eight-Month High, Supplies Tighten

For three-times-daily market reports from Don Bousquet and RNI, visit “ICE Futures Canada updates” at www.manitobacooperator.ca Grain and oilseed prices at ICE Futures Canada in Winnipeg closed the week ended May 8 higher, with old-crop canola rising to its highest level in eight months. Export demand, friendly technical signals and speculative buying all combined to

Future Of The Elevator At The Pas Still Uncertain

The future of Viterra’s elevator at The Pas remains uncertain. A meeting to discuss its future, held in the R. M. of Kelsey May 1, was well attended, but Kelsey Reeve Rod Berezowecki said he was disappointed no one from Viterra took part. “A lot of producers wanted to hear first hand from them (Viterra)