News & Opinion & Farming Articles - Manitoba Co-operator

French grain industry in logistics scramble as shoppers bulk buy

By Gus Trompiz, Sybille De La Hamaide April 1, 2020

Reuters – France’s grain industry is scrambling to find enough trucks and staff to keep factories and ports running as panic buying of pasta and flour because of the coronavirus pandemic coincides with a surge in wheat exports. The French government’s designation of the food sector as a strategic priority has helped pasta manufacturers, flour

USGS personnel measure flood overflow at a bridge on the Red River near Thompson, North Dakota on April 6 during the flood of 2006.

Local news, News, Other

Province says flood outlook remains weather dependent

FLOOD: Forecasters expect high water levels similar to last spring, barring major weather events

By Manitoba Co-operator Staff March 31, 2020

With rivers near Fargo and Grand Forks at flood stage, a significant inflow of water is expected in Manitoba soon, the province announced March 31. “Our outlook remains similar to the first outlook we released in late February and our focus continues to be on the Red River this spring,” said minister of infrastructure Ron

Bergmann (centre, in black shirt) with Foodgrains Bank staff on a tour in India.

Farmit Manitoba, News

Local farmer witnesses effects of agriculture training on food security

‘Mind-blowing’ learning trip to agriculture projects in India got Will Bergmann thinking about how to help closer to home

By Geralyn Wichers March 31, 2020

Will Bergmann is a foodie, so when his hosts in a remote Indian village began cooking, it just made sense to join in. Bergmann, a farmer and restaurateur from Glenlea, watched a group of men lift a metal bowl, about three feet across, onto an outdoor clay oven. As one man fed the fire with

Comment, Opinion, Other

Comment: ‘Behold the fowls of the air… ’

We can plan all we want but luck will weigh in too

By Alan Guebert March 31, 2020

My father wasn’t a stoic. Instead, his temperament was one of acceptance. He simply accepted the fact that he wasn’t in complete control of most things on the farm. Sure, he was boss over everything in sight: hundreds of acres, 100 dairy cows, five farmhand sons, three hired men, and his unpredictable, iron-bending Uncle Honey.

News

Argentine port town suspending operations amid coronavirus spread

By Reuters March 30, 2020

A key port town in northern Rosario, Argentina’s main grains export hub, said March 19 it would suspend port activities as part of efforts to contain the spread of the coronavirus, drawing criticism from grain-exporting firms and processors in the farm-rich country. An order posted on the Timbues government website said “all commercial, industrial and

COVID-19 concerns are impacting everything from school closures to travel, but the year’s bull sale guides are still appearing in the mail.

Livestock, News

Breeders expect online uptick as COVID-19 hits bull sale season

’Tis the season for bull sales, but producers should plan for more of their customers to bid online, given social distancing measures

By Alexis Stockford March 30, 2020

Doug McLaren of JAS Red Angus near Neepawa is full tilt into the last few weeks before his farm’s annual bull sale April 7 — but he’s still not entirely sure what that sale will look like. The McLaren family typically hosts their sale on the local show grounds of the Neepawa Ag Complex, also

News, Other

Truckers deal with new reality under COVID-19

Reduced services on the road have made for a much different international trucking experience

By Alexis Stockford March 27, 2020

Trucks are still moving across the Canada-U.S. border, but trucking companies say the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic is still making life difficult. Both the U.S. and Canadian governments have exempted trade from their travel restrictions. On March 16, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced Canada would ban entry to foreign nationals except for Canadian citizens, permanent residents,

News, Other

Rural municipalities ‘grinding to a halt’ in face of pandemic

COVID-19: Community centres and offices go dark in effort to protect residents

By Geralyn Wichers March 27, 2020

Rural municipal leaders are rethinking how they govern and provide essential services in an era of social distancing due to COVID-19. It’s “hurry up and wait to get everything in place,” said West Interlake Reeve Art Jonasson. The RM of West Interlake has closed its office to the public, though staff will continue to work,

Pork processors are grappling with social distancing and employees who are suddenly without childcare.

Hogs, News

Pork sector looks for coronavirus answers

COVID-19: The pork sector’s labour- and human-intensive production system has added an extra challenge to maintaining the value chain

By Alexis Stockford March 26, 2020

Andrew Dickson has had a busy few days. The general manager for the Manitoba Pork Council, Dickson has been on the phone, both dealing with his own organization’s steps towards social distancing and trying to deal with the looming concerns of the pork industry in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic. For an industry like

Comment, Opinion, Other

Comment: February was a paradox. March delivered a pandemic

Coronavirus is taking the spring out of spring

By Alan Guebert March 25, 2020

February is a paradox. Leap year or not, it’s the shortest month of the year yet it always feels like the longest month of winter. Then March appears with its light, colour, and hope. That’s what is needed this March as political leaders, markets, and the world economy tumble into a virus-choked mudhole. Worse, this

Daily Network News

New strategies needed for Canadian agriculture to stand out in global trade

Feed Grains Weekly: Cash prices for wheat, barley largely flat

The Canadian GMO mustard wars: Dijon vs canola

News & Opinion