Grain World: Canadian canola acres shifting into wheat

Canadian farmers will plant more spring wheat and less canola in 2013, said Brenda Tjaden Lepp, chief analyst with FarmLink Marketing Solutions in a presentation at the annual Wild Oats Grain World conference in Winnipeg, Feb. 25. Factoring in relative returns, rotational issues, and what she was hearing from clients, Tjaden Lepp forecast spring wheat

U.S. food retailer to require GMO disclosure labels

The prevalence of GMOs in the United States, coupled with a lack of labelling requirements, has made it very difficult for retailers to source non-GMO options

Reuters / Whole Foods Market Inc. will require all products sold in its U.S. and Canadian stores to carry a label by 2018 saying whether they contain genetically modified organisms (GMOs), the organic and natural grocery seller said March 8. The United States is the world’s largest market for foods made with genetically altered ingredients.



India to prioritize wheat exports to grapple with grain mountain

Increased exports could weigh on global grain prices at a time when 
many exporters are expecting a return to better harvests

Reuters / India will do everything it can to push record volumes of wheat on to the global market to cut massive stocks, a senior Farm Ministry official said March 6, in a move that could hit shipments of other grains using rail and congested ports. The world’s No. 2 wheat producer is expecting another


Smithfield board to review advice from big shareholder

reuters / Smithfield Foods Inc. said March 8 it would review a letter from shareholder Continental Grain Co., which is urging the top U.S. hog producer to consider steps such as splitting into three units and initiating a regular cash dividend. Shares of Smithfield rose 3.3 per cent to $25.50 in pre-market trading. Smithfield said




It’s time to plant pepper seeds

It might be difficult to start thinking about the outdoor garden since it still looks very much like winter. There are plants we grow outside, however, that must be given a head start if they are going to be productive during the summer because of our short growing season. Peppers are good candidates for seeding


From a tourist’s view

A trip to the beaches of Varadero, Cuba may be what you’re dreaming of. But perhaps, after some time in the sun, you might want more — to see the ‘real’ Cuba, outside of the all-inclusive resort strip. My husband and I recently spent two weeks on the tropical island. We admired the fabulous Varadero

U.S. crop insurance guarantees push big acres

Reuters / Crop insurance that guarantees prices for the 2013 growing season should encourage U.S. farmers to again plant a large number of acres, with soybeans possibly claiming ground from corn, analysts said. The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Risk Management Agency set the guarantees March 1, which act as the “floor price” for crop insurance