It’s Wet Across The West

Snow is still piled deep on Humphrey Banack’s Camrose, Alberta grain farm at a time when he’s usually tuning up his tractor for planting. The wettest fields before planting since the 1970s look to frustrate Canadian farmers’ zeal to sow their fields on time this spring and cash in on wheat and canola prices that

GE Wheat Not On Research Agenda

The National Research Council is ruling out research into genetically engineered wheat as it puts the final touches to a plan to support wheat research across Canada to double yields and improve drought tolerance and disease resistance. Wheat has become the poor cousin to corn, soybeans, canola, pulses and other crops that have attracted a


Feds Wouldn’t Guarantee CWB Laker Loan

Those two controversial lake ships the Canadian Wheat Board (CWB) is buying for $65 million will be paid for by farmers over four years instead of 25 because the federal government wouldn’t guarantee the CWB’s loan. “For various reasons they (federal government) weren’t going to accept that (guaranteeing a loan) so we devised a plan

Changes Coming To CWB’s Select Winter Wheat Program

The Canadian Wheat Board has made changes to its select winter wheat program in hopes of transporting and marketing the crop more efficiently. In the past, farmers signed Guaranteed Delivery Contracts for select winter wheat throughout the crop year. Now farmers hoping to market the winter wheat they planted last fall as select must register


Getting Agriculture Some Recognition In The Federal Election

Grain Growers of Canada was the first farm group to pitch farm policies to the parties competing in the May 2 election. President Stephen Vandervalk asked the party leaders “to make agriculture a key part of your election platform. Recent issues like food prices, food safety, biofuels and sustainability have created public interest in agriculture.”

Two Growers Needed To Try Something New

Ever wonder what would happen if you just dumped a shotgun blast of legume, cereal and brassica seeds into the seeder and drilled it in? Two or more growers in the southwest and southeast corners of the province are needed to do just that, as MAFRI’s polycrop trial enters its second year. “The multicropping thing,


Court Of Appeal Upholds Ritz’s Rules

The Federal Court of Appeal has confirmed legality of federal government changes to the voters’ list in the 2008 Canadian Wheat Board director elections. But the same court also ruled that the Friends of the Canadian Wheat Board (FCWB) – had a legal right to challenge the ruling. In January 2010 Federal Court Judge James

Flood Fears Prompt Grain Movement

Farmers are taking advantage of a Canadian Wheat Board program to move stored grain out of areas at risk of flooding this spring. As of March 18, 100 Manitoba producers had signed up to move 24,000 tonnes of grain, mostly wheat, off flood-prone farms and into elevators, the CWB said. Most of the signup is


Nufarm To Provide Valtera

Valent Canada Inc. has named Nufarm Agriculture Inc. its sales agent for Valtera herbicide. Effective immediately, Nufarm will be responsible for all sales, shipping and billing of Valtera in Canada. Pricing and programming for Valtera are already launched for the 2011 season and will not change as a result of this agreement. Valtera is a

In Brief… – for Mar. 31, 2011

Data collection:Rural community foundations will benefit from federal funds helping them collect annual data on how their communities are surviving. Vital Signs portraits measure the vitality of local communities using selected social and economic trends and evaluating areas having a significant impact on the quality of life, such as health, environment and education. A $200,000