CWB has limited success striking deals with grain handlers

The Canadian Wheat Board’s limited success in teaming up with grain handlers to survive the loss of its marketing monopoly is raising doubts about price pooling, a nearly century-old way for farmers to manage their price risk. The CWB, which loses its monopoly on Aug. 1 and becomes one of many buyers of farmers’ grain,

People make the quality

It had been a long day for the 35 people working for the Canadian International Grains Institute, and it was far from over. But as the last tour of the day made its rounds at the open house celebrating the institute’s 40th anniversary, there was nothing to indicate that the presenters had done this many,


Open-market supporters optimistic post-CWB monopoly

There’s lots of optimism ahead of ending the wheat board’s monopoly Aug. 1, but there will be challenges too, according to a panel that spoke at the Canada Grain Council’s 43rd annual meeting in Winnipeg April 16. “I just say the sky is the limit now,” said Western Canadian Wheat Growers Association president Kevin Bender.

CP can’t move entire crop off the combine

This just in — the railways won’t move Western Canada’s entire wheat crop off the combine this fall. “To use a cliché in building the church for Easter Sunday, there’s a reality that it’s a seasonal business and we’re responsive on a seasonal basis to the business,” Steve Whitney, CP Rail’s vice-president of marketing and


Naked oats tested for organic chickens

Scientists with Ohio State University have received a four-year, US$896,000 Department of Agriculture grant to study the feasibility of incorporating “naked oats” into organic farming rotations as a way to cut the cost of producing organic chicken. The oats, which have a unique protein and amino acid balance, will be tested in the diets of

Winter wheat can germinate in spring

There are reports circulating of agronomists telling producers to reseed winter wheat fields that have just germinated this spring. As I understand, it is related to the process of vernalization and whether it has occurred or not. Last fall I wrote a Crops eNews article titled “What Happens if My Winter Wheat Didn’t Emerge?” –


Quick-cooking barley puts a modern spin on an ancient grain

Manitoba-made, value-added, hulless barley food product 
offers ease of preparation, convenience and nutritional benefits

Everybody has to eat. On dinner plates around the world, there are three main types of starches: rice, potatoes and pasta. Now, after years of product development, Marvin Nakonechny, the CEO of Edmonton-based Progressive Foods, has an ambitious plan to add his company’s new, fast-cooking hulless barley product to that list. “I just want a

Russia soon to be world’s No. 2 wheat exporter in 2011-12 Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said March 28 that Russia could export almost as much grain in the coming crop year or even match the 27-million-tonne level forecast for 2011-12, when exports have been running at record levels. Russian grain exports are expected to reach


Nancy Edwards: Keen for the challenges of wheat research

By Val Ominski When Nancy Edwards, a biological technology grad from Red River Community College, joined the Grain Research Lab as a technician in 1976, little did she know that one day she would be the scientist responsible for the lab’s bread wheat research group. Edwards went on to achieve her PhD in Food Science

One GRL scientist and his revolutionary technology

By Val Ominski Protein has always made the wheat world go round, but it became even more important in the mid-1960s when some of the world’s major wheat producers began selling wheat according to protein content. In response, the Canadian Grain Commission developed a method for segregating wheat based on protein content — thereby increasing