Rye production could fall 25 per cent, analyst says

CNS Canada — This year’s Canadian rye harvest appears positioned to carry on the crop’s recent trend with another production decline. Dry conditions in many regions of the Prairies and ergot in Manitoba are expected to drive down yields. Jonathan Hull of The Scoular Co. said he has been hearing from farmers that yields could

(Ilbusca/Getty Images)

Some North Dakota wheat rejected for ergot, merchants say

Chicago | Reuters –– Elevated levels of the grain fungus ergot are showing up in spring wheat being harvested in south-central North Dakota, prompting grain elevators to impose discounts and even turn some truckloads away, grain merchants said Tuesday. Ergot is a common grain fungus but some major buyers, including top global wheat importer Egypt,

Fresh bread in Egypt. (Goldream/iStock/Getty Images)

Top court in Egypt permits wheat with trace ergot

Cairo | Reuters — Egypt’s top administrative court has ruled that the country should accept wheat with marginal levels of the common grain fungus ergot, a local newspapers said on Sunday, freezing a lower court order to ban the fungus entirely which had vexed traders. Egypt, the world’s largest wheat importer, baffled grain markets when




Sunset in Egypt on the Nile River south of Luxor. (CIA.gov)

Egypt court ruling revives row over ergot in wheat

Cairo | Reuters — A court that ordered the suspension of Egypt’s food inspection system based its ruling in part on the quarantine service’s right to ban grain imports with any trace of the ergot fungus, raising the possibility the contested rule could be restored. The government’s new food inspection system simplified trade after a



There’s no simple or accurate test for ergot levels in cattle pellets.

Ergot continues to cause concerns

Feed manufacturers must sell a safe product, but are under no obligation to test for ergot alkaloids

As more Manitoba producers link cases of ergotism to pellet feed, farmers are being urged to use caution and test for ergot alkaloids. “It’s very sad,” said Wayne Tomlinson, an extension veterinarian with the province. “You’re doing the right thing, you’re feeding your animals what you think is good-quality feed and they are not thriving,