Tyson Pays Penalty

U.S. meat producer Tyson Foods Inc. said it will pay $4 million to the U.S. Justice Department and $1.2 million to the Securities and Exchange Commission to settle a 2007 case over improper payments involving its Mexican poultry subsidiary. In early 2007, Tyson voluntarily disclosed that improper payments of more than $100,000 had been made

Cover Crops Help Manage Moisture, Says Researcher

New research shows cover crops can help mop up excess soil moisture, says Ranjan Sri Ranjan, an irrigation, drainage, and water management expert. The University of Manitoba professor wants to better understand the movements of water, both frozen and unfrozen, in the root zone. To do that, he used finger-sized probes to measure moisture and


World’s Worst Soybean Disease Hasn’t Arrived Here Yet

Soybean cyst nematode is the worst of the lot when it comes to crop diseases that thrive in soybean crops. It infects the roots of soybean and eventually becomes a cyst. It can cause a variety of symptoms including chlorosis of the laves and stems, root necrosis, loss in seed yield and general suppression of

McKnight Farms Wins Corn Competition Again

McKnight Farms of Roland has won the Manitoba Corn Growers Association’s (MCGA) annual corn yield contest for the second year in a row with a yield of 245.29 bushels an acre. That’s almost five per cent higher than McKnight’s 2009 winning yield of 198.17. It was with the same corn hybrid, Pioneer Hi-Bred’s 39D97, grown


U.S. Producers Boost Major Crop Acreage

U.S. farmers will increase plantings of the eight major crops this year by four per cent as high commodity prices encourage growers to replenish low stockpiles, the government said Feb. 14. The U.S. Agriculture Department said farmers will sow 255.3 million acres this year, up 10.1 million acres from 2010, with all major crops seeing

CWB Is Buying Boats

The Canadian Wheat Board (CWB) defended its controversial decision to buy into the Great Lakes shipping fleet last week, saying it will ultimately mean higher returns for farmers. The board’s goal is not only to get the best returns for farmers, but to cut their costs too, said CWB chair Allen Oberg. Oberg said the


2011 Outlook Not Strong For Dry Bean Crops

It will be a tough year to draw edible bean acres into production, Jim Barclay director of foods from Hensall District Co-op, told farmers attending the Special Crops Symposium. He estimates a 30 per cent reduction in acreage for black, white, and pinto bean crops. “In 2011 we will see a reduction in dry bean

Forecast For March: Very, Very Hot

After hiring into the market newsletter biz 30 years ago, my new bosses informed me that I’d sink or swim on how well I learned either fundamental or technical market analysis. I had two weeks to master one. Since fundamental analysis centres on farm and ranch facts and figures and technical analysis relies on charts


USDA Deregulates Industrial GE Corn

The U.S. Agriculture Department said Feb. 11 it has deregulated a variety of corn genetically engineered to produce a common enzyme that speeds the breakdown of starch into sugar, a vital step in making ethanol. USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service said Syngenta, the Swiss maker of the enzyme, called alpha-amylase, will create an

More Canola Acres Expected

Agriculture and Agri- Food Canada is expecting the area seeded by Canadian farmers to canola in the spring of 2011 will be up from the level seen at the same time in 2010, according to its first acreage outlook released Jan. 28. The market analysis branch of Agriculture Canada cautioned, however, that the actual area