photos: thinkstock

One good thing about rain

RecipeSwap: Garden Fresh Potato Salad, Cheese Baked Zucchini, Cucumber Cream Soup, and more!

Was your garden slow to start this spring? Mine limped along too. Then we had that little sprinkle over the July long weekend. Outside inspecting it the first dry evening afterward, I found masses of squeaky pea vines, huge frilly lettuces, bouquets of basil and parsley, zucchini plants that may take over the planet, dill

Reaching the new target will require yields to increase four per cent a year for the next decade.

New Canadian canola production target: 26 million tonnes by 2015

The Canola Council of Canada says almost all of the new production will come from 
increased yields, not more acres

After hitting its production target of 15 million tonnes average canola two years early, the Canola Council of Canada has a new one — 26 million tonnes by 2025. It says it will be achieved not by planting more acres, but through higher yields averaging 52 bushels an acre, instead of the current five-year average


An Aerial View Of The Port Of Churchill, Manitoba.

Churchill gets another booster

The Port of Churchill is getting a boost from the Manitoba government. Legislation to create Churchill Arctic Port Canada Inc., a non-government agency, to develop economic opportunities, spur job creation and ensure the viability of Churchill, was introduced in the Manitoba legislature Nov. 21. OmniTRAX Canada, which owns the port and the railway that serves

Rising export demand is underpinning prosperity in agriculture.

Churchill exports up after longer than usual shipping season

OmniTRAX says exporting crude oil through Churchill would help ensure the port’s viability

The Port of Churchill, which closed for the season Nov. 12, was open almost two weeks later than usual and exported more than 600,000 tonnes of grain. Merv Tweed, president of OmniTRAX Canada, which owns the port and the Hudson Bay Railway that serves it, said that while this year’s performance is encouraging, the port

Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz says Canada’s railways are doing an “adequate” job moving this year’s record crop to market. The Western Grain Elevators Association says it’s not good enough and farm groups agree.   photo: allan dawson

Ritz rates current rail service for grain ‘adequate’

Canada’s railways are doing an “adequate” job moving this year’s record crop to market, Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz told an industry conference last week. “The increase in volume means the logistics system must fire on all cylinders to ensure farmers’ products are making it to market on time. To date our system is proving effective



FDA’s trans fat ban could boost demand for non-soybean oils

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announcement Nov. 7 that it plans to phase out the use of trans fat in processed foods could cause demand for soyoil to drop in coming years, opening the door for other edible oil markets. “The announcement was really a surprise,” Dave Lehman, managing director of commodity research

Clubroot affects thousands of acres in Alberta where the disease was discovered 10 years ago. Two infected fields were confirmed in Manitoba earlier this year.

Oil industry can help fight spread of clubroot

KAP wants companies to clean their equipment between locations

Delegates also passed resolutions on water management, but won’t be 
organizing a mass demonstration at the legislature

Oilfield equipment needs to be cleaned as it enters and exits Manitoba farmland to prevent the spread of clubroot, says a resolution passed by the Keystone Agricultural Producers’ general council Oct. 17. It was one of six resolutions debated. Five were passed and one was defeated. “It’s not that big of a deal,” said Cromer


Mila Maximets is the creator of Solberry, a sea buckthorn purée made in Manitoba.  Photo: Shannon VanRaes

Prairie fruit business needs more sea buckthorn growers

Manitoba maker of sea buckthorn products says a lack of berries has limited the growth of her business

Sea buckthorn is moving out of the hedgerows and into the mainstream, as new varieties and evolving technologies promise to make harvesting the nutrient-rich berry less labour intensive. “It’s been a very difficult industry to kind of get going, a lot of the cultivars that were first planted aren’t ideal for harvesting, in fact they’re

Glencore founder dies in Switzerland

Billionaire Marc Rich, who invented oil trading and was pardoned by President Bill Clinton over tax evasion, racketeering and busting sanctions with Iran, died June 26 in Switzerland aged 78. Rich fled the Holocaust with his parents for America to become the most successful and controversial trader of his time and a fugitive from U.S.