Think food prices are high? Get ready for higher

Think food prices are high? Get ready for higher

Growing demand for 'organic' or 'natural' products will only increase the cost of food further, and reduce farm productivity

Food prices are up four per cent over last year in Canada — mainly because of the cheap loonie and more expensive imports. This has come as a shock to Canadians used to spending an ever-declining share of income on food. Worse yet, further increases likely await — and for a very different, more permanent

(SunOpta.com)

Hedge fund urges organics firm SunOpta to sell itself

Reuters — Hedge fund Tourbillon Capital Partners is urging Canadian organic food firm SunOpta Inc. to sell itself to a bigger rival, according to a letter sent to the company on Friday. Mississauga, Ont.-based SunOpta’s share price jumped 26 per cent after the US$4 billion hedge fund asked it to hire an investment bank to


Organic wheat.

Study defines role of organic ag in feeding the world

Numerous studies point to the environmental benefits

Organic agriculture can play an important role in feeding the world, according to a new study comparing conventional and organic farming systems’ ability to produce yields, benefit farmers’ bottom line, and sustain the environment. That’s the conclusion drawn by Washington State University (WSU) researchers after a review of 40 years of science-based evidence comparing organic

Organic wheat

Editorial: Ideology and modern farming

Whenever the subject of organic agriculture surfaces in a discussion about modern farming, the “yabuts” start flowing fast and sometimes, furiously. Ya but organic farmers don’t produce as much as “conventional‚” farmers do, so if everyone went organic, there would be shortages, more pressure on land and higher food prices. And so it goes. Those

MAFRD farm management specialist Roy Arnott spoke to a seminar on organic cost of production at Ag Days.

Organic producers could see net profit levels range from $100 to $300 per acre

Know your cost per bushel, not just per acre, says farm management specialist

Organic production is one way for small farmers to improve their viability, an analyst told a seminar at Manitoba Ag Days in Brandon. Roy Arnott, who does annual cost-of-production budgets for MAFRD, said the gross revenue over operating costs in conventional agriculture leaves a margin of 20 to 40 per cent. That margin is what


What’s hot and what’s not for 2016 crops

What’s hot and what’s not for 2016 crops

Margins are expected to be a lot tighter in the coming year, but the major crops are still showing a potential for profit

Manitoba farmers are facing some tough choices when it comes to squeezing a profit out of the crops they grow in 2016. But the Manitoba Agriculture, Food and Rural Development annual crop production guidelines indicate there are still profits to be made in both conventional and organic production systems. These estimates serve as useful reference

U.S. consumers’ demand for organic foods, such as this California lettuce, has risen steadily in the past decade — particularly in California, which alone accounted for 41 per cent of U.S. organic sales in 2014. (Eric Brennan photo courtesy ARS/USDA)

Sales from organic U.S. farms reached $5.5B last year

Chicago | Reuters — Sales from organic U.S. farms reached US$5.5 billion last year, a 72 per cent increase from 2008, the U.S. Agriculture Department said in a report on Thursday that highlighted the consumer trend toward such products. The USDA data, compiled through farmer surveys, showed that milk was the top organic commodity in

Martin Entz speaks about organic soybeans near Carman.

Higher seeding rate needed for organic soybeans

Transitioning to organic soybeans is possible with strategic planning

It’s a simple question, one that Martin Entz hopes producers will seriously consider. “Why not grow organic soybeans?” he asked producers gathered at the Ian N. Morrison research farm near Carman late last month for the Manitoba Pulse & Soybean Growers’ annual SMART Day. “Something farmers are always looking for is on-farm diversification, so we’ve


organic food logo

Federal government pledges $1.2 million to help expand organic farming

Western Economic Diversification funds will help western organic growers compete in lucrative global organic food market

A new program aimed at expanding the number of organic farmers in Western Canada has received $1.2 million from the federal Western Diversification Program (WDP). The cash will be put towards the Prairie Organic Grain Initiative (POGI), a four-year $2.2-million program being rolled out this spring by western Canadian organic associations that also have pledged

healthy groceries, lettuce, cherry tomatoes and vegetables

Editorial: Demand pull nature of organic foods can’t be ignored

The market for organic foods continues to grow in spite of naysayers

Imagine farming in a world in which you could control your production costs, receive a premium for what you produce, and where demand exceeds the supply. That might seem like the impossible dream in a year like this one, when it appears it doesn’t matter what crop a farmer grows, there are very few opportunities