Windstorm sandblasts crops

Winds of up to 100 kilometres an hour toppled granaries, uprooted trees, ripped off shingles and sandblasted crops in south-central Manitoba May 14. In the aftermath, around 400 reseeding claims were submitted to the Manitoba Agricultural Service Corporation’s (MASC) insurance division as of May 18, said David Van Deynze, manager of claim services. “Canola, by






Seed early with caution

Whether they survive or fail, these early seeding plots will provide some valuable data on seeding dates

Extension agronomist Anastasia Kubinec wasn’t heeding her own advice to farmers the first week of April. She was seeding — but not because she’s banking on pulling in a bin-buster. Rather, she’s betting on a bust. Kubinec, Manitoba Agriculture and Rural Initiatives’ oilseed specialist, wants to demonstrate the risks of seeding too early, especially frost-sensitive


U.S. lapping up Canadian canola oil

Reuters / Canada’s canola crushers are processing the oilseed at a record-brisk pace, as demand for canola oil heats up among U.S. makers of biodiesel and food products like potato chips. The United States has long been a key export market for canola, Canada’s second-biggest crop after spring wheat, but its appetite has spiked in



South American soy crop outlook worsens

Hamburg / Reuters /Soybean crops in Argentina and Brazil have suffered from more poor weather and harvest forecasts for the two countries may have to be cut by a combined two million to three million tonnes, Hamburg-based oilseeds analysts Oil World said April 3. “New reports have been received confirming additional crop losses, further eroding