Canada’s new Agriculture and Agri-Foods Minister Lawrence MacAulay (l) is sworn-in during a ceremony at Rideau Hall in Ottawa November 4, 2015. Photo: REUTERS/Chris Wattie

Lawrence MacAulay sworn in as Canada’s new agriculture minister

Ottawa/Manitoba Co-operator – Only hours after being sworn in by Governor General David Johnston and mere minutes after leaving his first cabinet meeting, Canada’s newly minted Minister of Agriculture paused to speak with reporters gathered on Parliament Hill Nov. 3. “I’m certainly pleased,” said Lawrence MacAulay. “Being a dairy farmer and a seed potato farmer […] Read more



A  combination of backgrounding and grass cattle works best for Jordan and Janelle Kowal.

Grassers hit the spot

The Kowal family of Burnt Out Creek Ranch in Crooked River, Sask.

Jordan and Janelle Kowal have gained experience beyond their years dealing with some of the worst of times and the best of times in the beef and grain sectors right from the get-go. Cattle and grain markets bounce around so much they can’t be sure which way will be the right way for long, so […] Read more

(Photo courtesy Canada Beef Inc.)

U.S. livestock: CME live cattle close lower, but up from session lows

Chicago | Reuters –– Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle futures finished lower on Tuesday, pressured by cash price pessimism that later improved, following unexpectedly better cash prices which lifted contracts from morning lows, traders said. Spot October closed 2.875 cents/lb. lower at 136.675 cents, but is currently down 0.675 cents, to 138.875, in electronic trading […] Read more


(MonsantoStore.corpmerchandise.com)

Monsanto to shut three R+D centres next year

Chicago | Reuters –– Agrichemical company Monsanto plans to shutter three research and development centers in 2016 with a loss of about 90 jobs, it said Monday, as it restructures operations to cut costs in a slumping agricultural commodity market. The centers are in Middleton, Wisconsin, and Mystic, Connecticut, both of which focus on seed […] Read more

Feed: Cheap Brazilian corn bound for U.S.

CNS Canada –– Following are a few highlights in the Canadian and world feed grains markets on Tuesday, Oct. 27. • CBOT corn futures were weaker on Tuesday, with the December contract quoted at US$3.8025 per bushel at midsession, as the advancing U.S. harvest weighed on values. • Sorghum production in Mexico “has been plagued […] Read more


(Canada Beef Inc. photo)

U.S. livestock: CME live cattle, hogs sag while digesting meat warnings

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle futures closed lower on Monday, following last Friday’s cash prices that fell short of expectations and worries over potential consumer response to news about a possible tie to red meat and cancer risk, traders said. The World Health Organization (WHO) warned that eating processed meats can […] Read more

Indonesia’s president says country intends to join TPP

Washington | Reuters –– Indonesian President Joko Widodo, speaking after a meeting with U.S. President Barack Obama on Monday, said his country intends to join the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal the U.S. has forged with Canada and 10 other countries. “We are the largest economy in Southeast Asia,” Widodo said through a translator. “And Indonesia […] Read more


Recycle crop residues

Recycle crop residues

Attach a chaff buncher to the back of your combine to collect straw and chaff

Did you know that 80 per cent of what goes in the front of a cow comes out the back end? Most of us might think it is a waste and wonder why the cow is such an inefficient creation? Eighty per cent is wasted! If man made the cow, or at least a machine […] Read more

Feed: U.S. cattle on feed edge up

CNS Canada –– Following are a few highlights in the Canadian and world feed grains markets on Monday, Oct. 26. • CBOT corn futures were stronger on Monday, with the December contract quoted at US$3.845 per bushel, as a rally in wheat provided spillover support. However, the advancing US harvest and generally improving yield prospects […] Read more