
Nutrien to produce ‘most potash ever’ in 2022
Company to ramp up production in response to Ukraine conflict
The world’s biggest potash-producing company is set to produce more potash in 2022 due to “uncertainty of potash supply” coming out of Eastern Europe. Saskatoon-based Nutrien, which has an estimated 20 million tonnes of potash-mining capacity across six mines in Saskatchewan, said Wednesday it plans to boost its output for 2022 to 15 million tonnes, […] Read more

Ukraine war already impacting food security, U.N. agency warns
London | Reuters — The war in Ukraine is already resulting in rising food prices and a shortage of staple crops in parts of central Asia, the Middle East and north Africa, the United Nations International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) said on Thursday. The Russian invasion of Ukraine last month has severely curtailed shipments […] Read more

Farming behind the lines in Ukraine
A Ukrainian agriculture journalist chronicles the challenges of sowing a crop during wartime
Ukrainians will farm their land, even in the face of war. In the Kherson area of southern Ukraine, where war rages and the city of Kherson is seen by the Russian invaders as strategic, a column set out on Monday. This was a column of tractors, under the flag of Ukraine. In it were farmers […] Read more

Feed weekly outlook: Sector bracing for logistics challenge
A CP lockout could put feeders weeks behind in supplies
MarketsFarm — Feed grain buyers in Alberta’s feedlot alley are well covered with contracted supplies, but the logistics of getting that grain where it needs to be are facing some uncertainty with looming labour action at Canadian Pacific Railway. Buyers in feedlot alley are about 80 per cent covered right now, said Jim Beusekom of […] Read more

U.S. grains: Wheat recoups from early weakness
Corn gains on export demand, soybeans firm
Chicago | Reuters — U.S. wheat futures rose on Thursday, with benchmark Chicago Board of Trade wheat shaking off early weakness, as traders continued to wrestle with supply disruptions from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Markets are closely watching the talks to end the war in Ukraine, which Russia calls “a special military operation,” but the […] Read more

U.S. livestock: CME hogs, feeder cattle slide
Technical trading, higher grain values drag on futures
Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange lean hogs and feeder cattle futures fell on Thursday on a flurry of technical trading, as feed prices rebounded and investors scrambled to find stable footing amid continued volatility in commodity markets. Live cattle inched up, while cash cattle saw limited action in the southern Plains, with some […] Read more

CP to lock out engineers, conductors starting Sunday
'Cannot prolong the uncertainty,' CEO says
Canadian Pacific Railway has served its unionized engineers, conductors and train and yard service staff with notice of a lockout to start just after midnight ET on Sunday, unless the company and union agree on a new labour deal by then. Calgary-based CP and the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference (TCRC), which represents about 3,000 CP […] Read more

U.S. grains: May wheats limit-down as peace talks progress
Chicago corn, soybeans also lower
Chicago | Reuters — U.S. wheat futures fell by their daily maximum on Wednesday as investors weighed whether talks between Ukraine and Russia could lead to a ceasefire in the three-week-long war, while rain forecast in the U.S. Plains eased concerns about parched crops. Corn ended lower as the talks between Moscow and Kyiv tempered […] Read more

U.S. livestock: CME feeder cattle rise as feed prices slip
June live cattle, April hogs lower
Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle fell on Wednesday on technical liquidation, as livestock markets continue to wrestle with questions about consumer demand as food prices surge, traders said. Feeder cattle futures firmed on the day as feed prices fell, traders said. “Today’s live cattle futures trade has been choppy to weaker, […] Read more

ICE weekly outlook: Canola lower, but expected to climb
MarketsFarm — Although canola prices closed lower on Wednesday, the Canadian oilseed is seen as still likely to grind higher in the coming weeks. “The charts and the patterns that have developed, and are still in place for canola, have been kind of the same for the past few months. The longer-term trends are still […] Read more