A Western blot analysis, used to detect specific proteins in tissue samples, is used to confirm BSE in cattle. (Peggy Greb photo courtesy ARS/USDA)

Brazil’s ag ministry investigating suspected BSE case

Evidence suggests 'atypical' BSE, source says

Sao Paulo | Reuters — Brazil’s agriculture ministry said Wednesday it was investigating a suspected case of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) in the country, according to a statement. An industry source told Reuters, on condition of anonymity, that the suspected case occurred in the southeastern state of Minas Gerais. The ministry said such investigations are […] Read more

CBOT December 2021 corn (candlesticks) with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages (yellow, orange and green lines). (Barchart)

U.S. grains: Corn, soybeans sag on export worries after Ida

Wheat futures follow downward

Chicago | Reuters — U.S. corn futures fell about two per cent on Wednesday, with the benchmark December contract hitting a seven-week low as worries about shipping delays from the U.S. Gulf Coast triggered a round of long liquidation, analysts said. Soybean futures touched a two-month low and wheat followed the weaker trend. Commodity funds […] Read more


File photo of a roundworm larva. (Dotana/iStock/Getty Images)

Health Canada warns people not to take livestock dewormers

No evidence that drug is effective against COVID-19

“Concerning reports” of people in Canada seeking out veterinary-grade dewormers for personal use have led Health Canada to formally advise against doing so. News reports in Western Canada in the past week have described increased demand from non-farming consumers for veterinary-grade ivermectin, whether at livestock supply retailers or online. While ivermectin is an antiparasitic drug […] Read more

ICE November 2021 canola (candlesticks) with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages (yellow, green and black lines) and CBOT October 2021 soyoil (blue line, left column). (Barchart)

ICE weekly outlook: Canola futures slide, cash prices might not follow

Weakness seen ongoing in soy complex

MarketsFarm — If the October soyoil contract on the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) falls to 55 U.S. cents/lb., it’s likely ICE Futures canola will drop to around $850 per tonne, according to analyst Errol Anderson of ProMarket Communications in Calgary. ICE November canola closed Wednesday at $890.80 per tonne, giving up $10.80 since the […] Read more



(Juanmonino/iStock/Getty Images)

Pot producer TerrAscend to buy U.S. rival Gage Growth

Company to pay US$545 million

Reuters — Cannabis producer and processor TerrAscend will buy Michigan-based rival Gage Growth Corp., backed by prominent cannabis investor Jason Wild, for around US$545 million, the pot producer said on Wednesday. Dealmaking in the U.S. cannabis industry has heated up this year as companies bank on Democrats’ promises to reform marijuana laws and potentially legalize […] Read more


Nova Scotia Agriculture Minister Greg Morrow. (PCPartyNS.ca)

Rookie Nova Scotia MLA named agriculture minister

Greg Morrow sworn in Tuesday

A radio news director from eastern Nova Scotia has been tapped as the provincial agriculture minister for incoming Premier Tim Houston’s Progressive Conservatives. Greg Morrow, the new MLA for Guysborough-Tracadie, was sworn in Tuesday along with the other members of Houston’s 19-member cabinet. Houston’s Tories ousted Iain Rankin’s Liberal government in the Aug. 17 provincial […] Read more

(Bondarillia/iStock/Getty Images)

Pulse weekly outlook: Tight Canadian supplies to cut into exports

MarketsFarm –– Canadian pulse supplies during the 2021-22 marketing year will be the tightest of the past decade due to drought during the growing season, with the country likely to be a much smaller player in the international export market for peas, lentils and chickpeas as a result. Statistics Canada pegged the country’s 2021-22 pea […] Read more


(Olymel video screengrab via YouTube)

Striking Olymel workers accept new six-year deal

Slaughter could restart Friday at earliest, company says

Striking workers at a major hog slaughter and cutting plant in Quebec’s Beauce region have agreed to a new six-year contract that could see slaughter resume Friday at the earliest. Olymel and the CSN-affiliated Syndicat des travailleurs d’Olymel Vallee-Jonction (STOVJ) announced Tuesday afternoon that unionized workers at the company’s Vallee-Jonction plant, south of Quebec City, […] Read more

A Kansas City Southern (KCS) rail car at Toluca, Mexico on Oct. 1, 2018. (File photo: Reuters)/Edgard Garrido)

U.S. regulator rejects CN’s voting trust to buy Kansas City Southern

CP rips CN's play as 'illusory and not achievable'

Reuters — The U.S. rail regulator on Tuesday rejected a voting trust structure that would have allowed Canadian National Railway (CN) to proceed with its US$29 billion proposed acquisition of U.S. peer Kansas City Southern. The decision was a blow to the deal that would create the first direct railway linking Canada, the U.S. and […] Read more