(Dave Bedard photo)

U.S. appeals court rules for environmental groups in biofuel case

New York | Reuters — The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit ruled on Friday in favour of environmental groups who argued against the U.S. government’s conclusion that biofuel blending obligations posed no danger to species’ habitats. The Environmental Protection Agency decides on the amount of biofuels that oil refiners must […] Read more

File photo of the flags of Canada and its provinces and territories at Canada Place in Vancouver. (lilly3/iStock/Getty Images)

Request line open for AgriRecovery drought plans, Bibeau says

Formal ask needed to trigger process: ag minister

Canada’s federal agriculture minister says the government is “ready to receive formal submissions” from provinces for AgriRecovery plans to help Prairie farmers and ranchers up against significant droughts this summer. Marie-Claude Bibeau, summarizing discussions from Thursday’s online meeting with provincial and territorial (FPT) agriculture ministers, said the formal requests “are needed to trigger the process,” […] Read more


(Doug Wilson photo courtesy ARS/USDA)

Feed weekly outlook: Heat reducing potential yields, raising prices

MarketsFarm — The hot and dry summer that has enveloped all of Western Canada is already bringing down projected yields for feed grains, creating an inverse effect on prices. “We’re losing the crop here right now with the heat and lack of moisture across the Prairies and the northern Plains of the United States,” said […] Read more

CME August 2021 live cattle (candlesticks) with Bollinger bands (20,2) and October 2021 live cattle (dark red line). (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: CME live cattle drift lower

Lean hog futures end mixed

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle futures drifted lower on Thursday in lacklustre trade, with disappointing weekly export sales data and softening wholesale beef cutout prices adding pressure, analysts said. “The fact that the cutout on beef has been drifting lower just doesn’t give the market a lot of confidence that packers […] Read more


MGEX September 2021 wheat (candlesticks) with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages (yellow, orange and green lines) and CBOT September 2021 wheat (black line). (Barchart)

U.S. grains: Wheat climbs on stressful northern Plains weather

Chicago soybean futures sag

Chicago | Reuters — U.S. wheat futures rose on Thursday, led by Minneapolis Grain Exchange (MGEX) spring wheat futures, which hit an 8-1/2-year high near US$9 a bushel as drought threatened crops in the northern Plains and Canadian Prairies. Soybean futures fell on disappointing domestic soy crush data and corn eased after a three-session climb. […] Read more

Charred remnants of a rail bridge destroyed by a wildfire on June 30 are seen during a media tour by authorities in Lytton, B.C. on July 9, 2021. (Photo: Reuters/Jennifer Gauthier)

Lytton bridge re-opened but grain movement ‘hit and miss’

B.C. wildfires continue to disrupt Prairie grain movement

Canadian National Railway’s fire-damaged bridge at Lytton, B.C. reopened for traffic Tuesday — but all train movement, including for grain, through British Columbia’s wildfire-ravaged southern Interior, is “hit and miss” and will remain so until the fire risk lessens. “Both (CN and Canadian Pacific Railway) are having troubles because there are so many fires in […] Read more


Ralph Eichler, shown here at Ag Days in Brandon in 2019, is again Manitoba’s minister of agriculture. (Manitoba Co-operator photo by Allan Dawson)

Eichler back as Manitoba ag minister in shuffle

Pedersen not seeking re-election

Manitoba’s provincial agriculture files return to the desk of their former handler in a cabinet mini-shuffle Thursday. Premier Brian Pallister has named Ralph Eichler, MLA for the Interlake-area riding of Lakeside since 2003, as minister of agriculture and resource development, replacing Blaine Pedersen. Pedersen announced Thursday he will not seek re-election but will serve out […] Read more

CME August 2021 feeder cattle (candlesticks) with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages (pink, dark red and black lines). (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: CME feeder cattle fall on corn rally

CME lean hogs end lower

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle futures closed lower Wednesday, led by weakness in feeder cattle futures and profit-taking after a near two-week high, traders said. CME feeder futures set the tone, falling one per cent as corn futures jumped on worries about dry U.S. weather, a move that signaled higher costs […] Read more


Farmer and Grainews columnist Toban Dyck inspects wheat on July 6, 2021 near Winkler, Man., where hot and dry weather has led to thin, uneven stands. (Photo: Reuters/Rod Nickel)

Saskatchewan raises salvage threshold for parched crops

Stock watering program also boosted; APAS, Tories' ag critic had called for more drought aid

Saskatchewan’s provincial crop insurance agency is raising the yield threshold at which drought-damaged crops can be grazed, baled for greenfeed or cut for silage with no penalty on future coverage. Saskatchewan Crop Insurance Corp. said Wednesday it would double the “low yield appraisal” threshold values on cereal or pulse crop acres put to feed. SCIC […] Read more