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

U.S. grains: Corn, soybeans sink after Midwest rains

Wheat down on big Kansas crop outlook, export competition

Reuters — U.S. corn and soybean futures fell on Monday as rains boosted recently planted crops across the U.S. Midwest and as traders weighed future export demand following a flurry of corn purchases by China last week. Wheat futures also fell, sinking to the lowest level in more than a month as prospects for a […] Read more

CME August 2021 live cattle (candlesticks) with 20-day moving average (red line) and July 2021 lean hogs (pink open/high/low/close). (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: Cattle futures sink as on-feed supply tops estimates

Profit-taking drags on hogs

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle futures retreated on Monday after U.S. government data showed supplies in feedlots above trade expectations and as some traders worried about demand for beef. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) said late on Friday that May 1 on-feed cattle supplies stood at 105 per cent of […] Read more


Raven is rebranding the DOT autonomous system, shown here, under the name OMNiPower. (Raven Precision video screengrab via YouTube)

DOT, AutoCart autonomous equipment lines rebranded

Parent firm Raven Industries' products tied to new brand

U.S. precision agriculture equipment firm Raven Industries has set up a unifying brand for its acquired product lines, including the Canadian-born DOT autonomous field tool system. South Dakota-based Raven on May 12 launched the OMNi brand for its autonomous platform, rebranding DOT as OMNiPower and the AutoCart system as OMNiDrive. All of Raven’s intelligent autonomous […] Read more

(Dave Bedard photo)

Dry weather may cut into Canadian crop prospects, AAFC says

MarketsFarm — Dry weather conditions across Western Canada could cut into production prospects in the region, according to updated supply/demand tables released Thursday by Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada. “Extremely dry conditions prevail in large parts of Western Canada, allowing for rapid seeding progress which is trending ahead of normal; however, timely precipitation this spring and […] Read more


(File photo by Dave Bedard)

Net long position in canola edging down

Net long increases in Chicago, K.C. wheat

MarketsFarm — The managed money net long position in canola has edged down over the past few months, hitting its lowest level since August 2020 in the latest Commitment of Traders report from the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC). As of Tuesday, managed money fund traders were holding a net long position in ICE […] Read more

CBOT July 2021 wheat (candlesticks) with MGEX July 2021 wheat (orange open/high/low/close) and K.C. July 2021 wheat (yellow OHLC). (Barchart)

U.S. grains: Wheat hits one-month low, soybeans three-week low

Chicago corn down on profit-taking

Chicago | Reuters — U.S. wheat futures fell on Friday, touching a one-month low on improving prospects for the crop in the U.S. Plains, traders said. Corn futures fell on a round of profit-taking after rising in three of the previous four sessions. Soybeans also closed lower, with concerns about demand outweighing a bargain-buying attempt […] Read more


CME July 2021 lean hogs (candlesticks) with Bollinger bands (20,2) and August 2021 live cattle (red open/high/low/close). (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: Hog futures rally to highest since August 2014

USDA's latest cattle count beats forecasts

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange hog futures rallied on Friday to their highest in nearly seven years, with strong demand outstripping supplies on hand as restaurants around the U.S. have been reopening after COVID-19 shutdowns, traders said. “We are seeing strong retail demand, with the food service trying to recapture their share of […] Read more

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

Kansas City Southern sticks with CN as CP won’t raise bid

CN confident of regulatory approval

Reuters — Kansas City Southern on Friday reiterated that Canadian National Railway’s offer was “superior” after Canadian Pacific Railway refused to raise its bid, moving a step closer to creating the largest-ever merger of North American railways by transaction value. The Canadian rivals have been locked in a takeover battle for the U.S. railroad operator […] Read more


(PorcOlymel.com)

Olymel gets home province’s backing for plant upgrades

Quebec to invest $150 million in packer

Pork and poultry producer and packer Olymel has picked up equity investments from its home province to support a total of $315 million in plant upgrades. The Quebec government announced Tuesday it would invest $74 million in Olymel through its economy and innovation ministry’s Fonds pour la croissance des entreprises quebecois (FCEQ) plus $76 million […] Read more

A grain train pulls up alongside a cargo vessel at the Alliance Grain Terminal at Vancouver on Oct. 6, 2011. (File photo: Reuters/Ben Nelms)

Grain commission proposes big inspection fee cut

Effective Aug. 1 the cost of outward inspection would be cut by 29 per cent

The Canadian Grain Commission (CGC), whose role in Canadian grain quality assurance is under federal review, wants to cut its fees for four official grain inspection and official grain weighing services effective Aug. 1, the start of the new crop year. The change will save Canada’s grain sector millions of dollars over the next three […] Read more