Buenos Aires | Reuters — Farmers participating in Argentina’s “soy dollar” plan to boost exports have traded less than half of the soybeans they had traded at the same point during the previous plan, due to the impact of a drought, the Rosario grains exchange said on Friday. The Argentina government launched its latest “soy […] Read more
Drought curtails Argentina’s latest ‘soy dollar’ scheme
Soy supply 'a very different situation' now
Vast tracts of drought-hit Argentine soy fields seen going unharvested
Yet more cuts to production possible
Buenos Aires | Reuters — Argentina’s Buenos Aires grains exchange on Thursday said farmers would likely leave large tracts of soy fields unharvested due to damage from a historic drought, which could lead to more cuts to its 25 million-tonne production forecast. Argentina is the world’s top exporter of soybean oil and meal, but its […] Read more
France says pesticide ban will not hit grain exports
Fumigant can't be in 'direct contact' with grains
Paris | Reuters — France will ensure that a decision by health and safety agency ANSES to ban the use of a pesticide in direct contact with grains does not hamper its exports outside the European Union, its trade and agriculture ministers told Parliament on Tuesday. In late October ANSES cleared the use of phosphine […] Read more
Ford hikes electric F-150’s price again to battle high costs
Reuters — Ford Motor Co. has raised the base price of its popular F-150 Lightning electric pickup truck again, the automaker’s website showed on Thursday, the latest in a series of price hikes aimed at offsetting high costs. The base variant of Ford’s electric F-150 truck now starts at $59,974, excluding shipping and taxes, up […] Read more
Viterra to exit Russian grain trade
The company's team in Russia to create new grain exporter
London | Reuters — Global grain trader Viterra’s management team in Russia plans to create an independent Russian grain exporter once the company ceases export activities in the country, the head of its Russian office, Nikolai Demyanov, told Reuters on Thursday. Viterra — whose owners include mining and trading giant Glencore and the investment management […] Read more
France’s InVivo makes bid for United Malt
Bid would include Canada Malting business
Reuters — United Malt Group has received an indicative, non-binding offer from Malteries Soufflet, a branch of French agribusiness InVivo, the Australian commercial maltster said on Tuesday, valuing it at A$1.5 billion (C$1.36 billion). The A$5 per share offer represents a 45.3 per cent premium to United Malt’s last close of A$3.44. Trading in shares […] Read more
Dreyfus to step up spending after earnings boost
'Complementary' acquisitions envisioned
Paris | Reuters — Louis Dreyfus Co. (LDC) could nearly double annual investments in the coming years as rising profits help it pursue expansion in its traditional crop trading and newer food-ingredient activities, its CEO told Reuters. The group on Wednesday reported a jump in annual net profit to $1 billion, joining other global crop […] Read more
China to buy more homegrown soybeans for reserves
State-owned firms urged to prioritize domestic soy
Beijing | Reuters — China will step up buying of domestic soybeans by state reserves to encourage farmers to keep planting the crop, the agriculture ministry said on Thursday, as Beijing continues to push for greater self-sufficiency in oilseed. China started to increase soybean planting a year ago amid worries about its heavy reliance on […] Read more
Ukraine faces lack of herbicides, pesticides for spring seeding
About a third of needed chemicals reported to be at hand
Kyiv | Reuters — Ukrainian farmers, which have already started the 2023 spring sowing, have only around 35 per cent of the herbicides and pesticides they need, analyst APK-Inform quoted on Monday official data as showed. The Russian invasion has left Ukraine seriously short of finances, seeds and crop protection products, which could have a […] Read more
Canada reported seeking formal talks with Mexico on GMO rule
U.S. already seeking similar talks
Ottawa | Reuters — Canada has asked for formal consultations with Mexico over its restrictions on genetically modified (GM) agricultural imports under the North American free-trade agreement, Bloomberg News reported Wednesday, citing people familiar with the matter. Canada requested the talks on Tuesday, according to Bloomberg, a day after the U.S. requested formal trade consultations […] Read more