Toronto | Reuters — Regulator Transport Canada has issued a notice to Canadian National Railway (CN) requesting a plan to ensure safety along its main line’s Ruel subdivision, where three trains derailed in fewer than 30 days in February and March, the railway said Wednesday. The notice, given on March 12 but not previously reported, was […] Read more
Transport Canada seeks CN safety plan after derailments
CN says harsh winter one reason for spike in 2014 accidents
Ottawa | Reuters — An unusually harsh winter is one of the reasons Canadian National Railway (CN) suffered a sharp increase in the number of train accidents in 2014, a top official said Tuesday. Chief operating officer Jim Vena told a committee of federal legislators that deep cold can cause rails and wheels to crack. […] Read more
DuPont investors to vote on activist firm’s demands in May
Reuters — DuPont, embroiled in a proxy war with activist investor Trian Fund Management LP for board seats, said it would hold its annual shareholder meeting on May 13. Trian is seeking four seats on DuPont’s board, including one for its CEO Nelson Peltz, to help it force the company to split into two. DuPont […] Read more
Andersons shares up after report hints Glencore interest
Reuters — Shares of U.S.-based agribusiness Andersons Inc. jumped more than six per cent on Friday, outpacing the sector, after a Bloomberg News report speculated that Glencore could be interested in acquiring the company. The story mentioned Glencore’s interest in expanding its agricultural assets and named Ohio-based Andersons as well as privately held companies Scoular […] Read more
Britain backs Zimbabwe to help rural farmers
Harare | Reuters — Britain has given Zimbabwe about C$92 million to help increase food production by rural farmers over the next four years, as the southern African country faces the prospect of poorer harvests this year due to inadequate rains. Once the breadbasket of the region, Zimbabwe has since 2000 struggled to feed its […] Read more
U.S. reports low-path H7N3 bird flu in California
Paris | Reuters –– The United States has reported a mild form of bird flu on a turkey farm in California, the World Organisztion for Animal Health (OIE) said Wednesday, the latest in a series of outbreaks to hit the U.S. poultry industry in recent months. The U.S. Department of Agriculture said in a report […] Read more
California tightens water regulations amid long drought
Sacramento | Reuters — Water regulators in California voted on Tuesday to outlaw watering the lawn within 48 hours of a rainstorm, the latest effort to spur Californians to conserve as the state enters its fourth year of drought. Facing a dramatic slowdown in voluntary conservation efforts by property owners, the state Water Resources Control […] Read more
Wayne Farms files for IPO
Reuters — Wayne Farms, the sixth-largest poultry producer in the U.S., has filed with U.S. regulators in an initial public offering of common stock. Wayne Farms is a subsidiary of Continental Grain, one of the largest privately-held corporations in the U.S. Citigroup, J.P. Morgan and BMO Capital Markets are underwriting the IPO, Wayne told the […] Read more
Argentina says ‘worried’ about flooded soy fields
Buenos Aires | Reuters — Flooding in some of the soy-growing areas of Cordoba, Entre Rios and Santa Fe provinces has become “worrying” to the government as farmers get ready to start harvesting the 2014-15 crop, the agriculture ministry said in its weekly report on Friday. The northern part of the Pampas grains belt has […] Read more
Access to Brazil’s Itajai port to open as truck protest ends
Sao Paulo | Reuters — Protesters have agreed to open access to Brazil’s main poultry exporting port of Itajai in Santa Catarina state, the port said on Wednesday, ending a lingering flashpoint after a two-week truck drivers’ protest. A union of autonomous truck drivers agreed to the port’s proposal to raise payments for transporters inside […] Read more