(Dave Bedard photo)

Canola declines, durum drops in new StatsCan estimates

Soybean, oats estimates raised

MarketsFarm — There were very few surprises in Statistics Canada’s latest principal field crop production estimates released Friday — the first in 2021-22 to use a survey of producers. Nevertheless, they quantified just how severe last summer’s drought was in Western Canada. Canola production for the 2021-22 marketing year was estimated to be 12.595 million […] Read more

Prince Rupert Grain Terminal. (Rupertport.com)

CN rerouting trains, aims to re-open line to Vancouver on weekend

Reuters — Canadian National Railway (CN) said Wednesday it was aiming to reopen its track in the crucial Kamloops-to-Vancouver corridor in flood-hit British Columbia this weekend. The Pacific province, trying to rebuild after devastating floods in November, received more rain over the weekend and this week. CN operates one of the two critical rail lines […] Read more



Pacific sea surface temperature anomalies in degrees Celsius for the week centred on Nov. 24, 2021. Cooler-than-neutral sea surface temperatures at the equator are known to set up a La Nina event. (CPC.ncep.noaa.gov)

Prairie winter weather a sign of La Nina repeat

Full effects won't be seen for a while yet

MarketsFarm — December marks the start of what meteorologists call “meteorological winter” — and this winter, the Pacific Ocean phenomenon known as La Nina may be rearing its head once again. La Nina (Spanish for “little girl”) is a climate pattern detected over the Pacific every few years where cooler water pools at the equator […] Read more


Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is shown maps by Abbottsford, B.C. Mayor Henry Braun during a visit to the city on Nov. 26, 2021. (Photo: Reuters/Jennifer Gauthier)

B.C. extends fuel restrictions following flooding

Agricultural and farm-use vehicles exempted as 'essential'

Reuters — Government officials in British Columbia on Monday extended restrictions on the use of fuel by residents, saying it was needed for emergency vehicles as the region recovers from devastating floods. The order, first issued on Nov. 19, limits vehicles deemed “non-essential” by the government to 30 litres of gasoline or diesel fuel per […] Read more

File photo of a dairy operation in B.C.’s Fraser Valley. (Modfos/iStock/Getty Images)

Some B.C. milk runs resume as roads reopen

Sumas Prairie remains under boil water advisory

Milk pickups are resuming for some southern British Columbia dairy farmers, days after flooding and landslides caused by a days-long rainstorm cut off vehicle traffic through the region. In the wake of the Nov. 14-16 storm, with trucks unable to reach farms, the B.C. Milk Marketing Board on Nov. 16 asked that affected dairy farmers […] Read more


File photo of a CN locomotive in Winnipeg. (Dave Bedard photo)

CN to reopen to Vancouver Wednesday

Prince Rupert also available, CN reminds shippers

Canadian National Railway (CN) says it’s almost set to resume some service to Vancouver, starting early Wednesday. Montreal-based CN said in an emailed statement Tuesday that repair work on damaged sections of its track from Kamloops to Vancouver “progressed well over the weekend” and the line will reopen to “limited traffic” tomorrow “barring any unforeseen […] Read more

(File photo by Dave Bedard)

CP to reopen rail corridor to Vancouver Tuesday

B.C. storm led to damage in 30 separate spots, railway says

Canadian Pacific Railway (CP) plans to have its rainstorm-battered mainline between Kamloops and Vancouver reopened to grain and other traffic around midday Tuesday. The company said Monday that out of 30 storm-damaged spots across its Thompson and Cascade subdivisions in southern British Columbia, 20 had seen “significant loss of infrastructure” in need of repair. CP […] Read more


Parts of the Trans Canada Highway at Abbotsford, B.C. remain submerged in flood waters on Nov. 19, 2021. (Photo: Reuters/Jennifer Gauthier)

Repair work on B.C. rail lines expected for days yet

CP expects to resume service 'mid-week;' some highways open only for essential travel

Canada’s big two railways expect repair work to continue into at least next week before service can resume through storm-battered areas of British Columbia to export terminals at Vancouver. Both railways, along with several major B.C. highways, have been shut this week due to damage from flooding and landslides spurred by a major multi-day storm […] Read more

Federal Agriculture Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau (second from left) and Nate Horner (right), her Alberta counterpart, during a tour of Olds College’s Smart Farm on Thursday. (Photo: Olds College/Sergei Belski, www.oldscollege.ca)

Alberta looks for feed, Ottawa promises cash for B.C.

Alberta to help with veterinary testing after B.C.'s lab flooded, Alberta ag minister says

Even though supplies are low because of drought, Alberta is looking for feed to send to B.C. livestock producers, while Ottawa will provide emergency financial assistance to farmers dealing with flooding and closed roads in the hard-hit province. “We’ve been working with the B.C. department of agriculture,” Alberta Agriculture Minister Nate Horner said during a […] Read more


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