Wheat & Chaff

Soft ocean freight rates, which hit 25-year lows in early February, are helping cut into Canada’s grain freight disadvantage with some of its competitors, according to industry participants. The Baltic Dry Index, which is used as a guide for global shipping rates, is sitting at 715 points, up from a 25-year low of 647 points […] Read more

An online service allowing Canada’s farmers to quickly look up treatment data for any treatable crop pest problem has brought a substantial chunk of its offerings out from behind the pay wall. Guelph-based The Savvy Farmer Inc. has announced the launch of Savvy Farmer lite, a free version of its Savvy Farmer software. The “lite” […] Read more

Archer Daniels Midland will close a North Dakota ethanol plant near the Manitoba border, marking the first such closure for the agribusiness giant that last month announced the elimination of 1,000 jobs. The facility at Walhalla, N.D., about 30 km south of Winkler, Man., will permanently close in April, resulting in the loss of 61 […] Read more

You’re a farmer. You often work alone and so do your family members and workers. Sometimes, you don’t see another soul all day and nobody even knows where you are. That’s just the way it is. But is it safe? You know the answer. Sure, the relative safety of your situation working alone does depend […] Read more

A high-throughput Viterra elevator in Saskatchewan’s southeast corner is set to get expansions of both its storage and rail car capacity. The Fairlight facility’s rated capacity, according to the Canadian Grain Commission, now sits at 25,340 tonnes. According to Kyle Jeworski, the company’s vice-president for North American grain merchandising, the expansion will add capacity for […] Read more

LeMar Industries has introduced a new zero-entry Maverik HTF (hydraulic twin flow) commercial grain sweep that sweeps twice in a single pass. Todd Hall, vice president of research and development says, “We’ve engineered it with proprietary patent-pending technology, delivering two sweeps in a single pass with dual hydraulic augers.” The 15,000 bushel-per-hour capacity Maverik HTF […] Read more

Prairie pulse and special crop processor Legumex Walker has bought its way into the U.S. dry bean and dehulled sunflower seed markets. The Winnipeg company, formed last summer in the merger of Roy Legumex and Walker Seeds, announced it has bought St. Hilaire Seed Co. and the sunflower seed processing assets of Anderson Seed Co. […] Read more

Canadian Agricultural Safety Week wrapped up on the weekend but there are 51 more weeks to practise what Safety Week preached — PLAN.FARM.SAFETY. As a farm owner, operator or manager, you are responsible for the safety and health of everyone who lives, works or visits your farm or ranch. Everyone. Every day. That’s why you […] Read more

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) has approved a new, liquid formulation, nutrient seed treatment for use on wheat, oats, barley and corn. Awaken ST is a seed-applied nutrient, with a micronutrient package including 5 per cent zinc plus boron, copper, iron, manganese and molybdenum. “Awaken ST puts nutrients where a germinating plant needs them […] Read more