ICE November 2021 canola (candlesticks) with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages (yellow, dark green and black lines). (Barchart)

ICE weekly outlook: Canola feeling the energy

Canola riding on fuels' bullish momentum

MarketsFarm — ICE Futures canola contracts moved steadily higher over the week ended Wednesday, hitting the top-end of a three month trading range. While tight Canadian supplies due to a Prairie drought have underpinned the market for some time, the latest strength and any future direction may be more closely tied to movement in energy […] Read more

Wheat being loaded onto a cargo ship in Vancouver in 2011. (File photo: Reuters/Ben Nelms)

Exports tumble as supplies simply not there

'There's very little to sell'

MarketsFarm — Cereal and oilseed exports out of Canada nosedived in August just as the 2021-22 marketing began, according to the monthly export report from the Canadian Grain Commission (CGC). At about 2.24 million tonnes, total grain exports were down 38.5 per cent overall compared to those in August 2020. “There’s very little to sell. […] Read more


The concept of using biostimulants on crops isn’t new, but farmers remain cautious, realizing all that glitters may not be gold.

Farmers still cautious about biostimulants

Farmer Panel: Some benefits observed, but questions continue about if, when and where they produce consistent results

Western Canadian farmers aren’t exactly stampeding to crop supply retailers looking for biostimulant products that offer to improve crop production. That’s the view of at least a sampling of Prairie producers when asked for this September’s farmer panel on what they think about biological and biostimulant products applied to soil, seed or as foliar treatments. Producers […] Read more

A canola crop in the RM of Fletts Springs, just northwest of the RM of Pleasantdale, in 2019.

Canada’s drought forces canola importers to turn elsewhere

'Importers...are going to be left out in the cold'

Winnipeg | Reuters — Canada’s smallest canola harvest in 13 years, resulting from severe drought, is forcing importers like Japan and Mexico to pay more or scour other countries for the yellow-flowering oilseed. With the scant available Canadian canola fetching high prices, customers of the world’s biggest canola exporter are leaning more heavily on smaller-producing […] Read more



(Fertilizer Safety and Security Council)

Mandated cuts in fertilizer use could be costly for Canada, report warns

Fertilizer industry study, based on EU plan, points to yield losses for corn, canola, wheat

Straight-up cuts in fertilizer rates — if imposed to help Canada meet its targets for cuts in emissions by the end of this decade — could translate to significantly reduced income for farmers, an industry group warns. Fertilizer Canada, the group representing manufacturers, wholesale and retail distributors for nitrogen, phosphate, potash and sulphur, on Monday […] Read more


A farmer applies micronutrients in the fall.

Micronutrient application tips

A look at copper, zinc and boron and other pointers on fertility application

Micronutrients may only be required in small doses, but that doesn’t make them less important to your crops, and fall can be a good time to address any deficiencies. “Much like nitrogen and phosphorus, micronutrients play a critical role in crop production and yield,” says Rigas Karamanos, senior agronomist with Koch Agronomic Services. Micronutrients make […] Read more

ICE November 2021 canola (candlesticks) with Bollinger bands (20,2). (Barchart)

ICE weekly outlook: Analyst sees canola spike late next month

Movement expected to roll out of November soon

MarketsFarm — As the canola harvest winds down on the Prairies, ICE Futures canola began to climb upward in approaching $900 per tonne, the upper limit of its range. That’s given Winnipeg-based analyst Wayne Palmer of Exceed Grain reason to believe canola will bust through $900 per tonne. “That’s all due to the drought and […] Read more


In both wheat and barley, boron deficiency causes the unfertilized cereal grain flowers to open up just like open pollinated rye. The consequences of deficiencies are failure to set seed, as in canola and wheat, and, in barley, the open, exposed cereal flowers can have very high levels of ergot.

Bring on the boron

Boron deficiency can cause failure to set seed and ergot infection

Over the last few years in the Prairies, there has been something of a resurgence of interest in boron. This micronutrient is critical for normal plant growth, particularly crop maturity, and water balance — and is a key factor in seed set and crop yield. In man and animals, this micronutrient is essential for weight […] Read more

The strength or weakness of a basis at any point in time can be viewed as a bellwether that informs grain sellers where the market is at, and where it might be headed.

Have you got your basis covered?

To score a grain marketing home run, understand and monitor basis levels

Basis is a marketing instrument utilized by grain handling companies to attract grain when they need it or to discourage delivery when they don’t. Used for crops that have an active futures trading market like wheat and canola, basis is the difference between a local cash price for a commodity and its price on the […] Read more