Canola south of Ethelton, Sask. on Aug. 3, 2017. (Dave Bedard photo)

Canada’s canola acres up from earlier forecast

Wheat acres up; barley, oats, corn revised lower

MarketsFarm –– Canadian farmers seeded more canola in 2021 than originally intended, with a number of other crops also seeing adjustments higher as dry weather through the planting season allowed for a fast seeding pace. In its June estimates of principal field crop areas, released Tuesday, Statistics Canada pegged total canola planted area at 22.5 […] Read more



EU flags in front of the headquarters of the European Commission in Brussels. (Jorisvo/iStock/Getty Images)

EU countries approve deal to overhaul farming subsidies

Subsidies to focus on sustainability, 'eco-schemes'

Brussels | Reuters — European Union countries on Monday gave the green light to reforms of the bloc’s huge farming subsidy program, after a three-year battle over rules to make it greener and support smaller farms. Negotiators representing the EU’s 27 countries and European Parliament struck the deal on Friday to reform the Common Agricultural […] Read more

CBOT December 2021 corn with 20- and 100-day moving averages (blue and dark green lines) and MGEX, CBOT and K.C. September 2021  wheats (black, yellow and orange lines). (Barchart)

U.S. grains: CBOT corn, soy, wheat rally as hot forecasts trump rains

MGEX September wheat also climbs

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Board of Trade corn, soybeans and wheat rallied on Monday, with traders focused on forecasts for heat in the western U.S. Midwest that will quickly dry out soils in major production areas. “The forward forecasts have the heat that is presently over the Pacific Northwest to move over the western […] Read more


(Thinkstock photo)

Prairie cash wheat: Drought sends bids higher

U.S. July wheat futures up on week

MarketsFarm — Mounting drought concerns in the spring wheat-growing regions of Canada and the U.S. saw Prairie cash bids post solid gains during the week ended Thursday. Average CWRS (13.5 per cent) wheat prices were up by $18-$21 per tonne, according to price quotes from a cross-section of delivery points compiled by PDQ (Price and […] Read more

(Dave Bedard photo)

Canola, wheat acres in opposite trends before StatsCan report

'Every commodity was offering options that were profitable'

MarketsFarm — Just days prior to Statistics Canada issuing its latest survey-based crop acreage report on Tuesday next week, analysts are estimating a rise in canola acres at the expense of wheat. “Coming through the winter and towards spring seeding, we were looking at canola prices that were at their highest levels of all time,” […] Read more


CBOT December 2021 corn (candlesticks) with 20-day moving average (yellow line) and MGEX, CBOT and K.C. September 2021 wheats (black, green and orange lines). (Barchart)

U.S. grains: Court ruling, rains pressure corn, soy

CBOT wheat down, MGEX spring wheat up

Chicago | Reuters — Corn and soybean futures tumbled on Friday after a U.S. Supreme Court ruling bolstered a bid by small oil refineries seeking exemptions from laws requiring them to blend ethanol or other biofuels into their products, traders said. “Each time the markets start to stabilize, having priced in the latest round of […] Read more

(ThamKC/iStock/Getty Images)

U.S. Supreme Court backs refineries in biofuel waiver dispute

Top court overturns ruling against EPA granting waivers

Reuters — The U.S. Supreme Court on Friday made it easier for small oil refineries to win exemptions from a federal law requiring increasing levels of ethanol and other renewable fuels to be blended into their products, a major setback for biofuel producers. The justices overturned a lower court decision that had faulted the U.S. […] Read more


CBOT November 2021 soybeans (candlesticks) with Bollinger bands (20,2) and ICE November 2021 canola (yellow line, left column). (Barchart)

U.S. grains: Soybean futures fall after rain

Chicago corn, wheat futures both mixed

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Board of Trade corn soybean futures fell on Thursday, pressured by rain in key growing areas of the U.S. Midwest this week, traders said. “I think it is probably confirmation of fairly widespread rain in areas that were in really dire straits,” said Chuck Shelby, president of Risk Management Commodities. […] Read more

Fall herbicide applications can be an important tool to kill weeds like Canada thistle.

Your overview of pre- and post-harvest herbicide applications

Q & A with an expert

Q: What can I do to control perennial weeds on my farm?  A: Late or end-of-season herbicide applications present growers with an opportunity to gain long-term control over tough-to-kill perennial weed populations.  The main goal of this application should be weed control and not hastening crop maturity. In fields with weed populations composed of quackgrass, […] Read more