File photo of a container vessel being unloaded at a U.K. port. (Sterling750/iStock/Getty Images)

Britain begins negotiations to join Trans-Pacific pact

London | Reuters — Britain will begin negotiations on Tuesday to join a trans-Pacific trade deal that it sees as crucial to its post-Brexit pivot away from Europe and toward geographically more distant but faster-growing economies. The Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) removes 95 per cent of tariffs between its members: Japan, […] Read more

File photo of containers at a seaport in Jakarta. (Leolintang/iStock/Getty Images)

Canada, Indonesia launch trade pact talks

First round of negotiations expected later this year

Canada has formally declared it will start negotiations this year on a trade pact with Indonesia, a move ag exporters hope will stabilize and strengthen their market access to the Asia-Pacific region. Canada’s Trade Minister Mary Ng and her Indonesian counterpart Muhammad Lutfi on Sunday declared the launch of negotiations on a comprehensive economic partnership […] Read more


Nutrien’s potash mine near Rocanville, Sask. (Nutrien.com)

Nutrien to further bump up potash output

'Continued tightening' in market cited as potash producer Belarus sanctioned

Winnipeg | Reuters — Canadian fertilizer producer Nutrien said Monday it would boost its 2021 potash output by 500,000 tonnes, after the European Union and others imposed new trade sanctions on Belarus. Nutrien’s increase takes its potash sales outlook this year to a record-high range of 13.3 million to 13.8 million tonnes, and follows a […] Read more

A view of BHP’s potash mine project north of Jansen, Sask. (BHP.com)

BHP delaying decision on Saskatchewan potash project

Jansen mine decision to be delayed by a few months

Melbourne | Reuters — BHP Group expects to present its board with a decision on whether to proceed with its Jansen potash project in Saskatchewan in a few months’ time — rather than mid-year — after choosing between two port options, an executive said on Thursday. The world’s biggest miner has estimated the project at […] Read more


(MyLand.ag)

AGI to buy into soil microbe breeding firm

Machinery maker to take minority stake in MyLand

A U.S. company ramping up a system to harvest, reproduce and restore beneficial microbes from a field’s own soils, as a way to restore peak fertility, expects to get backing soon from a Canadian farm equipment maker. Winnipeg-based Ag Growth International (AGI) said Monday it has signed a conditional letter of intent with Phoenix-based MyLand […] Read more

A Richardson Pioneer grain elevator in Saskatchewan on July 28, 2017. (Scott Prokop Photography/CNW Group/Richardson International)

Richardson building new southwestern Saskatchewan elevator

On-site crop inputs facility to follow

Winnipeg grain firm Richardson International has started work on a new high-throughput grain elevator in southwestern Saskatchewan, to be bookended by smaller elevators it already operates in the region. The company said Monday it began construction work earlier this month at Carmichael, about 65 km southwest of Swift Current, about three km south of the […] Read more


(Canada Border Services Agency video screengrab)

Canada taking first step toward lifting border restrictions

U.S. border restrictions still in place until at least June 21

Ottawa | Reuters — Canada on Wednesday took a cautious first step toward easing COVID-19 border restrictions, saying it was prepared to relax quarantine protocols for fully vaccinated citizens returning home starting in early July. Canada’s air and land borders have allowed for only essential travel since March of last year, and Canadians coming home […] Read more

Nutrien’s potash facility at Vanscoy, Sask. (Nutrien.com)

Nutrien to boost potash output on global demand

Reuters — Fertilizer company Nutrien said Monday it expects to increase potash production by about half a million tonnes in the second half of the year compared to earlier expectations, due to strong global demand. As crop prices rise, farmers have greater incentive to use fertilizer and maximize yields, boosting potash demand and spurring a […] Read more



To hit up problem weeds, such as herbicide-resistant kochia (far left photo), Alberta farmer Dallas Vert applies a post-harvest weed control treatment of Valtera. Last year, Saskatchewan farmer Dallas Leduc’s post-harvest application of Roundup ProActive 360 tank mixed with four ounces of 2,4-D worked well on Canada thistle (middle photo) and narrow-leaved hawk’s beard (right) on his farm.

Zap troublesome weeds in the fall

Whether it works best pre- or post-harvest depends on several factors

A sampling of western Canadian producers, when asked about their fall weed control measures, have most generally agreed that either a pre- or post-harvest herbicide application is a valuable management tool. Most of the farmers contacted leaned toward a post-harvest treatment with a glyphosate product, although there are a number of caveats that come into […] Read more