ICE July 2023 canola with 20- and 50-day moving averages. (Barchart)

ICE weekly outlook: Canola showing independent strength

Prairie weather uncertainty supportive

MarketsFarm — ICE Futures’ canola market saw some independent strength relative to other oilseeds during the week ended Wednesday, as speculative positioning and the need to ration tight old-crop supplies provided support. Canadian canola stocks as of March 31 were pegged at 5.95 million tonnes by Statistics Canada in a report released Tuesday. That was […] Read more

CBOT July 2023 corn with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages. (Barchart)

U.S. grains: CBOT corn, soy, wheat fall on bearish weather

U.S. soy planting seen at near-record pace

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Board of Trade corn and soybean futures dropped on Tuesday, under pressure from a fast pace of planting across key production areas of the U.S. Midwest and an outlook for good growing weather once seeding is finished, traders said. Soft red winter wheat futures also weakened, with the benchmark CBOT […] Read more


Wheat midge could be a concern this year in both Saskatchewan and Alberta.

Prairie insect pest outlook for 2023

Grasshoppers top the threat list but flea beetles, wheat midge, lygus bug, cutworms, bertha army worm and wheat stem sawfly are also risks in some areas

The Prairie Pest Monitoring Network (PPMN) warns grasshoppers could be a problem for producers in Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta if hot, dry conditions during the growing season persist into 2023. The network’s annual grasshopper survey is conducted in late summer and early fall by estimating the density of adult insects, usually in ditches along cereal […] Read more

Photo: File

Rain, drought highlight different growing areas

Eastern Prairies to see improved rains

MarketsFarm — Depending on which region you’re in, you could be stuck in a severe drought or facing rains that will help alleviate that dryness or push back when fields should be dry enough to begin spring planting. That’s the assessment from Drew Lerner, president and senior agricultural meteorologist at World Weather Inc. at Overland […] Read more


CBOT July 2023 soybeans with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages. (Barchart)

U.S. grains: Chicago soy dips, corn flat as planting progresses

No agreement yet to extend Ukrainian export shipping

Mexico City | Reuters — Chicago soybeans ended down and corn was flat on Monday, as U.S. planting progressed ahead of last year and uncertainty over whether Ukraine’s safe shipping agreement for grain exports will be extended with the deal set to expire on May 18. Corn, one of the crops exported out of Ukraine, […] Read more

CBOT July 2023 corn with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages. (Barchart)

U.S. grains: Chicago grains end week up as no new Black Sea ships authorized

Markets also have eye toward U.S. crop report

Mexico City | Reuters — Chicago grains and soy ended the week higher on Friday as hopes dimmed for the renewal of a U.N.-brokered deal allowing the safe Black Sea exports of Ukraine grain. Ukraine, Russia, Turkey and the United Nations failed to reach an agreement to authorize any new vessels to carry out Black […] Read more





File photo of a CFIA vehicle. (Dave Bedard photo)

Gene-edited crops clear CFIA’s regulatory bar

Agency guidance puts gene editing on level of conventional breeding

Plants gene-edited for efficient use of water or nutrients or to better withstand pests or drought now won’t have to clear the same regulatory hurdles in Canada as any crops that are modified for herbicide tolerance or include foreign genes. Federal Agriculture Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau on Wednesday announced updated guidance from the Canadian Food Inspection […] Read more

Detail from the front of the CBOT building in Chicago. (Vito Palmisano/iStock/Getty Images)

U.S. grains: Wheat rallies as tensions rise between Russia, Ukraine

Recent rains may not be enough to save U.S. wheat, traders say

Mexico City | Reuters — Chicago wheat rebounded from a 25-month low to close higher on Wednesday, edging up on fresh tensions between Russia and Ukraine that cast doubt on the future of the Black Sea grains corridor, analysts said. Corn also gained on the tensions. Soybeans, meanwhile, followed with a rally after touching a […] Read more