Export-oriented Canadian farmers are giving the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement reached in Atlanta on Monday two thumbs up. The deal, which remains to be debated in Canada’s House of Commons and could take more than a year to be ratified by all 12 member countries, will see tariffs on Canadian products in those markets eliminated […] Read more

Dawson: Ag exporters applaud historic TPP deal

Jimsonweed not a threat to canola oil, meal safety
Canada’s canola oil and meal will remain safe to consume even if some jimsonweed seeds end up in it, according to Curtis Rempel, vice-president of crop production and innovation at the Canola Council of Canada (CCC). “While jimsonweed itself can be poisonous, the heating process in canola oil and meal processing denatures toxic alkaloids, so […] Read more

Dawson: Moisture may trigger more Man. crop claims than frost
Excessive moisture in Manitoba from the Victoria Day long weekend might result in more crop insurance claims than frost. “From our perspective the amount of rain and snow that came with this storm is probably as big a concern as the frost itself,” David Van Deynze, Manitoba Agricultural Services Corp.’s manager of claim services, said […] Read more

Dawson: Time to assess crops for frost, water damage
Each day it gets easier to assess how much damage frost and excessive moisture did to Manitoba crops over the Victoria Day long weekend. Farmers can expect their soybeans to emerge this week because of warm and sunny conditions — and that germination will probably suffer in some soybean fields. “I’m expecting to see a […] Read more

NDSU issues warning on Elgin wheat sales
Some U.S. seedsmen may be approaching Canadian growers to sell them certified Elgin-ND seed
FP Genetics is the only legal source for Elgin-ND pedigreed seed in Canada and this spring all its seed is going to Western Canadian seed growers to produce certified seed for commercial production in 2016. Those who try to get seed from American suppliers are breaking plant breeders’ rights laws and face heavy penalties, warns […] Read more

Ritz’s Agricultural Growth Act now law
Banff — There was applause here when plant breeders, seed companies and farmers at the Prairie Recommending Committee for Wheat, Rye and Triticale heard the Agricultural Growth Act, with its stronger intellectual property rights, was about to receive royal assent. Immediately after the bill received royal assent Wednesday, Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz tabled a treaty […] Read more

CGC producer protection being revamped, may include feed mills
The Canadian Grain Commission (CGC) is considering adding feed mills to its producer protection program, as part of an overhaul of the program proposed in the federal government’s Bill C-48. C-48, dubbed the Modernization of Canada’s Grain Industry Act, got its first reading Tuesday in the House of Commons. Adding feed mills to the mix […] Read more

Canadian Forage and Grassland Association short of funds, and a manager
The Canadian Forage and Grassland Association (CFGA) set up five years ago to help Canada’s struggling forage and grassland industry is struggling itself, but vows to carry on despite a shortage of funds and the resignation of its executive director, Ron Pidskalny. “Nobody is saying we’re going to have to shut it down,” CFGA chair […] Read more

CWB says it’s not for sale
Manitoba Co-operator — CWB isn’t a grain company on the auction block, it’s a company looking for a new partner, who along with farmer-shareholders, will help it grow to serve western Canadian farmers better. “I think there is a misunderstanding about what CWB is trying to do,” Dayna Spiring, CWB’s chief strategy officer said in […] Read more

Have you got green standing canola in mid-September?
Consider swathing canola now — or at least a few days before the next expected killing frost, according to Manitoba Agriculture, Food and Rural Development’s oilseed specialist Anastasia Kubinec. And if standing canola is frozen, be prepared to swath it as soon as possible, she said in an interview Monday. Swathing too soon can reduce […] Read more