Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle futures gained modestly on Friday while anticipating strong prices for market-ready or cash cattle this week, traders said. December closed 0.55 cents per pound higher at 170.2 cents, and February at 171.275 cents up 0.25 cents (all figures US$). Processors are buying cattle for next week, […] Read more
U.S. livestock: Cash price expectations lift CME live cattle
Churchill caps off challenging year
CNS Canada — The harsh winter of 2013-14 appears to have taken a toll on the tonnage of grain and oilseeds shipped through Hudson Bay during its now-concluded shipping season. Just 540,000 tonnes of wheat and other products including durum and canola were shipped through the Port of Churchill in 2014. Last year, that number […] Read more
Germany to press EU for national right to ban GMOs before 2015 harvest
Berlin | Reuters — Germany is pressing the European Commission to allow individual EU countries to ban cultivation of crops with genetically modified organisms (GMOs) before the 2015 harvest. German farm minister minister Christian Schmidt said “social-economic reasons” should be taken into account to allow a European Union country to ban GMO crops even when […] Read more
WTO sees global trade pact within two weeks
Brisbane | Reuters –– The World Trade Organization said Friday there was a “high probability” that a major deal on streamlining global customs rules will be implemented within two weeks after India and the U.S. overcame a key impasse. “I would say that we have a high probability that the Bali package will be implemented […] Read more
Cargill to sell, shut Manitoba feed mills
Cargill’s Canadian arm has announced plans to get out of the livestock feed milling business in Manitoba. The U.S. agrifood firm’s Winnipeg-based Canadian office announced Thursday it will close its feed mill at Brandon, Man. It will also sell its feed mill in Winnipeg’s St. Boniface district to U.S. feed company Standard Nutrition for an […] Read more
Better-than-expected lentil crop faces market volatility
CNS Canada –– Despite a summer of excess moisture across much of the Prairies, lentils fared better than earlier expectations, according to Bobby Leavins, operations manager for Rayglen Commodities in Saskatoon. However, the crop’s grade spread is still very wide and prices are expected to be wide-ranging over the winter. “With all the moisture a […] Read more
Farm groups, ag tech companies agree on data privacy standards
Reuters — A consortium of farmer organizations and agriculture data technology providers on Thursday published a set of data privacy and security principles aimed at reassuring farmers that data they share with Big Data services providers will not be misused. The non-binding principles are also meant to provide companies that collect, store and analyze farmer […] Read more
Condo developer to ship canola oil to China, Canada says
Winnipeg | Reuters — A condominium developer has signed a $1 billion deal to export Canadian canola oil to China, according to the Canadian government. The deal was one of more than 20 commercial agreements signed during Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s visit to China, which wrapped up this week. The government said on its website […] Read more
U.S. grains: Wheat hits 2-1/2 month high on cold spell
Chicago | Reuters –– Chicago Board of Trade wheat rose for a fourth consecutive session on Thursday, reaching a 2-1/2-month high on short-covering and worries about a cold spell in the U.S. Corn neared a four-month high and soybeans firmed, recouping some of the previous session’s losses. At the CBOT, December wheat settled up 11 […] Read more
U.S. livestock: CME live cattle rise on cash price outlook
Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle futures settled higher Thursday in anticipation of steady or better prices for slaughter-ready or cash cattle this week, traders said. December closed 2.175 cents per pound higher at 169.925 cents, and February at 171.025 cents/lb. up 1.45 cents (all figures US$). Packers may have to compete […] Read more