Ottawa | Reuters — Markets that have closed their borders to Canadian beef after a case of mad cow disease was discovered account for just three per cent of Canadian trade, Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz said Tuesday. South Korea, Taiwan, Peru and Belarus have imposed trade restrictions on Canadian beef and beef products after Canada […] Read more
Canada says only three per cent of beef trade hurt by ban
Agrium profit beats Street, helped by higher grain prices
Reuters — Fertilizer and farm retail dealer Agrium reported a better-than-expected fourth-quarter profit helped by higher prices for most grains and oilseeds. The company also forecast 2015 profit to be $7 to $8.50 per share. Analysts on average expect a profit of $7.55 per share, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S. Agrium’s U.S.-listed shares rose two […] Read more
Peru, Taiwan, Belarus ban Canadian beef over BSE case
Reuters — Three more countries have blocked imports of Canadian beef or beef products, following Canada’s discovery of BSE earlier this month, its first in four years. Taiwan, Peru and Belarus have imposed trade restrictions on beef and/or beef products, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency said on Monday in an update on its website. The […] Read more
Pacific trade pact negotiators to meet in March
Washington | Reuters –– Chief negotiators for a Pacific trade deal will meet in Hawaii for talks in the second week of March, the U.S. trade office said Friday, a move which could delay a final agreement on the pact. Australian Trade Minister Andrew Robb said on Feb. 5 he hoped to agree on the […] Read more
Deere cuts profit forecast as farm equipment sales decline
Reuters — Farm equipment maker Deere and Co. posted a 43 per cent fall in first-quarter profit and cut its full-year profit forecast as lower corn prices and weak farm income weighed on demand for agricultural machinery. The company, which gets nearly two-thirds of its revenue from farm and turf machinery, cut its 2015 net […] Read more
Ireland says China agrees to lift ban on Irish beef
Dublin | Reuters –– China has agreed to lift its ban on Irish beef, Ireland’s Prime Minister Enda Kenny said Friday, making it the only European country to be allowed to export beef to both the U.S. and China. Ireland last month became the first European Union country to regain access to the lucrative U.S. […] Read more
U.S. EPA to propose biofuels standards this spring
Grapevine, Tex. | Reuters — The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency plans to put out a proposal that will address Renewable Fuels Standards for 2014, 2015 and 2016 this spring, an agency official at an industry conference in Grapevine, Tex., said Thursday. The agency will address all three years at once and plans to look at […] Read more
USDA sees reduced U.S. plantings of corn, soy, wheat in 2015-16
Washington | Reuters –– U.S. farmers will plant fewer acres of soybeans, corn, wheat and cotton in the 2015-16 marketing year in response to falling prices, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said on Thursday. At its annual Agricultural Outlook conference, USDA forecast lower prices for most major U.S. crops following bumper harvests in 2014-15. “Consecutive […] Read more
U.S. pork production seen at record high in 2015, beef lower
Washington | Reuters –– U.S. meat and poultry production will rise to a record 95.13 million pounds in 2015, with gains in pork and poultry output more than offsetting a slight drop in beef production, the U.S. Department of Agriculture forecast on Thursday. Total U.S. pork production was seen up 5.5 per cent at 24.09 […] Read more
S. Africa’s proposed ban on foreign land ownership aimed at farms
Johannesburg | Reuters — A South African government proposal to ban foreign nationals from owning land will apply to farms, not residential property, a government minister was quoted as saying Tuesday. In his State of the Nation address last week, President Jacob Zuma said foreigners would be barred from owning land and South African citizens […] Read more
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