The USDA building in Washington, D.C. (Art Wager/iStock/Getty Images)

Global wheat production to decrease, USDA says

MarketsFarm — In the latest supply and demand report from U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), the global wheat forecast was revised downward due to difficult weather conditions. USDA has now projected 765.53 million tonnes of wheat to be produced in 2019-20, according to the department’s world agriculture supply and demand estimates (WASDE), released Thursday. That’s […] Read more



New barley breeding efforts aim for a replacement for AC Metcalfe

New barley breeding efforts aim for a replacement for AC Metcalfe

Breeders have recently focused their efforts on the craft brewers

Aaron Beattie is a barley breeder at the University of Saskatchewan’s Crop Development Centre. Beattie is looking for a replacement for AC Metcalfe. AC Metcalfe is a high enzymatic variety, so it’s suitable for large-scale brewers. A new variety, CDC Fraser, is also high in enzymes and offers more in terms of disease resistance and […] Read more



(Country Guide file photo)

Prairie wheat bids edge lower

MarketsFarm — Wheat bids in Western Canada edged lower during the week ended Thursday, as seasonal harvest pressure and strength in the Canadian dollar weighed on values. The Canadian dollar was up by roughly a third of a cent relative to its U.S. counterpart on the week. Minneapolis spring wheat futures held steady, but Kansas […] Read more

File photo of wheat being loaded onto a bulk vessel at port in Russia. (YGrek/iStock/Getty Images)

Brazil expected to introduce tariff-free wheat import quota from 2020

Sao Paulo | Reuters — Brazil is expected to introduce a tariff-free wheat import quota of 750,000 tonnes per year starting from 2020, the president of the country’s wheat industry group Abitrigo, Rubens Barbosa, said on Tuesday. Brazil announced the opening of the tariff-free wheat import quota earlier this year in connection with President Jair […] Read more


AC Metcalfe is one of the most popular malt barley varieties.

New malting barley variety acceptance an uphill battle

While the industry works to market new varieties, farmers seed the old standbys

Farmers choosing malt barley seed in the spring of 2019 would have seen CDC Copeland and AC Metcalfe at the top of the list of recommended varieties published by the Canadian Malting Barley Technical Centre (CMBTC). CDC Copeland was registered 20 years ago, in 1999. AC Metcalfe was registered in 1997. While the list includes newer varieties, barley […] Read more

(Country Guide file photo)

Cash wheat: Western Canadian bids mixed

MarketsFarm — Wheat bids in Western Canada were mixed for the week ended Thursday. Small gains and marginal losses were observed in CWRS, CPSR and durum wheats. Average CWRS (Canada Western Red Spring, 13.5 per cent protein) wheat prices were down $3-$5 per tonne at most locations. The outlier was in northwestern Saskatchewan, where prices […] Read more


A barley crop south of Ethelton, Sask. on July 30, 2019. (Dave Bedard photo)

Feed weekly outlook: New-crop expectations weigh on bids

MarketsFarm — Feed grain bids in Western Canada have trended lower over the past month amid expectations for large barley production and concerns over possible downgrades to wheat quality. “We’ve definitely seen (barley prices) soften up quite a bit,” said grain broker Nelson Neumann of Agfinity at Stony Plain, Alta. New-crop feed barley is trading […] Read more

(Doug Wilson photo courtesy ARS/USDA)

Large oat production won’t move prices

MarketsFarm — While the most recent crop production report from Statistics Canada predicted significantly more oats than originally expected, prices will likely remain stable. Statistics Canada estimated 3.952 million tonnes of oats will be grown in 2019, up considerably from the 3.436 million tonnes produced in 2018. But low carryover stocks from previous years means […] Read more