Barley. (Photo courtesy Canada Beef Inc.)

Feed weekly outlook: Barley acreage buoyed despite current prices

MarketsFarm — International demand for Canadian feed barley has been strong thanks to a 2018 growing season drought in Australia that limited exportable supplies. China purchased nearly 950,000 tonnes of Canadian barley in the first seven months of the 2018-19 year, significantly above the five-year average. However, feed markets in general are quite sluggish ahead […] Read more

Parrish and Heimbecker’s domed grain terminal at Hamilton, in 2011. (ParrishandHeimbecker.com)

Parrish and Heimbecker to expand Hamilton flour mill, terminal

Prairie grain handler and processor Parrish and Heimbecker plans to become the single biggest user of Ontario-grown wheat with a major expansion of its newest flour mill. The privately-held Winnipeg company on Tuesday announced expansion work is now underway on both its mill and adjacent Lake Ontario harbour terminal at Hamilton. Few details were available […] Read more



This leaf yellowing was not uniformly distributed throughout the field, but a large proportion of the field had been affected.

Crop advisor casebook: Is a local lack of moisture injuring this barley?

A Crop Advisor's Solution from the April 9, 2019 issue of Grainews

John contacted me in late May last year about his barley crop. The plants were coming up yellow in patches across the field. John farms about 2,800 acres near Whitewood, Sask., where he grows wheat, barley, canola and soybeans. It had been a dry spring and John thought environmental stress due to lack of moisture had caused the plant injury. […] Read more


Barley growers impressed with VRT results

Barley growers impressed with VRT results

Crops hit yield and quality expectations, and bring an easier harvest

Data collected by Decisive Farming from several farms across Western Canada in a program using variable-rate technology (VRT) to produce malting barley crops in 2018 showed considerable production gains over industry averages. Data collected from 17 farms, involving about 9,300 acres of malt barley crops showed on acres seeded with both variable-rate seeding and fertilizer technology an average yield of 85 bushels per acre, […] Read more

Four tips for better barley production

Four tips for better barley production

Four tips to better barley production Whether or not you’re using variable rate technology in your malting barley crop, it is important to use due care and attention when establishing the cereal crop, say two long-time Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada researchers. John O’Donovan, now retired malting barley agronomist ,and Kelly Turkington, a plant pathologist with […] Read more


Should you spray twice for fusarium?

Should you spray twice for fusarium?

In a fusarium-filled field, are more applications better?

During a February 28 BASF’s “Protect Your Profits” fusarium webinar, a farmer who was watching asked whether, if you had a fusarium-prone field, it would be a good idea to plan to spray a fungicide twice to control fusarium. Dr. Michael Harding, plant pathology research scientist with Alberta Agriculture and Forestry, fielded the question. Harding […] Read more

Canada Malting’s processing plant in Montreal. (CanadaMalting.com)

Canada Malting to join GrainCorp’s global malting spinoff

The Australian owner of Canada’s biggest malt company plans to spin it off, along with its other worldwide malting assets, into a new stand-alone malt industry player. Sydney-based GrainCorp announced Thursday it plans to “demerge” its global malting business from its grains and edible oils business, forming two separate ASX-listed companies: MaltCo and “New GrainCorp.” […] Read more


Harvest weather so far this fall may cost barley end-users seeking malting-grade product this year, the CMBTC warns. (Dave Bedard photo)

Malt barley acreage predicted to increase

MarketsFarm — Industry experts expect malt barley acreage in Western Canada to increase by about five per cent this year, supported by strong prices for both feed and malt. “All indications suggest we’ll see an increase in malt barley, as well as feed,” confirmed Peter Watts of the Canadian Malting Barley Technical Centre. In light […] Read more