(Thinkstock photo)

Prairie cash wheat: Bids drop with U.S. futures

Canadian dollar also down on week

MarketsFarm — Spring wheat bids in Western Canada moved lower during the week ended Thursday, as U.S. wheat futures posted losses — although softness in the Canadian dollar did provide some underlying support. Average Canada Western Red Spring (CWRS, 13.5 per cent protein) wheat prices were down by $3.50-$6.40 per tonne across the Prairies, according […] Read more

CBOT March 2023 soft red winter wheat with 20-day moving average (green line), MGEX March 2023 hard red spring wheat (yellow line) and K.C. March 2023 hard red winter wheat (orange line). (Barchart)

U.S. grains: Wheat plunges to three-month low on export competition

Corn also down on weak demand, soybeans rise after selloff

Winnipeg | Reuters — Chicago wheat extended losses on Friday to a fresh three-month low as modest weekly U.S. exports kept traders’ focus on competition from cheaper Black Sea supplies. Corn also fell, while soybeans rebounded, consolidating after a selloff in the previous session over disappointing U.S. biofuels levels. The most-active wheat contract on the […] Read more


Huawei chief financial officer Meng Wanzhou leaves her family home in Vancouver in this May 8, 2019 file photo. (Photo: Reuters/Lindsey Wasson)

U.S. judge dismisses indictment against Huawei executive

Related charges remain against company

New York | Reuters — A U.S. judge on Friday dismissed an indictment against Meng Wanzhou, the chief financial officer of Huawei Technologies, formally ending a criminal sanctions case that strained U.S.-China and Canada-China relations. Meng, whose father Ren Zhengfei founded Huawei and is the telecommunications company’s chief executive, entered an agreement with U.S. prosecutors […] Read more

(Dave Bedard photo)

StatCan data show smaller Canadian canola, durum production

Report also logs more barley, oats than previous estimates

MarketsFarm — Canadian farmers grew less canola and durum than originally thought in 2022, but more barley and oats, according to updated production estimates from Statistics Canada released Friday. “There were both bullish and bearish surprises,” MarketsFarm Pro analyst Mike Jubinville said. While canola production of 18.174 million tonnes was still up considerably from the […] Read more


Huawei chief financial officer Meng Wanzhou leaves B.C. Supreme Court on a lunch break during her extradition hearing in Vancouver on Jan. 22, 2020. (Photo: Reuters/Jennifer Gauthier)

Huawei executive’s U.S. bank fraud charges to be dismissed

Charges remain against company itself

Reuters — U.S. prosecutors on Thursday asked a judge to dismiss bank fraud and other charges against Meng Wanzhou, the chief financial officer of China’s Huawei Technologies, whose 2018 arrest strained relations between the U.S. and China. Meng struck a deal with the prosecutors last year for the charges against her to be dismissed on […] Read more

File photo of a BNSF grain train crossing the Gassman Coulee trestle near Minot, North Dakota. (Photo courtesy BNSF Railway)

Biden administration makes case for quick Senate vote to avoid rail shutdown

Bill imposing deal on workers clears House

Washington | Reuters — The Biden administration on Thursday urged the U.S. Senate to quickly pass a bill to block a railroad strike, warning that serious economic disruptions could be felt within days. The U.S. House of Representatives on Wednesday voted to approve a bill to impose a tentative contract deal reached in September on […] Read more


(Scharfsinn86/iStock/Getty Images)

U.S. EPA proposes revamp of biofuel program to include EVs

Mandated biofuel levels to rise through 2025

New York | Reuters — U.S. President Joe Biden’s administration on Thursday unveiled a three-year proposal to expand the U.S. biofuels policy with bigger volume mandates and — for the first time — to include a pathway for electric vehicle manufacturers to generate lucrative credits. Biden wants to fight climate change by reducing fossil fuel […] Read more

(Photo courtesy Canada Beef Inc.)

Feed weekly outlook: Looming corn imports to keep lid on Prairie barley

MarketsFarm — Large shipments of corn from the U.S., slated for delivery to Alberta’s feedlot alley, should keep domestic barley prices under pressure going forward, according to an analyst. “The barley price here will gradually decline,” said Errol Anderson of Pro Market Communications in Calgary, adding that up to 30 unit trains of U.S. corn […] Read more


CBOT January 2023 soybeans (candlesticks, right column) with 20- and 100-day moving averages and CBOt January 2023 soyoil (blue line, left column). (Barchart)

U.S. grains: Soy snaps win streak on disappointing biofuel mandates

Wheat falls on export sale data; soy weakness weighs on corn

Winnipeg | Reuters — Chicago soybeans fell on Thursday, snapping five days of gains as soybean oil sold off sharply after the U.S. government proposed smaller-than-expected biofuels blending requirements. Wheat slid on disappointing export sales, while soybean weakness dragged corn lower. The most-active soybean contract on the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) settled down 39-3/4 […] Read more

Keep on target

Keep on target

Strategies to minimize pesticide spray drift on your farm

Spray drift is defined as the off-target movement of pesticide dust or droplets through the air at the time of application or soon after. It can have serious implications for neighbouring farmers and other property owners. It’s an issue that has been around almost as long as pesticides have been used to protect crops against […] Read more