U.S. President Joe Biden tours a manufacturing lab at McHenry County College during a visit to northwest Chicago suburb Crystal Lake on July 7, 2021. (Photo: Reuters/Evelyn Hockstein)

Biden says administration engaged in talks to avert U.S. railroad strike

CN's U.S. operations would be affected

Nantucket | Reuters — U.S. President Joe Biden said on Thursday that his administration was involved in negotiations to avert a looming U.S. railroad strike that could shut down supply chains across the country but added that he has not directly engaged on the matter yet. Speaking to reporters outside a fire station on Nantucket […] Read more

BNSF crews clear track near Lemmon, S.D., about 300 km northeast of Rapid City, in late December 2016. (BNSF.com)

Biggest U.S. rail union rejects tentative deal, raising threat of strike

Union digs in on paid sick time

Washington/Los Angeles | Reuters — Workers at the largest U.S. rail union voted against a tentative contract deal reached in September, raising the possibility of a year-end strike that could cause significant damage to the U.S. economy and strand vital shipments of food and fuel. Train and engine service members of the transportation division of […] Read more


Five new, larger, seventh-generation 700 series Fendt tractors offer 203 to 303 peak engine horsepower.

New Fendt 700 series models

Seventh-generation models push the range to 303 horsepower

In late August, AGCO held an international press conference livestreamed from Germany, which focused on its Fendt brand. Attending that event (virtually) meant setting the alarm clock to be ready for its 3:30 a.m. Central Daylight Time start in Manitoba. Typical of press conferences held in Germany, it was loaded with a lot of detailed […] Read more

File photo of steam rising from the top of a grain dryer. (Diane Kuhl/iStock/Getty Images)

New farm fuel carbon tax rule to return to Commons

Further carbon pricing exemptions clear ag committee, with sunset clause added

A bill that would exempt more farm fuels from Canada’s federal carbon pricing scheme has cleared the Commons’ ag committee and returned to the House of Commons to seek a third and final vote. C-234, a private member’s bill sponsored by southwestern Ontario Conservative MP Ben Lobb, appeared before the Commons’ standing committee on agriculture […] Read more


File photo of a CN locomotive in Chicago. (Photo courtesy CN)

Third U.S. union rejects national rail contract deal

Two major unions' decisions due next week

Washington | Reuters — A third U.S. rail union voted on Monday to reject a tentative national contract reached in September, but expects to continue negotiating to reach a deal. The International Brotherhood of Boilermakers (IBB), which represents about 300 U.S. rail employees, rejected the agreement, said the union and the National Carriers’ Conference Committee […] Read more

File photo of barley being unloaded at a grain terminal in Ukraine on June 23, 2022. (Photo: Reuters/Igor Tkachenko)

Ukrainian farmers turn to U.N.-supplied grain sleeves for storage

'Last year's harvest still hasn't been sold'

Kyiv | Reuters — On a crisp and sunny November morning, Ukrainian farmers lined up to collect U.N.-supplied grain sleeves to store crops over winter as the country faces a significant shortage of storing capacity caused by Russian shelling. Ukraine has said it may lack up to 15 million tonnes of regular grain storage capacity […] Read more


A freight train at Manchac, La., about 75 km east of Baton Rouge. (CN.ca)

U.S. railroads, union extend strike deadline until at least Dec. 4

Teamsters warn against 'blatant attempt to cause panic'

Washington | Reuters — A group representing major railroads and a union that voted to reject a new contract said Wednesday they had agreed to extend a potential strike deadline until at least Dec. 4. The National Carriers’ Conference Committee (NCCC) and the International Brotherhood of Teamsters (BMWED) that represents 11,000 workers extended the current […] Read more

Nathan Yelland of Redhead Equipment, a Mack truck dealer, says most of his ag customers are now opting for newer trucks with auto-shift transmissions.

New or used?

Should that next new-to-you heavy grain truck be brand new?

In the past, when it came to planning equipment purchases, grain growers generally budgeted for an older heavy truck in the farm fleet. And that made sense. Farm trucks have a history of not logging anywhere near the miles in a year long-haul, over-the-road trucks do. Therefore, farmers could usually tolerate the more frequent repairs […] Read more


Tattle Systems allows producers to monitor pressurized
and liquid fuel tank levels remotely.

Tattle Systems monitors fuel levels

Remote software tracks fuel usage

Keeping track of on-farm fuel storage tank levels, especially during busy seasons, can be easy to forget. And nothing shuts down field operations or grain bin dryers faster than running out of fuel. An automated monitoring system can be a big help, ensuring tanks stay full. At the Ag in Motion farm show in Langham, […] Read more

The AWS Airbar mounts on
conventional straight-cut headers
and blows high-pressure air over the
knife to help reduce pod loss and
prevent material buildup that
could impede crop flow.

AWS Airbar claims pod-loss reduction

Airflow attachment fits most straight-cut headers to improve feeding

Low-hanging pods in crops like soybeans are often dropped by a conventional header, resulting in yield loss. That’s where Zac Corbin, sales and marketing manager for AWS Airbar, says his product can help. The AWS Airbar attachment is designed to blow material back and away from the knife up onto the draper belts where it […] Read more