CBOT November 2023 soybeans with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages. (Barchart)

U.S. grains: Soybeans run up to three-week high on hot, dry weather

Wheat eases on Ukrainian export efforts

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago soybeans rose for a fourth straight session on Monday, reaching a three-week high as hot, dry U.S. conditions fueled concerns over crop stress. Wheat fell as Ukraine sought new Black Sea avenues for export, adding pressure to corn futures. Markets were awaiting results from the annual Pro Farmer crop tour, […] Read more

Smoke rises from a wildfire near Wildwood, Alta., about 100 km west of Edmonton, on May 5, 2023. (Photo: Alberta Wildfire/Handout via Reuters)

Alberta farmers granted late AgriStability entry

Enrolment deadline now Sept. 29

Any Alberta producers who were considering AgriStability — but only in hindsight — for the income stabilization plan’s 2023 program year now have until Sept. 29 to apply. Ottawa and the province announced Aug. 4 that they’ve reopened the jointly-funded program, as wildfires and/or “extremely dry” growing conditions have dragged on many Alberta producers’ work […] Read more


File photo of a sunrise over an Alberta barley crop. (MNphotography/iStock/Getty Images)

Feed weekly outlook: Crop conditions, barley demand lower

Prices expected steady to lower for now

MarketsFarm — As combining operations begin, dryness continues to plague crops in many parts of Saskatchewan. But while crop conditions aren’t as bad as they were during the drought of 2021, according to trader Evan Peterson from JGL Commodities in Saskatoon, crops are still very parched. “Southern and western parts are very, very poor. But […] Read more

ICE November 2023 canola with Bollinger bands (20,2). (Barchart)

ICE weekly outlook: Canola prices ‘cheap’ but rangebound

Trade also watching U.S. soy complex

MarketsFarm — ICE Futures canola contracts held relatively rangebound during the week ended Wednesday, in choppy activity as traders wait to get a clearer picture on the size of this year’s crop. “Overall, canola is relatively cheap,” said Ken Ball of PI Financial in Winnipeg. He pointed to wide crush margins — over $200 per […] Read more


Mature winter wheat. (Allan Dawson photo)

Manitoba’s crops continue to hold up 

Hay yields generally below average; pasture conditions were deteriorating due to dryness

MarketsFarm – Timely rains in Manitoba have kept the province’s crops in relatively good shape, according to the latest crop report. Manitoba Agriculture said precipitation as of Aug. 1 amounted to as much as 73 millimeters around Zhoda in the southeast to 13 mm at The Pas in the north. Although several locales throughout the […] Read more

  Photo: Reuters/Valentyn Ogirenko/File

Saskatchewan crops a mixed bag 

Some cereal crops beyond harvesting with plans to salvage for feed

Marketsfarm – There was a wide mixture of the results in the latest crop report from Saskatchewan Agriculture. Parts of the province were hobbled by drought conditions, while other areas received upwards to 40 millimetres of rain following a series of thunderstorms during the week of July 18 to 26.  The desiccation of pulse crops […] Read more


Wheat in progress west of Pathlow, Sask. on Aug. 1, 2022. (Dave Bedard photo)

At Ag in Motion: World may face wheat shortage this year

An analyst says millers should be getting antsy

Wheat is finally becoming a “sexy” crop after years of being the ugly duckling, an analyst says. Stephen Nicholson, global grains and oilseeds strategist for Rabobank, said a series of supply-side threats is making things exciting. Canada’s crops are withering in the fields. MarketsFarm is forecasting 30.4 million tonnes of all-wheat production, well below the […] Read more

(Dave Bedard photo)

Flax production to drop with fewer acres, dry conditions

'Prices are definitely going to be climbing'

MarketsFarm — As with other crops on the Canadian Prairies, flax has been struggling with the hot and dry conditions across the region. That said, Scott Shiels of Grain Millers Canada at Yorkton, Sask. noted there’s very little doubt when it comes to flax prices increasing during the course of 2023. Presently, old-crop flax was […] Read more



File photo of a sunflower crop in Manitoba. (MysticEnergy/Getty Images)

Manitoba sunflowers doing well with fewer acres

Few pest, weed problems appear so far

MarketsFarm — Despite fewer acres under hot and dry conditions, things are going well for Manitoba’s sunflower crop. Out of the 88,000 acres planted for sunflowers across Canada, 77,000 of them are in Manitoba, according to Statistics Canada’s (StatCan) principal field crop acreage estimates released June 28. Both figures represent the fewest number of acres […] Read more