Ag News

The Canada Grains Council (CGC) is pleased that the Federal Government is taking a strong stand on science-based regulation and rules-based trade.

Ottawa announced last week that it would be participating in the U.S. dispute settlement consultations with Mexico under the Canada-US-Mexico Agreement.

The Canadian cattle industry has seen some strong prices in the first half of 2023.

Brenna Grant, the Executive Director of Canfax, says the tight supplies in North America have been the underlying factor that's really driven the market to where we're at today.

The tighter supplies in the cattle sector have also resulted in higher prices at the grocery store.

During a recession, beef tends to do fairly well as long as prices with competing proteins stay within historical ranges,  if the other proteins go lower it could have an impact.

Prairie farm groups voiced their concern this week over the delay in moving Bill C-234 through the Senate.

The group includes the Keystone Agriculture Producers (KAP) in Manitoba, the Agricultural Producers Association of Saskatchewan (APAS), and the Alberta Federation of Agriculture (AFA).

The Conservative Private Members Bill C-234 would see farmers exempt from paying the carbon tax on propane and natural gas used on farms for drying grain and heating barns.

Consolidation is happening more and more in the ag sector from farm input companies to equipment dealers and grain elevators.

Agricultural commentator  and farmer Kevin Hursh thinks the farm reaction to the merger will be fairly muted as there are many delivery choices for farmers.

There's some concern about the loss of competition in the grain sector with the proposed merger of two mega rivals in the grain industry.

The announcement of a merger between U.S. based Bunge and Viterra would create a global agribusiness worth about U.S. $34 billion.

Bunge's purchase offer of U.S. $8.2 billion dollars will see Viterra shareholders receive 65.6 million shares of Bunge stock (valued at U.S. $6.2 billion) and U.S. $2 billion in cash.

Southern Alberta has so far been spared the forest fires ravaging Central and Northern parts of the province.

However, drought is a big concern according to Foothills County Reeve Delilah Miller.

"We're going through some pretty hard drought conditions right now and if it gets any worse we're going to have to go after the Province to look at some drought mitigation for our farmers and ranchers here but we're hoping for rain and if we get it in the next short while it could certainly help the situation with our producers," she says.

U.S.-based Bunge has signed a deal to merge with Viterra in a stock and cash transaction.

The deal will create a global agribusiness company estimated to be worth over U.S $30 billion including debt.

The press release notes that under the terms of the agreement, which was unanimously approved by the Boards of Directors of Bunge and Viterra, Viterra shareholders would receive approximately 65.6 million shares of Bunge stock, with an aggregate value of approximately U.S .$6.2 billion, and approximately U.S. $2 billion in cash.

Earlier this month, the U.S. filed a dispute settlement consultation request under the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement (CUSMA) based on Mexico's decision to ban the use of biotechnology corn in tortillas and dough.

Mexico's president says they also plan to gradually substitute the use of biotechnology corn in all products, and reject applications for the importation and sale of certain biotechnology products.

On Friday, Canada announced that it would be a third party in the claim.

The province's funding allocation for the Short Line Railway Improvement Program for  2023-24 was announced late last week.

Highways Minister Jeremy Cockrill says $530,000 in grant funding will be divided between the province's 13 short lines.

"The short-line rail industry plays a pivotal role in bolstering our economy by efficiently transporting agricultural goods and a multitude of other products across our growing province."

It is good practice to test your livestock water sources multiple times a year and especially throughout the summer to monitor quality. Water samples can be submitted to a Ministry of Agriculture regional office or many Saskatchewan Crop Insurance Corporation (SCIC) offices for quality screening at any time during the year.