Ag News

Canola oil would be one of the main beneficiaries of proposed changes to the 45Z Clean Fuel Production Credit making their way through U.S. Congress, says an analyst.

The feedstock is not eligible for the credit under the current rules because of its unfavourable carbon intensity (CI) score.

However, under new rules contained in the budget bill that recently passed through the U.S. House of Representatives, canola’s carbon intensity score drops to 38.5 grams of carbon dioxide per megajoule from 54.9.

MPs are returning to Ottawa for the opening of the 45th session of Parliament, and among them is Alberta Foothills MP John Barlow, the Conservative Shadow Minister for Agriculture and Agri-Food. Barlow is gearing up for what he describes as a challenging time for both the country and the agriculture sector, particularly due to ongoing trade and tariff issues.

The Killarney Foodgrains Grow Project is well on its way after last week's timely rains.  The 145-acre field located northeast of Killarney was seeded with Starbuck wheat on May 7th.

Field Manager, Myron Peters, says the Killarney project is celebrating their 15th year of raising funds and awareness of the extreme hunger that is around the world.

Crop would be eligible for biofuel tax credit under recent budget proposals in Congress

U.S. President Donald Trump’s “One Big Beautiful Bill” could contain some beautiful news for Canada’s canola growers.

The U.S. House of Representatives’ ways and means committee has released its draft proposals for the U.S. budget reconciliation bill.

The proposals include provisions to amend the controversial 45Z clean fuel production tax credit so that canola oil-based biodiesel and renewable diesel would be eligible for the credit.

Construction is underway at the University of Saskatchewan that will see critical facility improvements within the College of Agriculture and Bioresources.

Two new facilities are being built - the Harrington Plant Growth Facility and the Soil Science Field Facility - while a portion of the Crop Science Field Lab is being renovated to provide additional workspace for the Crop Development Centre. 

The span of rainy days in the southwestern corner of the province was a welcome relief as farmers were heading into the spring seeding season on very dry land.

Applied Research and Crop Specialist with WADO, Scott Chalmers, felt the area between Reston and Souris had the most rainfall.

The University of Saskatchewan’s Western College of Veterinary Medicine (WCVM) has secured over $194 million in funding, to be delivered over the next five years. This renewed interprovincial funding commitment from Manitoba, British Columbia, and Saskatchewan has been in place for over 60 years.

Through the agreement, WCVM provides essential veterinary medicine programming, research, and clinical services to meet the needs of each province. Saskatchewan and Manitoba each have 25 student seats, while British Columbia funds 40 seats.

Plant 2025 is well underway across the prairies and generally ahead of the seasonal averages.

Canada's Outlook for Principal Field Crops came out yesterday.

Some of the highlights for the 2025-26 growing season:

As farmers continue their seeding operations, the latest crop report brings a mix of optimism and caution. 

Crop Extension Specialist Tyce Masich says at this point 72 per cent of the provincial crop is now planted; that's an increase of 23 per cent from last week. 

He notes it's a smaller increase than the week before, largely due to rain delays in parts of the south and east regions of the province. 

Farmers have been experiencing rain delays as they work to complete their seeding operations.

Oilseed Specialist Sonia Wilson reports that recent rain events in Manitoba over the past eight days have brought much-needed precipitation to many areas. However, she remains hopeful that producers will soon be able to return to the fields.