The federal government's requirement that a certain amount of the research to be funded under the next five-year agricultural policy framework must focus on reducing greenhouse gas emissions is creating new complications for commodity groups applying for the funding. Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) has introduced new emissions- and climate-related criteria in the latest iteration... Read More
Category: Crop Production
Ontario set a new record for average winter wheat yield this year at 99.7 bu/ac. And as winter finally settles in on the province, RealAgriculture agronomist Peter "Wheat Pete" Johnson says conditions are ripe for the fall-planted crop to break more records in 2023. But Mother Nature will have a lot to say about that... Read More
There are so many insects in the world that most of them likely haven't been described yet. From some of the more common insects, such as the flea beetle, to a lesser-known such as a the beet webworm, this episode of The Agronomists tackles as much as we can in an hours' time. Host Lyndsey... Read More
The private member's bill that would exempt natural gas and propane used on farms for drying grain and heating barns from the federal carbon tax was approved, with amendments, by the House of Commons Standing Committee on Agriculture and Agri-Food on Monday. Bill C-234, originally introduced by Ontario Conservative MP Ben Lobb in February of... Read More
Jammed-full ports in Ontario are impacting basis and possible longer-term options for cash sales in the province, as laker traffic costs increase and tight freight access puts the squeeze on storage space along the St. Lawrence. Jeff Barlow, farmer from near Hamilton, Ont., and director with Grain Farmers of Ontario (GFO), doesn't usually ever have... Read More
Winter is not always kind to fall-planted wheat. Sometimes thin stands and winter kill make for a poor economic outlook and growers need to take it out and plant another crop. What do growers need to think about if they decide to switch to soybeans? Are there implications if a cereal herbicide had been applied... Read More
Seasonal movement off the lows of the pea and lentil markets hasn't resulted in much beyond sideways movement, says Chuck Penner, founder of Leftfield Commodity Research, based at Winnipeg, Manitoba. But there are some differences between red and green lentils and yellow and green peas. The challenging harvest weather in Australia is playing a significant... Read More
Regardless of the preparation and planning that goes into a crop, it’s weather that ultimately turns a struggling crop into a winner, or inhibits a crop from ever reaching its full potential. Jay Whetter, editor of Canola Digest for the Canola Council of Canada (CCC), says this year’s canola yields were dramatically impacted by the... Read More
As we well know, there's a lot that goes in to growing the "perfect" crop. SeedMaster Manufacturing has decided to show they are up to the challenge, creating a contest where a canola grower in Western Canada will win everything essential they need to grow a whole quarter section of canola. Dubbed the "160 Acres... Read More
If you're tired of hearing words such as "unprecedented" and "new normal," you're not alone. That said, over time, what is average or normal or expected does change and evolve. Take commodity prices, for example. Over the very long term, the bottom level resistance for wheat futures at one time was $2/bushel. Eventually, that rose... Read More