British Columbia plans to make another $9 million available to farmers through “enhancements” to AgriStability for the 2019 and 2020 program years. The province on Thursday announced it will increase the compensation rate available through the federal/provincial income stabilization program from 70 per cent to 80 per cent when margins fall below the 30 per […] Read more

B.C. to punch up AgriStability
Reference margin limit eliminated for 2019, 2020

Bayer considers new tactic in Roundup settlement talks
Reuters — As Bayer tries to settle U.S. lawsuits claiming that its Roundup herbicide causes cancer, the company is considering a proposal that would bar plaintiffs’ lawyers involved in the litigation from advertising for new clients, according to a person familiar with the matter. Bayer has said it is engaged in mediation to resolve the […] Read more

U.S. grains: Soybeans, wheat fall as coronavirus spreads
Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Board of Trade soybean futures fell on Friday, their ninth straight day of losses, as concerns about the coronavirus cutting into Chinese demand beat back any attempts at a bargain-buying bounce, traders said. The losing streak marks the longest for the most-active soybean futures contract since a 10-day stretch that […] Read more

CN conductors approve post-strike deal
Canadian National Railway’s conductors and yard workers have voted for at least another two and a half years of labour peace with the company. The affected employees, members of the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference, voted 91.3 per cent to ratify a three-year contract with CN, retroactive to last July 23, the union said in a […] Read more

U.S. EPA reaffirms glyphosate does not cause cancer
Chicago | Reuters — The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said on Thursday it finished a regulatory review that found glyphosate, the most widely used herbicide in the United States, is not a carcinogen. The conclusion reaffirms the agency’s stance on glyphosate, the key ingredient in Bayer’s Roundup, despite judgments by U.S. juries that have found […] Read more

U.S. grains: Soybeans set eight-month low
Chicago | Reuters — U.S. soybean futures fell for an eighth consecutive session on Thursday and hit an eight-month low as the rising toll from the coronavirus outbreak in China added to concerns about Chinese demand for American crops. Wheat also eased and set a three-week low on the Chicago Board of Trade as the […] Read more

U.S. grains: Wheat, corn, soybeans drop
Chicago | Reuters — U.S. wheat futures fell 1.4 per cent on Wednesday on a round of follow-through selling after Tuesday’s technical setback, traders said. The weakness in wheat spilled over to the corn market, which also faced some profit-taking after a higher opening during the overnight trading session. Soybean futures fell for the seventh […] Read more

Trump signs CUSMA pact
Canada's ratification still to come
Washington | Reuters — President Donald Trump on Wednesday signed a new North American trade agreement during an outdoor ceremony at the White House attended by about 400 guests — but not the key Democrats who helped secure congressional passage of the deal. Trump, on trial in the U.S. Senate on charges of abusing power […] Read more

Data sharing in yield networks creating new knowledge on British wheat
Very high yields are possible and work is being done to find limitations
Farmers are the greatest manageable variable affecting wheat yields, says British consultants who run yield networks of top producers. The biggest difference is not region or variety, or soil type, says Roger Sylvester-Bradley, with ADAS, the largest agriculture consultant group in the United Kingdom. Instead, the largest effect on yield is firstly a mix of […] Read more

U.S. grains: Soy, wheat extend losing streaks
Chicago | Reuters — U.S. soybean futures fell on Tuesday for the sixth day in a row, with investors waiting for signs of the pickup in Chinese demand promised when Washington and Beijing signed the Phase One trade deal on Jan. 15, traders said. Wheat futures also drifted lower, their third straight day of losses, […] Read more