Berlin | Reuters — The German cabinet has approved a draft law banning cultivation of crops with genetically modified organisms (GMOs), government sources told Reuters on Wednesday. Germany had announced in September 2015 that it will ban cultivation of crops with GMOs under new European Union rules allowing member states to opt out of their […] Read more
German cabinet approves draft law banning GM crops
Mosaic looks to restart Saskatchewan potash mine
Reuters — U.S. fertilizer producer Mosaic Co. may need to restart its idled potash mine at Colonsay, Sask. next year, as international buyers work through inventories, the company said on Tuesday. Mosaic halted production in July at the mine, about 70 km southeast of Saskatoon, for the rest of 2016 due to low global potash […] Read more
New Holland buying into tillage equipment market
U.S. ag equipment giant New Holland is set to enter the tillage equipment business and stretch out its space in the hay and forage market, with a deal for Danish manufacturer Kongskilde Industries. New Holland’s parent CNH Industrial on Monday announced it will buy Kongskilde’s agricultural “grass and soil” business from Dansk Landbrugs Grovvareselskab (DLG […] Read more
FCC offers to bend terms for soaked Prairie growers
Canada’s federal farm lender says it will be flexible with qualifying Prairie crop growers facing financial trouble from a rain-soaked harvest season. Areas of Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba have experienced “significant levels of rain in the last half of the growing season and snow since the beginning of October,” Farm Credit Canada said in a […] Read more
Precision ag tech’s link to broadband under study
Crop growers in southwestern Ontario are being asked how their access to high-speed internet, or lack thereof, has helped or hindered their adoption of precision ag tools. Researchers at the University of Guelph’s Ontario Agricultural College (OAC), as part of the Regional and Rural Broadband (R2B2) project, are studying how “current and future connectivity” influences […] Read more
EU probe to hold up ChemChina’s acquisition of Syngenta
Brussels | Reuters — European Union antitrust regulators on Friday opened an in-depth investigation into state-owned Chinese chemicals group ChemChina’s US$43 billion bid for Swiss pesticides and seeds group Syngenta, China’s biggest-ever foreign acquisition. Syngenta’s shares plunged over nine per cent on Monday after the European Commission said the companies had not allayed its concerns […] Read more
ChemChina reported ready for concessions to clinch Syngenta deal
Beijing/Zurich | Reuters — State-owned Chinese chemicals group ChemChina is ready to offer more concessions to win European Union antitrust approval for its US$43 billion bid for Swiss pesticide and seed group Syngenta, a source with direct knowledge of the process said. Clinching China’s biggest-ever foreign acquisition is taking longer than planned amid a flurry […] Read more
FBC earns national, provincial honours for farm coverage
Winnipeg farm publishing house Farm Business Communications has earned 13 national and provincial awards so far this fall for its news and feature coverage of issues in Canadian farming. FBC, an arm of Glacier FarmMedia, earned a total of 10 gold, silver and bronze awards on Oct. 1 from the Canadian Farm Writers Federation (CFWF), […] Read more
Tyson invests in non-meat protein
Reuters — Tyson Foods, the largest U.S. meat processor, took a five per cent stake in plant-based protein maker Beyond Meat amid growing pressure on food companies to reduce environmental and health risks by changing the way they source protein. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. Manhattan Beach, Calif.-based Beyond Meat sells plant-based burger […] Read more
NAFTA negotiators see gains for Canada if pact reopened
Reuters — Canada, fearful of talk by the U.S. presidential candidates to reopen the North American Free Trade Agreement, could use the opportunity to push for a better deal on worker mobility, dispute resolutions and other issues, Canadian negotiators of the original pact said. Republican Donald Trump calls NAFTA the worst trade deal signed by […] Read more
Cyber-Savvy Farmer
