CNS Canada — Strong global demand and a looming North American harvest could send diesel prices higher in coming months. According to one energy analyst in Chicago, farmers may want to buy some fuel before prices get too high. “We’re telling our people to hedge some of your exposure, because we do think that, barring […] Read more
Dwindling diesel supplies could boost price
GMO rules cover plant gene editing technique, top EU court says
Brussels | Reuters — Crops obtained by plant breeding technique mutagenesis should fall under laws restricting the use of genetically modified organisms (GMOs), Europe’s highest court said on Wednesday, in a victory for environmental campaigners. The biotech industry had argued that much of mutagenesis, or gene editing, is effectively little different to the mutagenesis that […] Read more
Trump to offer U.S. farmers billions to ease trade pain
Washington/Kansas City | Reuters — The Trump administration on Tuesday said it would provide up to US$12 billion in aid for U.S. farmers to shield them from the repercussions felt by trade spats between the United States and China, the European Union and others. China has targeted U.S. agricultural exports with tariffs in retaliation to […] Read more
Michelin to buy ag track maker Camso
The Michelin Man is set to take on much more field work with a US$1.45 billion deal for Quebec off-the-road track and tire manufacturer Camso. The deal, pending regulatory approval, calls for France’s Michelin to combine its off-the-road (OTR) business with Camso in a new division. “By joining forces with Camso, Michelin will create the […] Read more
World’s oldest bread found at prehistoric site in Jordan
Washington | Reuters — Charred remains of a flatbread baked about 14,500 years ago in a stone fireplace at a site in northeastern Jordan have given researchers a delectable surprise: people began making bread, a vital staple food, millennia before they developed agriculture. No matter how you slice it, the discovery detailed on Monday shows […] Read more
Forecaster sees 65 per cent chance of El Nino emerging in fall
Reuters — Chances of the emergence of the El Nino weather pattern have increased to 65 per cent during the fall and 70 per cent during winter 2018-19, a U.S. government weather forecaster said on Thursday. The last El Nino, a pattern that brings a warming of ocean surface temperatures in the eastern and central […] Read more
U.S. EPA scraps plan to force refiners to blend more biofuels
New York | Reuters — The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency ditched a detailed plan that would have forced refiners to blend more biofuels into their gasoline and diesel in 2019 to compensate for volumes likely to be exempted under the agency’s small refinery hardship waiver program, according to newly released EPA documents. The plan would […] Read more
Consider hedging against rate hikes, farmers advised
CNS Canada — The Bank of Canada has raised its benchmark interest rate to 1.5 per cent, marking the fourth time it has raised rates since last summer. The increase from 1.25 per cent is the base rate retail banks pay for short-term loans, but consumer rates for mortgages, lines of credit and other loans […] Read more
Canopy Growth to buy Tokyo Smoke owner Hiku Brands
Reuters — Ontario’s Canopy Growth Corp. is buying Toyko Smoke cannabis owner Hiku Brands Co. Ltd. for $269.2 million, the latest deal in a fast-consolidating sector ahead of legal recreational marijuana sales. Smiths Falls-based Canopy Growth on Tuesday offered 0.046 of its shares, or $1.91 per share, for each Hiku share held, a premium of […] Read more
J.M. Smucker to sell U.S. baking brands
Reuters — J.M. Smucker Co. said on Monday it would sell its U.S. baking business, which includes brands such as Pillsbury, Martha White and Hungry Jack, to private equity firm Brynwood Partners for US$375 million. The deal includes a manufacturing facility in Toledo, Ohio, but excludes the baking business in Canada, the company said. “The […] Read more
Cyber-Savvy Farmer
