Fertilizer and ag retail giant Agrium will not split its wholesale and retail divisions as its biggest shareholder, Jana Partners, wants because it would "destroy value" for shareholders, Agrium’s CEO said on Monday. Mike Wilson was speaking in New York to Agrium’s sell-side analysts in an attempt to blunt Jana’s move to replace part of […] Read more
Agrium fires back at shareholder aiming to split company
Jana taking case for Agrium breakup to Canada
Activist shareholder Jana Partners LLC said Wednesday it is taking its case for splitting up Agrium to the fertilizer company’s Canadian investors, just ahead of an Agrium move to solidify its support among sell-side analysts. Jana, a New York-based hedge fund, wants Agrium to split its farm retail division from its wholesale operations and make […] Read more
Canada, U.S. agree on livestock disease zoning
Canada and the United States have agreed to maintain livestock and meat trade during animal disease outbreaks using a new system that targets trade bans more precisely by region, federal Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz said Wednesday. In 2003, the U.S. and many other countries halted beef imports from Canada after the discovery of bovine spongiform […] Read more
Pork sector reports over $2B in COOL-related losses
U.S. country-of-origin labeling (COOL) rules have directly cost Canada’s hog and pork industry more than $2 billion, according to a report that could help determine retaliation against U.S. exports if Washington does not change its requirements. The U.S. must bring the labeling rules into compliance with a World Trade Organization ruling by May 23, according […] Read more
Glencore’s chosen Viterra chief makes fast exit
The head of Glencore International’s recently acquired North American agriculture business is leaving his post just a month into the job, creating a potential complication in integrating the unit. Fran Malecha was Viterra’s chief operating officer until Glencore completed its acquisition of the Regina company on Dec. 17 and appointed him director of agricultural products […] Read more
China signs deal to buy Sask. potash at discount
Three North American potash producers have struck a six-month agreement to supply the crop nutrient to a subsidiary of China’s Sinofert Holdings — but at a steep discount of US$70 per tonne from the last contract price. Shares of the three potash companies — PotashCorp, Mosaic and Agrium — rose in Monday morning trading, even […] Read more
U.S. wheat climbs as exports soar to near two-year top
U.S. wheat rebounded on Friday from a six-month low hit a day earlier, as government data showed the biggest weekly export sales in nearly two years. Soybeans and corn rose more modestly after the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s weekly export data revealed sales below trade expectations for those crops. U.S. wheat exports totaled more than […] Read more
U.S. grain futures slip as ‘fiscal cliff’ nears
U.S. grain and soybean futures lost ground on Thursday as worries about the "fiscal cliff" weighed on commodities despite signs of bullish supply and demand fundamentals for some crops. The nearby March wheat contract on the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) slid to a near six-month low, before recovering in part and finishing with modest […] Read more
U.S. grains rise again in thin pre-holiday trade
U.S. grains edged higher on Monday in thin trading before the Christmas holiday, notching their second straight gains in a modest recovery from the previous week’s sharp losses. Chicago soybeans were underpinned by bargain hunting after prices slid to a one-month low last week, and by technical buying. Corn futures gained on expectations of a […] Read more
U.S. grain prices rebound but finish with weekly losses
U.S. soybean prices climbed 1.6 per cent on Friday in a rebound from sharp losses the previous session, but still notched their first weekly drop in one month. Corn and wheat rose more modestly after hitting nearly six-month lows on Thursday. The market is "very, very oversold, you’re down pretty hard for the week, so […] Read more
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