Photo 35596438 © Rosipro - Dreamstime.com

By Alice McFarlane

Agriculture Roundup

Agriculture Roundup for Friday February 14, 2020

Feb 14, 2020 | 10:30 AM

Manitoba commodity organizations have voted in favour of amalgamating.

Groups representing corn, flax, sunflower, winter cereals, barley and wheat producers passed a resolution during meetings in Winnipeg this week.

Over two-thirds of the members attending the meetings needed to vote in favour of the motions.

The Manitoba Pulse and Soybean Growers and Manitoba Canola Growers Association will continue to work independently.

–

MLAs clash over foreign ownership of Saskatchewan farmland

Nov 10, 2025

Outstanding community members

'We all loved him': respected Prince Albert broadcaster passes away

Oct 09, 2025

Nearing the end of harvest

Meals in the field and hats in combines: a look into end of harvest traditions

Oct 09, 2025

The Competition Bureau is investigating several major agricultural suppliers over sales activity.

It’s looking into whether BASF Bayer-Monsanto, Cargill, Corteva, Federated Co-op, Univar Solutions and Winfield restricted or refused to sell product to retailer Farmer Business Network Canada.

The probe will seek to determine if some of them co-ordinated efforts against the retailer.

The Competition Bureau is trying to determine if the conduct alleged against the suppliers may significantly harm competition in Canada’s agricultural sector.

–

There are concerns the spread of the viral outbreak in China could affect Canadian farm exports.

Some experts say the longer the outbreak, which has been named COVID-19, the higher the likelihood of knock-on effects.

Grain market analyst Errol Anderson with Pro-Market Communications said ocean freight rates for bulk commodities like grain have collapsed 90 per cent in recent months.

He said grain traders are cautious right now and feel corn markets could be on the decline, partly because of worries over the coronavirus.

Federal Agriculture Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau said China is a huge market and Ottawa wants to ensure continued access for Canadian farmers.

–

The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) said the estimated area planted with genetically engineered crops in Canada was down seven per cent last year.

The USDA said this was due primarily to lower soybean and canola areas in the Prairie provinces and is the second consecutive year of decline.

It said last year, Canada planted approximately 11.2 million hectares of genetically engineered crops which consisted of canola, soybeans, corn, sugar beets and some alfalfa.

Much of the soybean reductions were in Manitoba and Saskatchewan.

It said growers were responding to lower yields from dry planting conditions and expected moisture deficiency throughout the growing season as they moved away from soybeans in favour of wheat, pulses, or other crops.

–

alice.mcfarlane@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @AliceMcF