A new hulless food barley variety dubbed “black caviar” is now available for seed companies to license. Produced by a breeder at the Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada Brandon Research and Development Centre, the currently unnamed HB23150 will be available to farmers in two to three years once it is licensed, registered and propogated.
In markets, no plan can control time. There is a marketing adage that in the long run, we’re all dead. Broadly speaking, the longer the time frame, the greater the market uncertainty. By its nature, farming is challenged by both liquidity and time concerns.
Launched in 2001 to co-ordinate agricultural groups, the Grain Growers of Canada (GGC) is a farmer-led organization that shapes federal decision-making. Taking farm perspectives to Parliament, the organization affects how grain is grown, moved and sold. As GGC marks 25 years as the national voice for grain farmers, its work has never been more necessary. The grain sector is under pressure on several fronts, from trade access to the systems that move grain and support innovation.
When a Canadian farmer sits across from a miller in Colombia, Japan or Morocco to explain how they manage grain quality from seeding to harvest and storage, it changes the conversation. Last fall, farmers from Alberta Grains, Grain Farmers of Ontario, Manitoba Crop Alliance and SaskWheat travelled to core wheat markets to talk about their production practices. They put a face on the Canadian wheat brand and built the trust that keeps buyers coming back.
Olds College Centre for Innovation (OCCI) at Olds College of Agriculture & Technology plays a key part in a national research program studying ways to reduce farm emissions of nitrous oxide (N2O), a potent greenhouse gas. Project data encompasses various crops, environments and regions, and results will potentially boost profits for farmers.
Colombia, a South American country of more than 50 million people, has a long brewing tradition introduced by German and European immigrants in the 18th and 19th centuries. Bavaria, by far the largest brewing company in Colombia, was established in 1889 and grew during the 20th century through a series of mergers to become a near monopoly by 2000. The brewer’s flagship beer brands Aguila and Poker are omnipresent in Colombia. In 2005, Bavaria was purchased by SABMiller and then in 2016 became part of AB InBev when the two global brewing giants merged.
Two Albertans are among the four recipients of 2026 Nuffield Canada Scholarships. Each will receive $20,000 to travel and research a topic of their choosing over a two-year stretch. Scholars join an international cohort founded in the U.K. that focuses on agricultural learning opportunities and knowledge sharing.
Until his 2025 retirement from official duties after 13 years, Fawcett area farmer Gordon McCann oversaw shinny games and hockey practices and maintained the ice at the Fawcett Community Hall and Arena. Its schedule now includes men’s and children’s leagues, and its two curling sheets are central to the community’s annual cabaret and bonspiel to be held this year in late January. Nicknamed Iceman McCann by young skaters, he continues to take on occasional volunteer arena activities and will field a team in the bonspiel.
Established in 1948, the Brewing and Malting Barley Research Institute (BMBRI) has endured and largely maintained its initial mandate to improve Canadian malting barley top to bottom. This is achieved as the organization secures research grants, conducts quality evaluation of malting barley and disseminates information on the crop.
The relative value of gold to other commodities, including wheat, is at an all-time high. For example, one ounce of gold was worth almost 72 barrels of oil at the end of November 2025, up from 7.4 barrels in the same month of 2020. Over the same period, an ounce of gold went from being worth about 100 bushels of wheat to 750. What does this inverse relationship indicate?
