China is a top destination for Canadian barley, canola and wheat. Canada has typically had the largest market share for canola and been competitive in malting barley. Both of these crops have experienced the rollercoaster of Chinese trade policy. While market access for canola was restricted during the Huawei crisis, Canadian barley benefitted from China’s diplomatic spat with Australia. Generally unaffected by politics, Canada is China’s main source of high-quality wheat, primarily CWRS.

Agriculture in the Classroom Canada (AITC-C) wants your help to raise ag awareness among young Canadians through its “I Am Ag” social media campaign.

Located in a tidy, red tin barn just east of Calgary, Alberta Carriage Supply is the busiest equestrian equipment enterprise this side of the year 1901. 

There’s an old saying: A garden of purple is always in bloom. A new barley variety promises one loaded with anthocyanins, a natural pigment with antioxidant properties linked to lowering the risk of diseases such as hyperglycemia, hypercholesterolemia and cancer.

In recent years, the global brewing industry has increasingly focused on the environmental sustainability of beer. Many of the world’s largest breweries have set aggressive emissions reductions targets. This has been driven by a combination of jurisdictional regulations, corporate social responsibility goals and consumer demand. Much of the initial focus has been on manufacturing, packaging and transportation, but their initiatives increasingly encompass the entire supply chain including emissions associated with raw materials like barley malt.

Because more than 90 per cent of Canadian wheat is destined for international markets, this country’s transportation system must step up to ensure reliable, responsible delivery of our grain to markets that rely on it. While concerns about the system are not new, persistent service delays last year highlighted the need for improvement. The final report of the national Supply Chain Task Force renewed discussions about the fairness and effectiveness of Canadian grain transportation and its impact on shippers and the broader market.

Alberta has long been known as an economic powerhouse when it comes to the energy sector, however a new report commissioned by Cereals Canada shines a light on another strong economic driver for the province and the country—cereal grains.

Each year, crop diseases diminish yields in Western Canada and around the globe. To address such perennial threats, Australian company BioScout created its signature product, an agricultural disease detection, spore identification and quantification system. Its purpose is to help farmers manage crop disease by identifying spores prior to the appearance of symptoms on the plants. BioScout has launched active pilot projects around the world to test the unit’s ability to detect diseases in crops such as fruits, vegetables, oilseeds, legumes and cereals.

Text message is a common form of communication between farmers and grain buyers. In June, a Saskatchewan court ruled an emoji is valid as a signature in the formation of a contract. For failure to fulfil a contract made by text message, a farmer was ordered to pay more than $80,000.

Catherine Seidle developed a keen interest in the livestock and crop industries while growing up on a mixed farm near Saskatoon, SK. She studied animal science at the University of Saskatchewan (USask) and went on to become a livestock and feed extension specialist with the Saskatchewan Ministry of Agriculture. Now on a two-year sabbatical to complete a master’s project on ruminant nutrition, she works with Greg Penner, a USask professor and Centennial Enhancement Chair in ruminant nutritional physiology. She has joined Penner in his development of feed barley strategies that deal in part with variability of kernel size.