Ontario Agriculture

The network for agriculture in Ontario, Canada

Corn: What now?

Now that the corn price has gone over $5 what does everyone think it will do now?

 

It would be nice to see it continue to go up. Any thoughts of another recession bring the price back down.

 

 

Michael

Views: 97

▶ Reply to This

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by OntAG Admin on September 18, 2010 at 5:48am
Permalink Reply by Joann on September 28, 2010 at 8:24am
By all accounts, the financial situation to the south of us appear to have the hallmarks of another recession as you suggest Michael. As our federal minister of finance, Mr. Flaherty has announced the recession of 08 ended, I can well imagine the looming American financial difficulties will inspire new verbiage for the approaching recession..... but the price of commodities???

There has been some interesting discussions concerning the price of commodities... and as we all know... the price in Chicago does not always translate in the same way to the farmer.

The UN Special Rapporteur on food, Mr. Olivier De Schutter, released a report recently called the Food Commodities Speculation and Food Price Crises.

Mr. De Schutter writes: '[Beginning in ]2001, food commodities derivatives markets, and commodities indexes began to see an influx of non-traditional investors,; De Schutter writes. 'The reason for this was because other markets dried up one by one: the dotcoms vanished at the end of 2001, the stock market soon after, and the US housing market in August 2007. As each bubble burst, these large institutional investors moved into other markets, each traditionally considered more stable than the last. Strong similarities can be seen between the price behaviour of food commodities and other refuge values, such as gold.'

Further stating: 'A significant contributory cause of the price spike [has been] speculation by institutional investors who did not have any expertise or interest in agricultural commodities, and who invested in commodities index funds or in order to hedge speculative bets.'
http://www.stwr.org/food-security-agriculture/food-commodities-spec...

Problem identified.

Now for the reactions: Engage the public

"An ActionAid report released last week revealed that hunger could be costing poor nations $450bn a year – more than 10 times the amount needed to halve hunger by 2015 and meet Millennium Development Goal One." http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2010/sep/24/food-crisis-un-em...

Solution: take Sovereignty away from individual nations for the ultimate solution of global food regulation.

Jacques Diouf, Director-General, UN Food and Agriculture Organization, called for "bolstered global governance system for world food security". He said, “We have to build a more coherent and effective system of governance for world food security; we have to correct the policies and international trade system that have resulted in more hunger and poverty." when responding to the 2008 food crisis (which many blamed on bio-fuels at the time)


Will the higher prices translate into more money for the farmers? I doubt it. There appears to be a movement afoot to control agricultural commodity prices under the guise of "food security" with enhanced trade.

If anything, food commodity prices will be globally harmonized... which will not bode well for Ontario farmers.

▶ Reply to Discussion

RSS

Agriculture Headlines from Farms.com Canada East News - click on title for full story

Sorghum can improve food security

As climate change continues to impact agricultural productivity worldwide, finding resilient and adaptable crops is crucial for long-term food security. Sorghum emerges as a shining solution – a crop that’s so hardy it’s almost a victim of its own success. It takes very little water and grows well in various soils. Offering numerous benefits that make it a reliable and sustainable option for regions facing climate challenges, sorghum has the potential to transform diets, support smallholder farmers and promote sustainable farming practices worldwide. The Sorghum United Foundation’s goal is to promote greater awareness of our grain among consumers and producers. We believe in the positive impacts of sorghum in both human and animal diets, renewable industry processes, and as a climate-smart option for farmers who value water conservation, soil health and carbon sequestration. Its adaptability and drought tolerance are two of the many reasons we believe sorghum is a wonderful tool for p

Healthy potato harvests surpass odds

Andy Diercks, a fourth-generation potato farmer from the small village of Coloma in central Wisconsin, is blunt about the difficult realities facing family-owned farms today. “There are days when the choices aren’t always good, and you’re making the least bad choice,” he said. “But we’ve survived well. I’m proud of what we do here.” For decades, Diercks’ family and farmers across the state have worked closely with vegetable researchers at the University of Wisconsin to ensure a healthy harvest, from the initial seed supply to disease prevention and management. Amanda Gevens, a UW-Division of Extension specialist and the department chair of plant pathology, knows all too well the high stakes for Wisconsin farms. She arrived at the university in July 2009 — the same month that a late blight epidemic hit the state for the first time in nearly a decade. Gevens had to learn how to relay critical information to farmers in a timely useful manner so that they could take action against the d

Farmers, artificial intelligence have key roles

It’s now 2025 and following intense rhetoric from governments, dairy farmers accept and understand they have key roles to play in reducing emissions produced by their herds. In fact, they’ve always accepted cows produce methane and that it can be harmful to the environment. And farmers know there are a number of management decisions they can take to help reduce greenhouse-gas production from livestock. As the payload of science intensifies, and new research becomes available, dairy farmers are willing to embrace the new knowledge and implement it on their farms. Their only hope is that other industries, outside of agriculture, also realize, admit and accept that they, too, have major responsibilities in helping countries reach their net-zero targets. Management decisions first steps Tinkering with feed, both in concentrate form and grass, can help reduce the overall amounts of gases being produced by cows. Cows produce methane when the feed they consume is digested in their gastroin

Polycrops: Challenges, Triumphs and Valuable Lessons from Beef Producers

Polycrop forage blends have become a popular tool among beef producers to increase soil health, manage grazing, improve cow performance and enhance resilience to changing weather conditions. However, as with any farming practice, the results can vary based on location, weather and management strategies. The practice of using polycrops, also known as cover crops, forage mixtures or cocktail crops, is intended to increase the diversity of plant species in a pasture. Increased plant diversity can enhance soil health, increase water infiltration, reduce fertilizer needs and provide higher quality forages for cattle. One of the objectives of the Living Lab Central Prairies has been growing polycrops on producer operations and evaluating both the long- and short-term impacts. The Living Labs program allows producers like Erika Stewart, John Griffin and Carmen Jackson to use polycrops on their operations, and they have encountered both successes and challenges with the practice. Their

Public comment period open for pullet and laying hen handling practice amendments

Canadians have until the end of May to provide feedback on hen and pullet handling

© 2025   Created by Darren Marsland.   Powered by

Badges  |  Report an Issue  |  Terms of Service