The CFFO Commentary: Meeting the Challenge of Continued Agricultural Investment

AFSC Extends Seeding Dates in Parts of Alberta After Wet Spring Delays

Agriculture Financial Services Corp. (AFSC) is extending recommended seeding dates and crop insurance deadlines for several crops in parts of northern Alberta following an unusually wet and prolonged spring that has delayed field operations across the province. The changes apply for the 2026 growing season only and affect the North East, North West, and Peace regions. Above-average snowfall in April, lingering winter conditions, and continued rainfall through May have created excessive soil moisture in many areas, particularly across central, eastern, and northern Alberta, AFSC said in a release Monday. The wet conditions have slowed seeding progress and raised concerns that many producers may struggle to plant crops within the timelines required under AFSC’s crop insurance program, the release said. Crops with normal seeding deadlines between May 25 and June 1 were considered especially vulnerable to delays if rainy weather persists and fields remain inaccessible, it added. AFSC

Saskatchewan Producers Seek Clarity on Crop Insurance as Seeding Delays Persist

The Agricultural Producers Association of Saskatchewan (APAS) says it is working with the provincial Ministry of Agriculture and the Saskatchewan Crop Insurance Corporation (SCIC) to provide producers with clearer guidance on crop insurance coverage as cold and wet conditions continue to delay spring seeding across the province. Saskatchewan seeding progress remains well behind normal levels. As of May 18, provincial planting was estimated at 29% complete, well behind 72% at the same time last year and the 10-year average of 52%. Progress has been especially slow in northeastern and northwestern regions, where wet field conditions have limited operations while recommended seeding dates continue to approach, said an APAS release Tuesday. SCIC recently issued additional guidance confirming that crops remain insurable up to the final seeding deadline of June 20. Losses that are not related to the seeding date, like drought, disease, wind, and hail, are all insured. However, SCIC also

Canadian Farm Income Falls Again in 2025 Despite Record Cash Receipts

Canadian farmers recorded another difficult year for profitability in 2025, as rising expenses and relatively flat crop returns offset a strong performance from livestock. New figures released by Statistics Canada Wednesday showed realized net farm income slipped 0.3% to $8.3 billion in 2025. The modest decline follows on the heels of a much steeper 33.9% decline in 2024. Excluding cannabis, however, 2025 realized net farm income rose 9% to $9.6 billion. Realized net income measures the difference between farm cash receipts and operating expenses, adjusted for depreciation and income in kind. While profitability remained under pressure, Canadian farm cash receipts topped $100 billion for the first time since Statistics Canada began collecting the data in 1926. Total receipts climbed $4.5 billion or 4.7% on the year to a record $102.2 billion in 2025, led by strong gains in Ontario and Alberta. Livestock markets were the main driver behind the increase. Total livestock receipt

We'll 'start letting people go,' racetrack says if Ontario funding doesn't come through soon

The Fort Erie Race Track, which has employed locals for generations, fears it will have to lay off staff if provincial funding delays persist. “If we can’t get those purses up, if we can’t get horsemen … we have to start letting people go if we can’t keep the lights on,” James Culic, Fort Erie Race Track’s communications manager, told CBC Niagara. No immediate job is at risk, Culic says, but next year's budget may mean a different story. “We’re in a very tight spot," he says. The historic racetrack says the annual funding from the province, $35 million total across Ontario, has helped create summer jobs and fund purses — prize money distributed to groomers, trainers and owners of winning racehorses — in the last decade. Culic says the Ontario government is not the problem. In fact, he says they have been financially supporting the racetrack with recuperating revenue loss from slot machines that were removed in 2012. For this year, “everything was lined up with Ontario Racing and O

Experimental farm in Chatham-Kent celebrates its first harvest

The Ontario FangZheng Agriculture Enterprise has harvested its crop of medium-grain rice The Ontario FangZheng Agriculture Enterprise celebrated a milestone Friday, with producers harvesting the farm's first crop of medium-grain sticky rice. Farm manager Wendy Zhang said the experiment was a success, describing the harvested rice as "perfect." "We didn't get any disease or pest problem this year," she said. "The yield should be good — not excellent — because we still do not apply too much fertilizer."FangZheng relied on equipment supplied in part by Tri-Hark Farms to harvest the rice crop. Jim Hawkins, co-owner of Tri-Hawk Farms, said the rice crop looks promising. Despite the farm's successful harvest, John Zandstra, a professor of fruit and vegetable cropping systems at the University of Guelph's Ridgetown campus, explained that there's still quite a bit of work ahead for the initiative. New rice varieties, different planting methods, as well as different crop management strate