Tag Archives: grain exporters

More Canadian Grain Transported During Autumn Harvest

Canadian grain producers yielded 50 percent more crop than average last growing season. This incredible yield combined with a long and brutal winter, put major pressure on the handling and transportation system, causing the system to slow significantly. This resulted in changes made to the Canada Transportation Act and the Canada Grain Act. These changes created regulations for Canadian railways, obligating them to ship at least 500,000 tonnes of grain per week and issue weekly reports.  This legislation is called Fair Rail for Grain Farmers Act and was introduced in the early spring.

“CP RAIL TBAY” by Eja2k Licensed under Public domain -Wikimedia Commons

This growing season is shaping up to be as productive and experts are predicting it could be the second largest yield on record. In order to prevent another back log, the Canadian government has announced new regulations that will require the both Canadian National (CN) and Canadian Pacific (CP) railways to ship more than their combined 1 million tonnes of grain, extending into the autumn harvest.

Starting in early August and lasting until November 29th, both railways must each more 536,250 tonnes of crops each week. If they fail to do so they could face a penalty of $100,000 per violation.

The government deems this action necessary in order to preserve the integrity of Canada’s transportation system and its reputation as a global supplier of Canadian grain. These new regulations are hoped to increase efficiencies, strengthen relationships between Canadian grain exporters and their international customers.

Last year, billions of dollars worth of crops was left on farms during the winter. Although CP and CN picked up the pace in the spring and summer, left over grains from last growing season were still estimated 20.9 million tonnes as of last month, according to Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada.

These regulations will make it easier for Canadian grain producers to deliver crops to buyers. The railway companies are able to conduct interswitching in more parts of Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba. This means that they will be able to transfer cars from one railway’s line to the line of the other, creating more efficiencies in the handling and transportation process.

Canadian Grain Exporters

Barr-Ag Hay and Grain Exporters are always looking for opportunities to better serve our customers overseas, providing them with the high-quality Canadian grain they require.  This new legislation will help move our Canadian crops from the eastern slopes of the Canadian Rockies to international shipping ports and to our customers in a timely manner.

Grains from Canada

 

Sources: https://finance.yahoo.com/news/canada-extends-railway-grain-volume-160010925.html

http://www.albertafarmexpress.ca/daily/feds-extend-railway-grain-volume-rules-through-harvest

http://news.gc.ca/web/article-en.do?nid=829579

Canadian Grain Storage Systems

By Ammodramus (Own work) [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

By Ammodramus (Own work) [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

Record breaking Canadian grain crop yields and last year’s transport delays have sparked a greater interest and concern for grain storage options. Grain storage is a huge investment for Canadian farmers, but in order to keep up with growing farms and increased market demand for Canadian grain, older storage systems need to be updated.

Alberta Agriculture and Rural Development recently put together two fact sheets to help farmers make an informed decision regarding grain storage solutions. These sheets weigh out the pros and cons of each option by looking at cost comparisons including repairs and maintenance, different types of permanent and temporary storage systems as well as the size of each farm’s operation and requirements.

The two new fact sheets are Grain Storage: Cost Comparisons and Grain Storage Considerations.

The length of time a grain can be safely stored depends on the condition it was harvested and the type of storage facility. Low moisture content and low temperature in storage is essential for successful storage of grain and will prevent it from deteriorating, especially over longer periods of time. Other serious issues that can occur by faulty grain temperature or moisture content include a presence or increase of insects, mice, mold and fungi.

Depending on their operation, Canadian grain growers choose between permanent and temporary grain storage options. Permanent storage including affixed structures like corrugated or smooth walled steel bins, steel or fabric sheds, and farmer owned elevators. Temporary storage could include grain bagging systems, grain rings and tarps, bunkers or even open piles if the crop will be moved after a very short period of time.

Jennifer Stoby, a provincial market analyst for agriculture inputs commented on bins versus grain baggers in an article published in the Alberta Farm Express. She shared that operations need to store more than 70,000 bushels of grain per year to make the grain bagger option more competitive than steel bins. These findings can be reviewed in the Grain Storage: Cost Comparisons fact sheet.

Selling Grain in Western Canada

Canadian farmers looking to sell their grain crops can contact Barr-Ag. As wholesale buyers of Canadian farm crops we will buy locally produced oats, barley, wheat, flax, canola and pulse crops as well as Alfalfa and Timothy hays. Barr-Ag specializes in containerizing, loading and shipping Canadian grains to our extensive database of international purchasers.

Deciding on a brand new grain storage system could be made easier if you had a reliable buyer for your quality grain, oilseed and hay crops. Call Barr-Ag today to get a market price for your crop.

 

Sources:

http://www1.agric.gov.ab.ca/$department/deptdocs.nsf/all/crop1204

http://www1.agric.gov.ab.ca/$department/deptdocs.nsf/all/sis15018

http://www1.agric.gov.ab.ca/$department/deptdocs.nsf/all/sis15016

http://www.albertafarmexpress.ca/2014/09/25/the-bottom-line-on-grain-storage/?module=under-carousel&pgtype=homepage