Jan 27 - Closing Markets

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-> ONTARIO PORK REPORTS:
TOTAL SALES = 21,411
FOR A = 3 DAY TOTAL OF = 70,241
THAT'S = up 327 FROM LAST WEEK.
THE AVERAGE PRICE WAS = $1.32/kilogram
THAT'S down a cent
THE U-S NATIONAL COST PRICE = $69.97 U-S, DRESSED WEIGHT
That's down 9 cents
FORWARD CONTRACT PRICE FOR May-June DELIVERY IS $151.11
WHICH IS down 8 cents
ESTIMATED SALES FOR Thursday = 31,500
AT = $1.30/kilogram

-> ON THE CHICAGO BOARD OF TRADE:

CORN FUTURES:
March down 4 at 3.58 and a quarter
May down 4 at 369 and a quarter

SOYBEAN FUTURES:
March down 18 and a half at 9.29
May down 18 and a half at 9.38 and a half

WHEAT FUTURES:
March down 10 and a quarter at 4.83 and a half
May down 10 at 4.97 and a half

-> FROM DAUPHIN FEED AND SUPPLY, THE 48% SOYBEAN MEAL QUOTE, F-O-B HAMILTON = $368/tonne

-> CLOSING LOCAL GRAIN PRICES FROM SNOBELIN FARMS:

Note there are basis changes today for old corn and all of the soy and wheat crops.

09 CROP CORN = up 1 at 3.43/BU
2010 CROP CORN = down 3 at 3.82/BU
2011 CROP CORN = down 3 at 4.00/BU

09 CROP SOYS = down 14 at 9.29/BU
2010 CROP SOYS = down 9 at 8.90/BU
2011 CROP SOYS = down 1 at 8.69/BU

09 CROP SOFT RED WINTER WHEAT = down 5 at 3.94/BU
2010 CROP SOFT RED WINTER WHEAT = down 5 at 4.30/BU
2011 CROP SOFT RED WINTER WHEAT = down 4 at 4.94/BU

Bruce Fed President Wants Tougher Import Standards

Bruce Federation of Agriculture president Lorne Underwood wants tougher standards on food imports.
He say imports aren't held to the same production regulations as Canadian food - and that means uneven competition in supermarket pricing.

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Underwood says imported food that doesn't match Canadian regulations makes for unfair competition for producers.

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Underwood wants the same rules for both imported and Canadian food.
He says right now there's a chance differing standards for imported food could pose a health risk for consumers.

Third Hog Tender Results In

The results are in from the third hog tender of the Hog Farm Transition Program.
Last week's auction had 403 bids submitted.
145 were accepted for a total of just over 25 million dollars.
Lowest bids were accepted first, followed by successively higher bids until the 25 million was allocated.
This tender removed about 38 thousand 500 sows from production for the next three years - about 76 thousand 500 weaners up to 50 pounds and just over 149 thousand 700 hogs from 31 kilograms to market weight.
That leaves about 14 million dollars of the 75 million for the fourth and final tender.
That auction will take place March 10th.
Producers not already registered who want to take part in the final tender have to submit their registration forms by February 17th.
Those forms are available through the Canadian Pork Council website at www.cpc-ccp.com.

Farmers Showing Interest In Solar And Bio-Digesters

While a lot of media attention has been on large scale green energy products many farmers are considering investing in small scale operations of their own.
Ted Cowan has been following alternate energy initiatives for the Ontario Federation of Agriculture.
He says while the first micro-solar panel on a farm was turned on in Chatham-Kent just over a years ago a lot of farmers are interested.

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The program allows farmers to isntall panels of up to ten kilowatts to feed directly into the provincial power grid.
Cowan says while the small scale solar panels seem expensive they can pay for themselves in well under ten years.

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Cowan says farmers are also showing a lot of interest in bio-digesters.

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Bio-digesters turn manure and plant material into methane that can be used to generate electricity.

Quebec Slaughterhouse Gets Fed Loan

The federal government is lending a Quebec company that specialises in the slaugher and processing of milk-fed calves.
Ecolait processes more than 1 hundred thousand head of veal a year.
The animals come from it's over 150 producer partners.
50 per cent of it's products are exported.
The 2 point 7 million dollar federal loan will help Ecolait improve it's storage capacity and upgrade it's slaughterhouse plant technology.
In announcing the loan the Minister of State for Agriculture, Jean-Pierre Blackburn, says the investment will help Quebec producers capture new domestic and international markets.