GFO Newsletter for February 2016

GET THE LATEST NEWS FROM GRAIN FARMERS OF ONTARIO

GROWER ADVISORY REGARDING USE OF MANIPULATOR
Manipulator is a plant growth regulator for use on wheat. This product is approved for use in Canada and the European Union, but not in the USA. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s maximum residue limit for the product is zero.

Most major Ontario grain elevators and millers will not accept wheat treated with Manipulator. Industry representatives are in conversation with the registrant to develop the best strategy moving forward.

At this time, farmer-members are strongly encouraged to not use the product due to the inherent market risk. •

MARKET COMMENTARY
by Philip Shaw
January 2016 dawned with a continued bearish tone in the grain complex. The January 12 United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) report will surely set the early winter trend for the market. In the December USDA report, corn ethanol use was raised by 25 million bushels, but exports were cut by 50 million bushels. The USDA did not touch the balance sheets for soybeans and wheat. In Brazil, parts of the state of Mato Grosso has been dry. The USDA has lowered Brazilian soybean production from 100 MMT to 98 MMT.

The story in Ontario remains the precipitous drop in the Canadian dollar currently trading at .7091 U.S. on January 11. This is boosting cash basis values mitigating much of the effect from low grain futures prices. •