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Ontario Grain Farmer Magazine is the flagship publication of Grain Farmers of Ontario and a source of information for our province’s grain farmers. 

GFO Newsletter for August 2014

GET THE LATEST NEWS FROM GRAIN FARMERS OF ONTARIO

2014 Annual General Meeting
Grain Farmers of Ontario’s 2014 Annual General Meeting will be held on Tuesday, September 9 at Craigowan Golf Club in Woodstock. The business portion of the meeting will be held in the morning and all attendees  will be given passes to attend Canada’s Outdoor Farm Show in the afternoon.

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Agenda
9:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.    Business Meeting (open to everyone)
12:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m.     Lunch
1:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.     Canada’s Outdoor Farm Show

Location
Craigowan Golf Club
595838 Hwy 59 N, RR #6,
Woodstock, ON  N4S 7W1

Accommodations
A block of rooms is being held at Four Points by Sheraton in Cambridge until August 15. Rooms are limited — book early!

Four Points by Sheraton
210 Preston Parkway
Cambridge, ON
(519) 653-2690
Group: Grain Farmers of Ontario

A detailed agenda and more information will be made available at www.gfo.ca prior to the Annual General Meeting.

Reminder: Soybean Drying Charges
Soybean producers are reminded about the change made last year to the way drying charges are calculated under the Agreement for Marketing the Ontario Soybean Crop made under the Farm Products Marketing Act (O.Reg 485/09).

Soybean drying charges are no longer tied to the price of soybeans. Cleaning and handling charges, as well as soybean drying charges/moisture discounts, are agreed upon by the dealer and the producer through competitive market forces, similar to the corn and wheat markets.

Producers should confirm all terms and conditions before making their deliveries.

Surgeoner Inducted into Hall of Fame
Grain Farmers of Ontario wishes to congratulate Gord Surgeoner on his induction into the Ontario Agricultural Hall of Fame. Surgeoner was officially recognized at a ceremony held at Country Heritage Park in Milton at the beginning of June. To be inducted into the Hall of Fame Gallery, a person must have demonstrated visionary leadership, innovation, and entrepreneurship in the advancement of agriculture in Ontario.

Surgeoner has made extensive significant and ongoing contributions to Ontario’s agri-food sector. He has been a champion of new technologies which improve health and the environment and grow new businesses. He has been instrumental in developing government policy and standards. You can read more about Surgeoner’s work and accomplishments at: http://www.oahf.on.ca/ pdf/Surgeoner.pdf.

Day for Bees and Agriculture
A bee and agriculture education and awareness day is being held by Grey Ag Services, the Independent Commercial Beekeepers Organization, and the Georgian Soil and Crop Improvement Association on August 20, 1:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m. It is being held at Osprey Bluffs Honey Company, 634386 – 63 Road, Grey Highlands, Ontario N0C 1C0.

The event will focus on bee education, recent research into neonicotinoids and bees, Ontario Soil and Crop Improvement Association strip trials, fluency agent use, deflector kits for planters, seed treatments, and planting for pollinators.

For more information, contact: Grey Ag Services 519-986-3756 info@greyagservices.ca or Hugh Simpson beekeeper@ospreybluffshoney.ca. 

Initial Prices and Pool Return Outlook
Grain Farmers of Ontario has announced the initial payments and Pool Return Outlook (PRO) for the six wheat pools managed by the Wheat Marketing Team. The current PRO calculations can be found at www.gfo.ca/WheatMarketing.aspx or by calling the Marketing Team at 1-800-265-0550.

When assessing their options this year, producers should consider the initial prices as an advance payment on the PRO, estimated at 65 per cent of total value. Grain Farmers of Ontario offers an online calculator to compare the PRO return and elevator cash prices. The calculator, as well as a list of Grain Farmers of Ontario authorized agents, can be found on our website.

Join the pool!
Producers have until September 30 to arrange for participation in the Grain Farmers of Ontario Wheat Pool. However, producers making early decisions about their wheat marketing options can arrange a pre-pool contract no later than August 16.

A pre-pool contract allows producers to commit wheat tonnes to Grain Farmers of Ontario before delivery. Producers are entitled to a payment of 70 per cent of the cash price value the day the contract is signed, comprised of the initial price and an advance.  If the market rallies, producers have the option of changing to a forward contract.

Market Commentary
by Philip Shaw
The huge crop potential in the U.S. Corn Belt has dominated market action over the last month. This was substantiated in the June 30 USDA crop report of actual planted acres. The USDA shocked the market by pegging US soybean acres to come in at 84.8 million, an 11% increase from a year ago and a new record. Corn acreage was pegged at 91.64 million acres, slightly less than the March estimate. Futures markets fell sharply on the news and continued for several days.

These USDA acreage numbers are somewhat reflective of the Statistics Canada numbers of 1.9 Million acres of corn and 3 million acres of soybeans in Ontario. With strength in the Canadian dollar at the beginning of July, lower cash prices have been the order of the day.

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