Railways prepare for harvest

Sep 17, 2018

CN and CP met with government and ag industry representatives to provide an update

By Diego Flammini
Staff Writer
Farms.com

Canada’s national railways are ready to move farmers’ crops to market this year.

That’s the message Canadian National (CN) and Canadian Pacific (CP) railways delivered during a Wednesday roundtable discussion with federal ag Minister Lawrence MacAulay and federal transport Minister Marc Garneau.

“Through strategic investments, on-going collaboration and communication, and significant planning, we have built the foundation for continued success in grain,” Joan Hardy, vice-president of sales and marketing, grain and fertilizer with CP, said in a statement Wednesday.

Both CN and CP faced pressure from the government and industry groups to decrease the grain backlog in Western Canada.

In March, the federal transport and agriculture ministers mandated that each railway publish plans on their respective websites.

Both railways committed to invest in new tracks, employees and grain hopper cars to ensure more grain is moved on time.

“All these things take time but we will have a lot of these resources before entering the coming winter,” Jean-Jacques Ruest, president and CEO of CN, said during the meeting, The Canadian Press reported.

The extra grain transportation infrastructure may arrive at an opportune time for Canadian growers.

A drought in Australia is impacting yields, which could open the door for Canadian grain.

“I think we’ve got to be light on our feet as far as transportation and getting the crop to where it’s needed in the right place and the right time,” Todd Lewis, president of Agricultural Producers Association of Saskatchewan, said during the discussion. “Hopefully we’re headed that way.”

If Mother Nature cooperates, the railway investments should help eliminate any backlogs.

“The only unknown in all of this is what the weather will be like,” Garneau told iPolitics Thursday. “If it’s a mild winter, then everything will roll smoothly. If it’s a very, very cold winter, then everything is more challenging. So that’s the only uncertainty.”

Video: Evolution of Beef Cattle Farming

The Clear Conversations podcast took to the road for a special episode recorded in Nashville during CattleCon, bringing listeners straight into the heart of the cattle industry. Host Tracy Sellers welcomed rancher Steve Wooten of Beatty Canyon Ranch in Colorado for a wide-ranging discussion that blended family history and sustainability, particularly as it relates to the future of beef production.

Sustainability emerged as a central theme of the conversation, a word that Wooten acknowledges can mean very different things depending on who you ask. For him, sustainability starts with the soil. Healthy soil produces healthy grass, which supports efficient cattle capable of producing year after year with minimal external inputs. It’s an approach that equally considers vegetation, animal efficiency, and long-term profitability.

That philosophy aligned naturally with Wooten’s involvement in the U.S. Roundtable for Sustainable Beef, where he served as a representative for the Colorado Cattlemen’s Association. The roundtable brings together the entire beef supply chain—from producers to retailers—along with universities, NGOs, and allied industries. Its goal is not regulation, Wooten emphasized, but collaboration, shared learning, and continuous improvement.