Trade Wars and Swine Disease Top of Mind for 2020

For 2020 the Chair of Manitoba Pork is looking forward to an end to the trade war between the United States and China that has depressed Canadian live hog prices. Heading into the new year live hog prices and disease management will be top of mind among Manitoba's pork producers.

 

George Matheson, the Chair of Manitoba Pork, says what should have been a good year was a disappointment with the average price for the year likely to be lower than expected.

 

 

Pork producers pretty much right across Canada take the U.S. national price as their price. Really what happens between the U.S. producers and their trading partners is most significant to Canadian producers in regards to price. Unfortunately we did see a tariff war between China and the U.S. and, as a result, Manitoba suffered collateral damage.

 

Without that tariff war I think we would have really seen an escalation in prices because, due to ASF, there has been a significant world wide shortage of pork. Number one, and it's really out of our control, is the end of the tariff wars between the U.S. and China which has caused collateral damage to the pork industry in Manitoba, that would be our number one hope so that we could be on a level playing field with the rest of the world and not have to be concerned with these outside pressures on our pork price which really should be quite strong considering the losses in the world due to ASF.

Video: Dicamba Returns for Georgia Farmers: What the New EPA Ruling Means for Cotton Growers

After being unavailable in 2024 due to registration issues, dicamba products are returning for Georgia farmers this growing season — but under strict new conditions.

In this report from Tifton, Extension Weed Specialist Stanley Culpepper explains the updated EPA ruling, including new application limits, mandatory training requirements, and the need for a restricted use pesticide license. Among the key changes: a cap of two ½-pound applications per year and the required use of an approved volatility reduction agent with every application.

For Georgia cotton producers, the ruling is significant. According to Taylor Sills with the Georgia Cotton Commission, the vast majority of cotton planted in the state carries the dicamba-tolerant trait — meaning farmers had been paying for technology they couldn’t use.

While environmental groups have expressed concerns over spray drift, Georgia growers have reduced off-target pesticide movement by more than 91% over the past decade. Still, this two-year registration period will come with increased scrutiny, making stewardship and compliance more important than ever.