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☆ France says pesticide ban will not hit grain exports
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-11 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

He said that EU countries including Germany and Bulgaria were also using the pesticide on grain exports to Algeria. The questions in Parliament followed a weekend report by l'Opinion newspaper that said French grain exports would come to a halt from April 25. With the deadline looming, French grain producers had called for a swift response from the government. "We are depriving ourselves of a quarter of the outlets for French cereals," Eric Thirouin, head of French grain growers group AGPB, told Reuters. Exports put at risk by the ANSES decision amount to about 4 billion euros ($4.37 billion) in trade surplus, compared with a total grain trade surplus of about 11 billion euros last year, he said.

☆ Capital Group expands ETF lineup, including two new international funds
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-11 | by ( Jesse Pound | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Multi-trillion dollar asset manager Capital Group is expanding its ETF lineup after some of its first funds gained traction last year. The Los Angeles-based firm on Tuesday filed for three new active ETFs — International Equity ETF (CGIE), World Dividend Growers ETF (CGDG) and Core Balanced ETF (CGBL) — under the Capital Group banner. The new funds come a little more than a year after Capital Group — founded in the Depression and known for its American Funds — first dipped its toe into the ETF world. Our new ETF — CGIE — is more of a developed-market focused ETF," Davis said. Meanwhile, the new global dividend fund is in part a response to the success of the U.S.-focused Capital Group Dividend Value ETF (CGDV) , Davis said.

☆ Analysts expect a big earnings drop this season. These 14 stocks are set to buck the trend
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-07 | by ( Kevin Stankiewicz | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

First-quarter earnings per share for the S & P 500 are set to decline by 7% compared with the year-ago period, Goldman Sachs said in a note to clients Wednesday. That's why we spend less time worrying what the S & P 500 will earn and focus more on how individual companies are performing . Some S & P 500 sectors, like consumer discretionary and energy, are poised to grow profits compared with 2022, according to Goldman. Within the Club's portfolio, we found 14 companies that are set to report positive earnings growth this earnings season, according to FactSet estimates. As always, we'll analyze both our companies' earnings reports and consider their guidance to ensure our investment rationale is still intact.

[1/5] A woman works inside a cannabis shop, at Khaosan Road, one of the favourite tourist spots in Bangkok, Thailand, March 29, 2023. Thousands of cannabis shops and businesses have sprung up, especially in Bangkok and tourist spots, since Thailand became the first Southeast Asian country to decriminalise the drug. A deluge of marijuana smuggled in from abroad has swamped Thailand, driving down wholesale prices and hurting growers, the industry members said. He did not comment on the scale of smuggled cannabis in the market or its impact on farmers. "A lot of cannabis that's coming in from the U.S. is going to dispensaries in Bangkok or Phuket or Pattaya," she said.

☆ After growing GM corn for decades, some US farmers open to Mexican restrictions
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-06 | by ( Tom Polansek | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

"I'm all for free and fair trade," said Fred Huddlestun, who grows GM corn and soybeans in Yale, Illinois. Supporters of the policy say GM corn can contaminate Mexico's age-old native varieties and have questioned its impact on human health. NCGA said GM corn is safe and it will fight all illegal trade barriers for farmers. But many would consider growing more non-GM corn, if the price were right. "You need to make it worth my while," said Illinois farmer Dave Kestel, who grows GM corn and sells seed for Corteva.

☆ Florida Sugar Grower’s Digital Plans Crystallize
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-04 | by ( Isabelle Bousquette | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Florida Crystals, one of the largest growers of sugar cane in the U.S., farms 130,000 acres in Florida every season. For years, billions of dollars in technology innovation have flooded the agriculture sector, promising cutting-edge data collection and analysis around the farming process. Some farms are only now starting to figure out how to put that data to work. Florida Crystals, one of the largest growers of sugar cane in the U.S., is one of them. The privately held company farms 130,000 acres in Florida every season, and for decades it has used Excel spreadsheets or physical paper to map out when and where it would plant, tend and harvest, relying on subjective and experiential knowledge, CIO Kevin Grayling said.

Nestle (NESN.S) and Hershey (HSY.N) said they paid the LID premium. But when the COVID pandemic cratered demand, global cocoa prices plunged before they built up a cushion. Ivory Coast and Ghana say companies should pay both premiums. Industry data from the International Cocoa Organisation (ICCO) shows cocoa output in Ivory Coast rose to record levels in the 2020/21 season. Of the roughly 2 million tonnes of cocoa Ivory Coast produces each year, between 20-30% is grown illegally in protected forests by an estimated 1.3 million people, many of them children.

☆ A long-dormant lake has reappeared in California, bringing havoc along with it
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-04 | by ( Evan Bush | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

David Swanson | ReutersPeople have worked for a century to make California's Tulare Basin into a food grower's paradise. The Tulare Basin is at the southern end of California's San Joaquin Valley — and in essence, it's a massive bowl. Before irrigators dug canals and rerouted water for farming in the late 1800s, Tulare Lake filled the bowl's lower reaches. Today, the irrigation system is designed to "use every single drop of water" that flows into the basin, Mount said. Tulare Lake refilled in 1997 and 1983 during very wet seasons.

☆ Europe drought: This once-thriving lake has all but dried up -- a story repeated across Europe
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-30 | by ( Laura Paddison | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

While in the United States, the snow and rain that have pummeled California have helped fill reservoirs and ease unrelenting drought, winter has been far from kind to many parts of Europe. A buoy is seen on the banks of the partially dry Lake Montbel as France faces a record winter dry spell. “Lake Montbel remains at an abnormally low level,” Franck Solacroup, the regional director of the Adour-Garonne Water Agency, which covers the area that includes Lake Montbel, told CNN. Farmers like Rouquet, who rely on the lake, are having to make tough decisions on what to grow. “This is the most extreme winter in terms of low snow cover,” she told CNN.

☆ More food shortages could add to Britain's price pressure
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-28 | by ( James Davey | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

The tight conditions have helped to push British food price inflation to levels not seen for almost 50 years. Industry data from market researcher Kantar on Tuesday showed UK grocery price inflation hit a record 17.5% in the four weeks to March 19, underscoring the problem for policymakers. Many UK food retailers are buying less, knowing their customers cannot afford to spend so much, taking a hit to their profits in the process. Andrew Opie, director of food and sustainability at the British Retail Consortium, which represents the major food retailers, said supermarkets were confident about the resilience of food supply chains, particularly with the approaching UK growing season. The grower who spoke to Reuters, and who asked not to be named, said there was too much focus on food inflation and not enough on the strength of the whole system.

[1/3] Don Cameron stands next to one of his flood capture projects on his Terranova Ranch in Helm, California, U.S., January 25, 2023. Today, California water experts see Cameron as a pioneer. Terra Nova's basins are filled with 1.5 to 3.5 feet of water, Cameron said Wednesday. California Governor Gavin Newsom signed an executive order on March 10 making it easier for farmers to divert floodwaters onto their lands until June. "We're at the beginning of a lot of momentum for groundwater recharge programs," said Gosselin, of the state groundwater office.

The planned closure of the plant has left dozens of Virginia chicken growers scrambling to find new buyers in a region with few other options. Tyson alerted Virginia farmers by phone on March 13 and later by mail that it will shut its Glen Allen plant on May 12, according to three poultry farmers who supply the plant. The USDA, which enforces the PSA, told Reuters it is "closely monitoring" Tyson's planned plant closure. 'WE'RE DONE'Under normal circumstances, Tyson supplies farmers with chicks, while farmers assume the costs of land and chicken houses. On Monday, about 20 Tyson farmers and local government officials gathered in a fire station in Burkeville, Virginia, and raised concerns about Tyson's short timeline for closure of the plant, attendees said.

☆ Morocco restricts tomato exports over high domestic prices
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-24 | by ( Ahmed Eljechtimi | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

RABAT, March 24 (Reuters) - Morocco has restricted tomato exports since late February with a total ban in place from last week until Thursday to lower domestic prices, the head of the country's main fruit and vegetable exporters' group said on Friday. Higher-priced produce such as cherry tomatoes, which represent more than half of the North African country's tomato exports, are not included in the restrictions, Aderdour said. The agriculture minister did not respond to Reuters calls for comment and the agency in charge of food exports did not immediately answer a request for comment. However, when asked about inflation on Thursday, a government spokesperson said it was impossible to talk about exports while domestic food prices were high. Food inflation jumped to 20.1% last month, bringing general inflation to 10.1%, a level unmatched since the 1980s.

Mexico published a presidential decree on genetically modified (GM) corn in late 2020, saying it would ban GM corn in the diets of Mexicans and end the use the herbicide glyphosate by Jan. 31, 2024. The new decree eliminated the deadline to ban GM corn for animal feed and industrial use, by far the bulk of its U.S. corn imports. The new plan bans only GM corn used for dough or tortillas but leaves the door open to gradually substituting GM corn for animal feed and industrial use in the future. Some sector experts have said they worry that Mexico's restriction on GM corn, if successful, could set a precedent, prompting other countries to take a similar approach and disrupting the global corn trade. Corn for human food use comprises about 21% of Mexico's corn imports from the U.S., according to a representative from the National Corn Growers Association, citing U.S. Grains Council data.

CHICAGO/WASHINGTON, March 6 (Reuters) - The United States has requested formal trade consultations with Mexico over U.S. objections to its southern neighbor's plans to limit imports of genetically modified corn and other agricultural biotechnology products. "We hope these consultations will be productive as we continue to work with Mexico to address these issues." The United States has previously threatened to take the issue to a trade dispute panel under the trilateral agreement with Mexico and Canada over the plan, which would ban genetically modified corn for human consumption. A USTR official said the talks would cover Mexico's planned rejection of GMO corn and other agricultural biotechnology products that have been shown to be safe in the United States and other countries for decades. Corn for food use comprises about 21% of Mexican corn imports from the U.S., a representative from the National Corn Growers Association said, citing U.S. Grains Council data.

☆ U.S. to ask Mexico for formal talks over GMO corn dispute -industry sources
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

WASHINGTON/CHICAGO, March 6 (Reuters) - The United States plans to request formal talks under its free trade agreement with Mexico over Mexican plans to limit imports of genetically modified corn, two U.S. industry sources said on Monday. The United States has previously threatened to take the issue to a trade dispute panel under the trilateral agreement with Mexico and Canada over the plan, which would ban genetically modified corn for human consumption. The U.S. agriculture secretary, Tom Vilsack, had said that a trade dispute panel under free trade agreement would be the next step if talks were not successful. U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai held talks with Mexican Economy Minister Raquel Buenrostro over the issue late last month. Corn for food use comprises about 21% of Mexican corn imports from the U.S., according to a representative from the National Corn Growers Association, citing U.S. Grains Council data.

The increase in the tax on palm oil could lift local prices, making the tropical oil a little less competitive than rival soyoil and sunflower oil. "We have proposed an increase in import duty on palm oil to support rapeseed prices," said a government official, who declined to be named in line with official rules. After abolishing the basic import tax on crude palm oil (CPO) last year, India continues with a 5.5% tax on CPO shipments. The country also levies a 12.5% import tax on refined, bleached and deodorized palm oil. "Overall food inflation might be a concern for the government, but vegetable oil prices have dropped."

☆ This week's jobs report will help determine if this nascent March rally has legs
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-05 | by ( Zev Fima | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

Where the market heads next will once again depend on inflation data — especially this week's highly anticipated jobs report. No portfolio companies report earnings next week. However, with mortgage rates bouncing back in recent weeks, it remains to be seen if the strong monthly report will see any follow up. As a subscriber to the CNBC Investing Club with Jim Cramer, you will receive a trade alert before Jim makes a trade. Jim waits 45 minutes after sending a trade alert before buying or selling a stock in his charitable trust's portfolio.

☆ Explainer: Biotech corn and soy widely used, consumers still wary of GM wheat
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-03 | by ( Julie Ingwersen | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

But genetically modified wheat has never been grown for commercial purposes due to consumer fears that allergens or toxicities could emerge in a staple used worldwide for bread, pasta and pastries. Australia grows and exports GM cotton and canola, and the country in May approved Bioceres’ biotech wheat for use in foods. Mexico, among the largest buyers of U.S. corn, has said it will halt GM corn imports for human consumption, but walked back a deadline to ban the corn for animal feed. Recent disruptions to global wheat supplies have brought a new degree of urgency to the debate over biotech wheat. Wheat Associates and the National Association of Wheat Growers, support “the eventual commercialization” of biotech wheat, according to their websites, provided that plans are implemented to minimize market disruptions.

☆ Ron DeSantis' past views could come back to bite him in Iowa, a critical state for any GOP challenger to Trump
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-01 | by ( Brent D. Griffiths | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

Ron DeSantis' potential bid to dethrone former President Donald Trump could hit a critical snag in Iowa, home to the first-in-the-nation caucuses. "If you come to Iowa, you're going to talk about agriculture," Monte Shaw, the executive director of the Iowa Renewable Fuels Association, told Insider. DeSantis won't be alone in facing questionsTrump's own administration was hammered over its handling of the renewable fuel standard. Like Iowa's senators, he was also deeply frustrated by how Trump's EPA enforced the renewable fuel standard. Chris Carlson/APTexas Sen. Ted Cruz was hammered for months on the campaign trail for wanting to phase out the Renewable Fuel Standard.

☆ UK grocery price inflation hits record high as more stores impose rationing
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-28 | by ( Anna Cooban | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

London CNN —A measure of UK grocery price inflation soared to a record high this month — that’s more bad news for consumers already facing a shortage of fruit and vegetables that has led to rationing at major supermarkets. “Our latest research shows that grocery price inflation is the second most important financial issue for the public behind energy costs, with two-thirds of people concerned by food and drink prices,” McKevitt said. Mark Spencer, the UK food and farming minister, held crisis talks with supermarket bosses on Monday to discuss their response to the shortages. UK growers were not harvesting tomatoes, peppers and eggplants at this time of year, as is usually the case, because high energy costs this winter had delayed planting, said Lee Stiles, LGVA secretary. UK apple farmers normally buy at least one million apple trees each winter for planting.

☆ UK vegetable and fruit shortage could last until May, producers warn
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-24 | by ( Anna Cooban | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

A shortage of tomatoes affecting UK supermarkets is widening to other fruit and vegetables and is likely to last weeks, retailers have warned. According to the BRC, UK supermarkets import 95% of their tomatoes and 90% of their lettuce in December and typically the same proportions in March. Stiles said UK supermarkets had opted to import even more fresh produce from abroad this winter, taking advantage of lower prices sought by overseas growers. UK supermarkets have not mentioned Brexit as a reason for the supply crunch. Although full UK border checks on fruit and vegetable imports from the Europen Union start only from January 2024, Stiles says additional paperwork has already deterred EU producers from exporting more to the country.

☆ Female-owned farms and companies are growing Ghana's taste for coffee
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-23 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

As the women worked, Tamakloe walked among them with a device to test the coffee beans' moisture content. Today, Bean Masters coffee is mostly sold in bulk to high-end restaurants and hotels. But Tamakloe aims to expand her production of retail-sized bags this year to make Bean Masters available to all kinds of consumers. At Kozo, an Afro-Asian fusion restaurant in Accra, Tamakloe and the staff sipped espressos made with Bean Masters coffee. The owner visited Pagniw's farm with Tamakloe in 2021, and has exclusively stocked Bean Masters ever since.

☆ Britain's salad vegetable crisis its own fault, says former Sainsbury's boss
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-23 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The crisis has been exacerbated by less winter production in greenhouses in Britain and the Netherlands due to high energy costs. "We could have chosen to subsidise the energy this winter as we have done for other industries." Horticulture has been excluded from a government Energy and Trade Intensive Industries scheme (ETII) that provides help with energy costs. King said that most UK supermarkets still had "very good" supply of salad vegetables coming in but overall the country is short. "That's why supermarkets introduce fair purchase policies so that 'real' customers are able to buy the one or two that they really need."

☆ UK supermarkets Tesco, Aldi and Asda are rationing fruit and salad vegetables
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-22 | by ( Anna Cooban | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

Asda told CNN that it was temporarily limiting purchases of some items to three packs per customer. These include tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers and lettuce. Morrisons told CNN that it had imposed a cap of two packs per customer on tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers and lettuce. Sainsbury’s (JSAIY), the United Kingdom’s second-largest food retailer, told CNN it had no plans to ration the sale of fruit and vegetables. The high-end supermarket chain told CNN that it was “monitoring the situation” but had no plans to introduce rationing.

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