Canola Watch Alert: Canola crops missing flowers and pods likely due to early season environmental stress

Jul 21, 2022

Canola growers across Alberta and BC are seeing canola in their fields with racemes (stems) which should be producing flowers and pods, but this normal sequence of pod formation has not happened. Consensus upon field inspection and consultation with experts is that early season environmental stress resulted in a hormonal imbalance. This causes the growing point(s) in the canola plants to stop growing, producing these abnormal racemes and sterile pods. However, favourable environmental conditions over the past 30 days should alleviate these symptoms.

We are confident these symptoms, in the fields and samples inspected, are not the result of recent insect feeding. Growers are encouraged to continue to actively manage their crop using economic thresholds and expected return on investment to guide crop inputs. We are not aware of any crop protection or fertilizer application that can alleviate these symptoms.

Click here to see more...

Video: What Does 20 MILLION Hogs a Year Look Like?

?? The Multi-Plant System Processing 20 Million Hogs Annually in the Midwest JBS USA operates multiple large-scale pork processing facilities across the Midwest, including major plants in Iowa, Minnesota, and Indiana. Combined, these facilities have the capacity to process approximately 20 million hogs annually.

Each plant operates high-speed automated slaughter systems capable of processing up to 20,000 head per day, followed by fabrication lines that break carcasses into primals, sub-primals, and case-ready retail products.

Hog procurement is coordinated through electronic marketing platforms that connect regional contract finishing operations and independent producers to plant demand schedules. This digital procurement system allows for steady supply flow and scheduling efficiency across multiple facilities.

Processing plants incorporate comprehensive food safety systems, including pathogen intervention technologies, rapid chilling processes, and integrated cold-chain management. USDA inspection is embedded throughout the harvest and fabrication stages to ensure regulatory compliance and product integrity. Finished pork products — from bulk primals to retail-ready packaged cuts — are distributed through coordinated logistics networks serving domestic and export markets.