Feb. 3 - Closing Markets

(Click arrow to play OCA report)

-> ONTARIO PORK REPORTS:
TOTAL SALES = 19,802
FOR A = 3 DAY TOTAL OF = 67,564
THAT'S = down 2,572 FROM LAST WEEK.
THE AVERAGE PRICE WAS = $1.30/kilogram
THAT'S steady
THE U-S NATIONAL COST PRICE = $66.27 U-S, DRESSED WEIGHT
That's down 67 cents
FORWARD CONTRACT PRICE FOR May-June DELIVERY IS $146.73
WHICH IS up $1.56
ESTIMATED SALES FOR Wednesday = 28,000
AT = $1.24/kilogram

-> ON THE CHICAGO BOARD OF TRADE:

CORN FUTURES:
March down 12 at 3.53
May down 11 and a half at 3.64 and a half

SOYBEAN FUTURES:
March down 17 and a half at 9.08
May down 17 and a half at 9.19

WHEAT FUTURES:
March down 18 and a quarter at 4.69
May down 18 at 4.83 and a half

-> CLOSING LOCAL GRAIN PRICES FROM SNOBELIN FARMS:

Note there's a basis change for new soys.

09 CROP CORN = down 12 at 3.43/BU
2010 CROP CORN = down 11 at 3.85/BU
2011 CROP CORN = down 12 at 4.02/BU

09 CROP SOYS = down 18 at 9.08/BU
2010 CROP SOYS = down 20 at 8.72/BU
2011 CROP SOYS = down 20 at 8.59/BU

09 CROP SOFT RED WINTER WHEAT = down 18 at 3.84/BU
2010 CROP SOFT RED WINTER WHEAT = down 17 at 4.16/BU
2011 CROP SOFT RED WINTER WHEAT = down 13 at 4.94/BU

Perth County Crash Closes Intersection

OPP in Perth County have closed an intersection between Sebringville and St. Mary's because of a collision this afternoon between a van and a pickup truck.
Police have closed the intersection of Perth Road 130 and Perth Line 20 and are diverting traffic around it.
Two people in the van were taken to hospital with injuries, the driver's were minor, the passenger's unknown.
The driver of the pickup truck was unhurt, but his passenger went to hospital with minor injuries.

Schedule for Wednesday, February 3rd

National Hockey League
Ottawa at Buffalo, 7 p.m.
St. Louis at Chicago, 8:30 p.m.
Carolina at Calgary, 9 p.m.
Philadelphia at Edmonton, 9:30 p.m.
Detroit at Anaheim, 10 p.m.

Ontario Hockey League
All Star Classic in Kingston
West vs. East, 7 p.m.

Greater Ontario Junior Hockey League
Midwest
Cambridge at Brantford, 7:30 p.m.

National Basketball Association
New Jersey at Toronto, 7 p.m.
L.A. Clippers at Atlanta, 7 p.m.
Chicago at Philadelphia, 7 p.m.
Washington at New York, 7:30 p.m.
Oklahoma City at New Orleans, 8 p.m.
Miami at Boston, 8 p.m.
Golden State at Dallas, 8:30 p.m.
Portland at Utah, 9 p.m.
San Antonio at Sacramento, 10 p.m.
Charlotte at L.A. Lakers, 10:30 p.m.
Phoenix at Denver, 10:30 p.m.

New Alternatives for Highway 7/8 Corridor

An extensive public consultation process is among the next steps for the Highway 7/8 Transportation Corridor Planning Study.
The Shakespeare area is being revisited by the M.T.O. to consider route alternatives that could include a southerly or northerly by-pass around the community.
Project Manager Charles Organ says every reasonable option will be explored to address the interests of the public and meet future highway needs.
The next round of Public Information Centers will begin in March and will include Shakespeare Community Workshops. A preferred route alternative for each section Of Highway 7/8 between Stratford and New Hamburg is expected to be selected in the late Fall.
According to M.T.O. officials, the Highway 7/8 Transportation Corridor Planning and Class EA Study will be complete by the spring of 2012 but it could be years before there are any physical changes to the route.

Budget Trimming Needed in North Perth

Proposed capital expenditures will be tackled at the North Perth Budget Committee meeting tonight.
Mayor and 2010 Budget Chair, Ed Hollinger says overall the proposed operating budget came in at a 4.7% increase so there is some trimming to do.
Hollinger says it could have been much higher so overall Council is pleased with the figures that staff have presented so far.
He adds the general consensus of municipal officials is that the same services can be provided with between a 2 and 3% tax increase. They'll have to consider using some reserves to meet that target.
Two more budget committee meetings have been scheduled over the next few weeks.
North Perth plans to finalize its 2010 Budget by the end of the month.

Brockton Council Looks at Solar Panels

Brockton Council will be looking into a provincial program that pays landowners who set up solar panels on their property.
Under the province's green energy program, the Ontario Power Authority will pay small solar producers 80.2 cents per kilowatt hour of energy they send to the grid.
With the cost of installing the panel pegged at 100 thousand dollars, and revenue estimated at 14 thousand dollars annually, that represents a healthy profit over the life of the 20-year contracts being offered.
Brockton council wants to find out if municipalities are eligible, because it would be a good way to offset the massive cost of hydro used by the town.
Mayor Charlie Bagnato predicts virtually every farm in the province would have a solar panel one day.

Farmers Cautioned On Using Crop Residues For Energy

There's a growing interest in using crop residues to get energy from agriculture.
U-S-D-A researcher Jane Johnson is looking at ways to best use residues without losing soil structure or nutrients.
She says a lot of factors come into play.

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Johnson says different parts of the corn stalk have different types of nutrients - so harvesting part of the stalk might be the answer.
She says corn cobs don't have a lot of nutrient but they should be ideally suited for ethanol or gasification.
She says one rule of thumb regarding erosion is to leave 30 per cent.

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Johnson says in some cases that 30 per cent only gives imperfect erosion control as well.
She says when the residues are harvested it should be done sparingly.

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Johnson also says the types of tillage and heavy use of cover crops can help return organic matter to the soils.

Local Food Movement Growing In Owen Sound

The local food movement is gaining ground in Owen Sound.
The 'Around the Sound' market was on 1st Avenue West.
But Owner/operator Anne Findlay-Stewart says she needed more space so she's moved to 6th Street East.
'Around the Sound' sells locally produced fruits, vegetables, baked goods and some prepared foods.
Findlay- Stewart says people can know they're getting good wholesome food...

(Click arrow to play audio)

Findlay-Stewart says she tries to be fair to producers so customers might pay a premium...

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Findlay-Stewart says with the extra space she now has in Owen Sound, she plans to put in a community kitchen for cooking classes and demonstrations.

More Greenhouse Products For Plant Products Inc.

A major Canadian greenhouse and nursery supply company has an expanded agreement to distribute Syngenta Canada products.
Plant Products will now be supplying Avid, Bonzi and Endeavor.
Spokesman Robert Caucci says that gives Plant Products a complete line of Syngenta brand plant protection products for it's customers.
Plant Products started out supplying greenhouse vegetable and ornamental growers.
It now markets a full range of horticultural products across Canada.

U-S Budget Has Ag Program Cuts

U-S Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack is trying to sell the proposed new American budget to that country's farmers.
It looks like a tough sell with a 388 million dollar cut in farm commodity support programs.
But Vilsack says that's not the whole story.

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Vilsack says the proposed new U-S budget also includes food safety investments that could help American farmers.

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The proposed U-S budget also includes rules designed to better target payments to those farmers most in need.
That's the budget proposed by President Obama.
It still requires Congressional approval.

Midwestern Junior Hockey Bunched Up in the Middle

The sixth place Stratford Cullitons skated by Kitchener 4-2 last night keeping things crowded in the middle of the standings.
The win follows Stratford's emotional 5-3 win Saturday over St. Marys during the Hockey Day in Canada events.
Coach Phil Westman says the team is starting to gel at the right time.

(Click arrow for audio or right click to download)

Stratford is just a couple of points behind the Elimra Sugar Kings.
The Listowel Cyclones are trying to keep ahead and are coming off a split weekend, beating Brantford but losing to Waterloo.
The fourth place Cyclones face off against the Siskins on Friday.
That's going to be our Cherrey Buslines OHA Hockey game.
The Cyclones are between Elmira and Cambridge with only a couple of points separating the teams.

Waterloo, with Port Elgin's Kevin Czuczman and Owen Sound's Andy Mitchell, are in the hunt for first in the division.
The Siskins are just one point behind Brantford with a game at hand.

Scores for Wednesday, February 3rd

National Hockey League
Toronto 3 New Jersey 0
Montreal 3 Vancouver 2
Tampa Bay 2 Atlanta 1
Washington 4 Boston 1
Phoenix 1 Nashville 0 (shootout)
Dallas 4 Minnesota 2
Colorado 5 Columbus 1
Los Angeles 2 N.Y. Rangers 1
Detroit 4 San Jose 2

Ontario Hockey League All Star Classic in Kingston
Skills Competition
*Owen Sound Attack defenceman Jesse Blacker wins fastest skater competition with a time of 15.05 edging out the Barrie Colts Alex Hutchings by .02 seconds
West vs. East, 7 p.m.

Greater Ontario Junior Hockey League
Midwest
Stratford 4 Kitchener 2

National Basketball Association
Indiana 130 Toronto 115
Cleveland 105 Memphis 89
Orlando 99 Milwaukee 82
Detroit 97 New Jersey 93
L.A. Clippers 90 Chicago 82
Oklahoma City 106 Atlanta 99
Houston 119 Golden State 97

New Walkerton School Plans Showcased

Floor plans for the new Kindergarten to Grade 12 school in Walkerton were laid out in front of the Bluewater District School Board.
The design phase took seven months to complete but Walkerton District Secondary School principal Cathy Thomson says that the amount of time taken to draw up the plans is well worth it.

(Click arrow for audio or right click to download)

The $21 million school will combine three current schools, Walkerton District Secondary, Walkerton Public and Brant Township Central into one building.
Construction is to begin this month with the demolition of a portion of the existing WDSS building with the new school scheduled to open in April 2012.

Avon Maitland Board Tightening Up Technology

The Avon Maitland District School Board's new web site is an evolution of what's happening.
Communications manager Steve Howe says available technology had far exceeded what the old site was capable of doing.
They also wanted to make the site more accessible to people with disabilities as well as people who were not as comfortable with the technology as some people.
Howe says the new site is much more visually interesting and more interactive than the old site.
The information is also easier to access and to understand.
Howe says the new site was activated on January 26th and they've already had almost nine-thousand visitors.

Owen Sound Food Market Grows

The 'Around the Sound' food market in Owen Sound has moved and expanded.
'Around the Sound' sells locally produced fruits, vegetables, baked
goods.
Owner/operator Anne Findlay-Stewart says locally produced food is growing in popularity.
She needed more space so she's moved from 1st Avenue West to 6th Street East.
Findlay-Stewart says with the extra space she now has in Owen Sound, she plans to put in a community kitchen for cooking classes and demonstrations.