Vale do Rio Doce, the world's largest iron-ore producer, plans to convert its railway locomotives to run 20 per cent on biodiesel made from soybeans. US farmers plan to cut soybean acreage to the smallest since 1996. Sugar had the biggest weekly decline since December on concern that a global surplus will widen as demand fails to keep pace with rising supply from India and Brazil, the world's largest producers. Farmers planted 8.7 percent more of the grain in October and November after...

JOHN Howard's plan to reform the wheat marketing system, to be announced tomorrow, will retain a single desk for exports run by players other than the disgraced AWB. The compromise reached by cabinet on May 12 and to be discussed at a partyroom meeting tomorrow, is an attempt to quell a Coalition backbench revolt. Australia's 30,000 wheatgrowers have already sewn this year's crop, and AWB is likely to manage the sale of most of it. It says it "aims to provide the reader with the latest...

On this trip I stopped at fields and variety trials/demos near El Reno (Canadian County), Minco (Grady County), Apache (Caddo County), Altus (Jackson County), Granite (Greer County), and then north to fields around Hammon & Leedy (Roger Mills, Custer and Dewey Counties) On this trip I stopped at fields and variety trials/demos near El Reno (Canadian County), Minco (Grady County), Apache (Caddo County), Altus (Jackson County), Granite (Greer County), and then north to fields around Hammon &...

Three years after a series of controversial field experiments with genetically modified (GM) wheat, Swiss scientists are planning similar crop trials. Two teams of university researchers have applied to carry out tests near Zurich and Lausanne, including observations of potential crossbreeding between wheat and wild grass. They also intend to look at aspects of biological safety to see if the plants have any unexpected impact on the environment, as well as organisms living in the ground or...

Last year, world wheat grain production was badly affected by drought and this resulted in higher wheat prices. These two companies supply 60 per cent of the country's sugar consumption. The big drop in production was due to natural gas supply disruption in Indonesia. Wilmar to get PPB units this month By Ooi Tee Ching bt@nstp.com. my May 19 2007 PPB Group Bhd will equity account profits from its plantation and edible oil businesses until April 2007 before these subsidiaries are...

However, the Kansas crop could be up 24 percent to 361 million bushels, the same rate of increase as predicted for the nation. Weevils, cut worms and armyworms also are appearing in many fields, and fungus is in some trees, shrubs and field crops, she said. Jay Chism, extension agronomist, Lamar, said he has received many calls from farmers asking about armyworms in grass and wheat fields. She and other extension specialists in the area recommend farmers consider cutting fescue now to beat...

Dairy farmers have failed to keep pace with a 3 percent increase in annual milk consumption, according to Rabobank Groep in the Netherlands, the world's biggest agricultural lender. Reduced subsidies eliminated milk surpluses in Europe and slowed production growth in the United States, government data show. Raghuveera Reddy, agriculture minister for Andhra Pradesh, an east Indian state of more than 75 million people, said rising milk costs ''will have an impact'' on the country's...

China's intransigence is worsening an already sour mood in Washington, analysts said, strengthening those who want to punish Beijing if it fails to act to narrow the trade gap. On Friday, in a move clearly timed to show Chinese flexibility ahead of the meeting, Beijing announced changes to its exchange rate system that could let the yuan rise faster. Trying to head off a row, the top Chinese envoy to the May 23-24 "strategic economic dialogue" has appealed to Washington to be coolheaded...

All other canned and small foil wet pouch products produced at other plants are not affected by this issue. The Post Chronicletakes the recent pet food recall involving both dog and cat pet food products very seriously and has done its best to report the most up-to-date information to its readers, as it is received. Pet food contaminated with an industrial chemical may have sickened or killed 39,000 cats and dogs nationwide, based on an extrapolation from data released Monday by one of the...