As we are coming to the end of March it looks like spring is still far away. The second major snow storm in 2 weeks is going through Saskatchewan and Manitoba right now, bringing more moisture but also, quite possibly, further delaying spring activities. Hopefully winter will be gone in the next few weeks leaving moist fields ready for spring planting. Livestock producers are also looking forward to warmer weather as feed inventories are quite low and calving in the snowy and cold weather has its own challenges.

The prospects for our industry however are still very optimistic. Grain prices are still very good with some good opportunities to lock in decent prices for the 2013 crop year. With the available moisture there should be ample opportunity to get a good forage crop bringing relief to the cattle industry.

For us at CanadianFarmRealty.com we are working towards the end of ‘trade-show’ season. Our team has visited a large number of shows to promote listed farms in Manitoba and Saskatchewan. So far we have received good response from buyers from different areas. Although the European interest is not as large as a few years ago, we already have some families confirmed to come over this summer. It looks like there is still enthusiasm and eagerness to buy a farm on the Canadian Prairies.

We are also happy to announce the newest member of our team, Henry Carels of Brandon, MB. Henry has finished his licensing course and will be working from out of his home office. Henry comes originally from the Bruxelles area and has been involved in many business ventures, most recently as owner of Enns Brothers, John Deere dealership in Brandon and Neepawa. We are very happy to have Henry in our team as this will help us better to service our clients in Western Manitoba.

On behalf of the CFR farm team I wish you a good spring and as always you can contact any members of our team to get a market update or an opinion of value on your property.

Dolf Feddes