Philip Shaw

I am into a rain delay in my soybean harvest, which means that I’m in that quintessential age-old part of crop farming, “hurry up and wait”. I’m hoping that the winds blow and the sun shines. We’ve all been here before. I say that at a time when soybeans have gained $.43 a bushel from…

I am ready to combine soybeans or at least it feels that way. In many ways, on my farm there are two times of year when you feel a little bit of anxiety akin to the start of the 100 metre dash or the 1500 metre run. The first is preparing to plant in the…

A week ago I had the pleasure of visiting Noblesville Indiana as guest speaker of the local Hamilton County Farm Bureau. It is a six-hour drive from my farm near Dresden Ontario through some of the best land in the American corn belt. I don’t often get the opportunity to drive through American farm country,…

It has been several years since I’ve been to China. That was in 1993. Keep in mind, I’m cheating a bit because I was in Hong Kong before it was turned over to China by the British. At the time many people were worried in Hong Kong about the impending Chinese takeover. It’s almost laughable…

We’ve all been there. Have you ever been in a situation where you are asked a question or need to react to something and you just bluff your way through it? I know, some of you will say I’ve been bluffing thru it over the last 32 years of writing this column. I digress. There…

Today we learned that our American friends imposed a 25% tariff on all steel products and a 10% tariff on all aluminum products coming into the United States. Thankfully, and because of national security implications, Canada has been exempted from these tariffs. Canadian trade Minister Chrystia Freeland called this a positive step. Needless to say,…

You might have heard me through the years talk about how interest rates are the lubrication of the agricultural economy. When interest rates are low it’s like a hot summer’s day making the motor oil viscous. However, sometimes in January when I add a litre to my tractor I actually have to squeeze the bottle…

Life can be about choices sometimes. I think we have all faced forks in the road. I certainly did 32 years ago when I started writing this column. I’ve faced them in business too. Never a day goes by when a new variable rears its head on my farm. However, it’s those big changes that…

There is something about farm machinery that many farmers find particularly intoxicating. I don’t count myself as one of that group, but I did have a sojourn for several years reviewing farm equipment for a large Canadian agricultural magazine. During that time I learned a lot about many different details about tractors, combines and assorted…

It has been a cruel week adjusting to jet lag. It is one thing to travel to Asia and adjust to the time change on the other side of the world. However, in my experience it is much more difficult coming back to Ontario. I could never make a quick trip there in summer. On…