The federal government says it's still committed to completing its review of the legislation that applies to Canada's grain industry, but the timeline is now unknown due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada launched the latest review of the Canada Grain Act in March 2019. Together with the Canadian Grain Commission, AAFC started... Read More
Category: Ag Policy
Exports are so important to the Canadian beef industry, and early 2020 was shaping up to be a record year for global demand. Then, COVID-19 happened. Statistics Canada recently released the January to March numbers for Canadian beef exports, and as Brenna Grant, manager of research services for CanFax, explains, there is evidence of COVID-19... Read More
The cattle and beef industries have been hit hard during the COVID-19 pandemic. To answer some of the timely questions this RealAg LIVE! edition features Fawn Jackson, director of government and international relations at the Canadian Cattlemen's Association. In the video below, host Shaun Haney and Fawn discuss: Domestic and U.S. cattle processing, where things... Read More
The federal government has been criticized for its handling of China both diplomatically and on trade. That said, Canada is a tiny country economically, and it's rather difficult to throw weight around when you don't have it. Dr. Gordon Houlden, director of the China Institute at the University of Alberta, says that some of China's... Read More
While farm groups are stressing the urgency of changes to business risk management programs, an important meeting in July that served as a soft deadline and a forum for possible action on the issue has been postponed. The annual meeting of agriculture ministers from across Canada that was slated to be held at Guelph, Ont.,... Read More
The very word "sustainability" can be a bit of a lightning rod within agriculture. What is it? What does it really mean? What value does it have? Carlo Dade, with the Canada West Foundation, says that there is real value in the term and the practices to achieve sustainable production, but that Canadian agriculture is... Read More
Markus Haerle, chair of the Grain Farmers of Ontario, says the producer group's recent social media and radio campaign is aimed at getting the federal government's attention and at pushing Ottawa to quit stalling on making improvements to business risk management tools, so that these programs can address shortfalls and challenges in the industry. Reaction... Read More
While announcing the details of the new Coronavirus Food Assistance Program to assist livestock and grain producers, U.S. President Donald Trump dropped a shocker on the North American cattle industry. “I read yesterday where we take some cattle in from other countries, we have trade deals. I think you should look at terminating those deals,”... Read More
By Michael von Massow The Grain Farmers of Ontario (GFO) recently launched an advertising campaign to lobby for federal support for grains and oilseeds producers. There has been considerable discussion in social media and other fora regarding financial support for the Canadian agricultural sector. Many groups were disappointed with the size of the federal government... Read More
COVID-19 has certainly made Canadians more aware and concerned about their food supply. But will public acknowledgement of the importance of the agriculture and food sector lead to more financial and policy support? "This is the first time many Canadians have gone to the grocery store and seen bare shelves... and it's got them thinking,"... Read More