The Western Canadian Wheat Growers Association (WCWGA) has elected a new chair. Daryl Fransoo, who farms near Glaslyn, Sask., was chosen at the most recent Wheat Growers' board meeting. He replaces Jim Wickett of Rosetown, Sask. Fransoo (pictured above right) farms with his father, growing spring and soft white wheat, malt barley, canola, multiple varieties... Read More
Category: Ag Policy
Many temporary foreign workers are still in their home countries waiting for the green light (and an available flight) to come to Canada. Once here, the Government of Canada has laid out added measures and precautions for a mandatory 14-day isolation period. There are also new guidelines and rules in relation to seasonal workers, as... Read More
Submitted by the Western Canadian Wheat Growers In the midst of a global pandemic, the federal government is using April Fool’s Day to increase the carbon tax from $20/tonne to $30/tonne. At a time when hundreds of thousands of people are being laid off and many businesses are at least temporarily closing, the tax on... Read More
Olymel has notified pork producers in Ontario who ship to its processing plants in Quebec that it intends to exercise the force majeure clause due to the COVID-19 pandemic, according to industry sources. By invoking the clause, the company would no longer be required to purchase market hogs under the terms of the contracts it... Read More
No one can predict how long the COVID-19 pandemic will last, but a huge focus on social and physical distancing has been effective, at least in part, to "flattening the curve" of infection and critical illness. Tracking on an inverse curve is the local and global economy. Right now uncertainty, social distancing, and shuttered businesses... Read More
Dairy Farmers of Ontario has advised farmers that milk dumping, in rotation, will occur beginning this week, as the industry adjusts to the new demand curves during COVID-19 and the social distancing it requires. Several provinces, Ontario included, saw a large spike in demand at the onset of the virus-induced isolation period. However, the resulting... Read More
Olymel's decision to shutter a Quebec pork processing plant for a full two weeks after nine staff tested positive for COVID-19 means that the pork industry has had to mobilize to ensure pork continues to be processed and that pork producers have somewhere to deliver hogs. "There's a lot of upheavals right now, in our... Read More
When it comes to government and policy, there are almost always points of contention when it comes to what is right and what is best for your country as a whole. Throw in a global pandemic and a failing economic landscape, and the grey area becomes even larger. John Barlow, MP for Foothills, Alta. and... Read More
Early reports today that China would fully re-open its market to all Canadian canola are not correct, according to both the Canola Council of Canada and Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada. Today marks four years since Canada signed an MOU with China on the blackleg issue. Discussion this week between China and Canada have been centred... Read More
It's been an eventful start for the new president of the Canadian Cattlemen's Association (CCA), as Bob Lowe, a rancher from southern Alberta, was elected to lead the national cattle producer group earlier this month. Lowe, who takes over from David Haywood-Farmer, joined us on RealAg Radio on Rural Radio 147 last week to discuss... Read More