When Lawrence MacAulay was first elected to Canada's House of Commons, Brian Mulroney was Prime Minister. Twenty seven years later in 2015, he was named to Justin Trudeau's cabinet as Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food. After 30 years in parliament, the 72-year-old former dairy and potato farmer from Prince Edward Island says there's still more... Read More
Category: Ag Policy
In an open letter to the prime minister, Dairy Farmers of Canada (DFC) are calling for Justin Trudeau not to sign the United-States-Mexico-Canada-Agreement (USMCA). The group states the USMCA will create further harm to the Canadian dairy sector. Adding that the trade document still contains, "provisions that would grant the U.S. oversight into the administration... Read More
The way farmers support new variety development of most open-pollinated and trait-free crops is set to change. Currently, the federal government is hosting consultation meetings across Canada to garner feedback from farmers, plant breeders, seed companies, and industry on two proposed systems: end point royalty or trailing royalty contracts. The impending change has been a... Read More
The Ontario and federal governments have announced steps to help farmers experiencing revenue loss because of high levels of deoxynivalenol (DON) in their corn crops. While the largest portion of Ontario's corn crop remains unaffected, the government partners say this support will help ease the impact for effected farmers. It will also assist the entire... Read More
A year in to a trying time for pulse movement into India, and there are some reports of a slight uptick in Canadian tonnage moving in to the country. It's not that the tariff or fumigation situation is resolved — instead, reports of dry local conditions could be putting a damper on domestic production. Regardless... Read More
As anyone who owns a business knows, producing a product is only part of the process. Selling that product is perhaps more important. When you export 90 percent of what you produce, you have to go around the world to sell it. Cam Dahl, president of Cereals Canada, is a part of this process, and... Read More
Joining four other like-minded grower organizations, Winter Cereals Manitoba Inc (WCMI) is exploring potential amalgamation. WCMI directors Doug Martin and Allan Olinyk have jumped on and joined the farmer-led steering committee consisting of other directors from the Manitoba Corn Growers Association (MCGA), Manitoba Flax Growers Association (MFGA), National Sunflower Association of Canada (NSAC), and the... Read More
Ontario Federation of Agriculture president Keith Currie is hoping 2019 will be a prosperous year for farmers in the province. Earlier this week, the Colingwood, Ont., farmer was acclaimed to his third term as leader of the farm lobby organization. A big part of Currie’s success over past year has been his leadership in drafting... Read More
This year has brought many political events to remember including trade deals, a new party on the right, and a bizarre foreign trip to India for Prime Minister Trudeau. As we get closer to 2019, Ottawa has flipped into election mode according to Kelsey Johnson of iPolitics. Johnson also believes the issue of competitiveness will... Read More
Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) is taking steps to fund research on agriculture's impact on the environment. According to a news release, the purpose of the research is to, "help farmers and livestock producers have a beneficial impact on the environment, while continuing to grow the economy." The announcement, made by Minister of Agriculture and... Read More