On Friday, Alberta Beef Producers (ABP) will have their plebiscite vote available to its members. Ranchers are being asked if their provincial check-off dollars should be refundable or non-refundable. Voting will take place at various ABP fall meetings across the province from October 19th until November 13th. There's also the option to vote at any... Read More
Category: Ag Policy
I'm worried about the tone of many conversations I've had with dairy farmers recently. Following on the heels of the latest trade deal, many farmers are angry, feeling steamrolled, or, quite frankly, are afraid that their very livelihood is being threatened. It's not just dairy farmers feeling the pinch, of course — farming carries a... Read More
It was an exciting day for trade between Canada and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) region. Today, the Canadian government announced new market access for live cattle exports to the Philippines, along with sheep and goat genetics exports to Indonesia and the Philippines. “Increasing trade with fast-growing and dynamic markets such as those... Read More
There was a tremendous amount of relief, and some consternation, when the new United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) was finally struck. Cleary, many industries are simply happy that things did not get worse. The dairy industry, though, feels that things did get worse for them. Dr. Richard Barichello, professor, food and resource economics at the University... Read More
Walk around the World Dairy Expo at Madison, Wisconsin, and you'll find Canadians everywhere – from the show ring, to the cattle barns, and the exhibit halls. In the video below, RealAgriculture's Bernard Tobin and Jordon Underhill, general manager of the Canadian Dairy XPO (CDX), take the pulse of the attendees at the annual dairy... Read More
As one tour comes to an end, another one begins. Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food Lawrence MacAulay has ended his cross-Canada tour dubbed “Growing Canadian Agriculture." For the duration of the second part of the tour, MacAulay went from west to east meeting with various farmers, processors, and industry leaders. He also took part in... Read More
What a week in Wisconsin. When I arrived at the annual World Dairy Expo in Madison, Wisconsin, early last week, farmers across the U.S. were still trying to understand the potential impact that the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) could have on their farms. Early television reports featured emotional farmers sharing tearful thanks for a new... Read More
Ontario's Premier Doug Ford began his western tour Thursday by visiting a kindred spirit, Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe. Moe clearly indicated he’s glad to have Ford on his side on several issues, but particularly Saskatchewan's long-standing opposition to the carbon tax. Ontario announced it is intervening in the Government of Saskatchewan’s reference challenging the federal... Read More
If you have a piece of low land, shallow soil, or a stream bank that you've thought about taking out of production, the ALUS concept may be of interest to you. ALUS Canada pays farmers to establish and maintain permanent cover on their farms, contributing to cleaner water and air and to wildlife habitat. ALUS... Read More
During a recent trip to Washington, D.C., Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland wore a t-shirt that read: “Keep calm and negotiate NAFTA.” To farmers looking at the result, the shirt could just as easily have read “I renegotiated NAFTA, and all I got was this lousy t-shirt.” Canada came to the table with very little... Read More