A disagreement between Dairy Farmers of Canada (DFC) and Dairy Farmers of Ontario (DFO) over promotions and marketing has led the provincial group to withdraw its promotional funding from the national organization. DFO notified its members this week that it will not be sending funds for promotions and marketing to DFC as of January 1,... Read More
Category: Ag Policy
India's government has granted Canada another three month exemption from its rule requiring fumigation of pulse crops before they arrive in India, according to Canada's agriculture and trade ministers. Lawrence MacAulay, Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food, and François-Philippe Champagne, Minister of International Trade, issued the following statement on Wednesday: Since 2004, India has granted Canada... Read More
The Saskatchewan government says it has reached deals with three shortline railways in the province to sell the Saskatchewan Grain Car Corporation's fleet of 898 hopper cars. Big Sky Rail Corp. (663 cars), Great Western Railway Ltd (150 cars) and Great Sandhills Railway (85 cars) have committed to buying the fleet for $9.7 million, or... Read More
India's government has give notice of another six-month exemption regarding its fumigation requirements for agricultural commodities shipped to the country, but it looks like shipments to Canada's largest pulse market could face another trade obstacle — much higher inspection fees — upon arrival at Indian ports. Saskatchewan Pulse Growers (SPG) says "additional clarity is required"... Read More
Montana-based cattle membership organization R-CALF has launched a multi-pronged attack to convince President Trump to reinstate mandatory country of origin labelling (MCOOL) in the upcoming renegotiation of NAFTA. On Agritalk on Thursday, R-CALF CEO Bill Bullard argued for MCOOL on the basis it supports President Trump's "America first" policy, food safety, and America's sovereignty, since... Read More
Editor's note: The earlier version of this story said the federal government had approved a reduction in user fees for the 2017-18 crop year earlier this week, according to the commissioner of the Canadian Grain Commission. A senior CGC communications staff member has since informed us the commissioner "misspoke," and that the commission is still... Read More
Blood is thicker than water, and you should never mess with family. As I look back on the trilateral meeting between the agricultural leaders from Canada, the United States and Mexico, U.S. Ag Secretary Sonny Perdue has repeatedly emphasized the word 'family'. With spouses included, this triple date included local Savannah, Georgia hospitality and even... Read More
Canada's freight railways say they anticipate paying over a billion dollars per year by 2022 under carbon pricing policies proposed and planned by the federal and provincial governments. "It's difficult to get a precise figure, but we've tried to run some estimates based on the existing pricing structures and fiscal instruments, as well as the... Read More
The House of Commons agriculture committee held an emergency meeting on Thursday to discuss the porcine epidemic diarrhea virus (PEDv) outbreak in southeast Manitoba. There have been at least 20 confirmed on-farm cases since May 2. To put that number in perspective, Manitoba previously only had 10 PEDv-positive barns dating back to 2014 when the... Read More
Before we start let me make this point very clear: This editorial is not an argument for or against supply management. It's a statement on Canada's negotiating position heading into the upcoming NAFTA talks. In any trade you try to maximize the return on an asset. In sports, this could be other players, draft picks... Read More