Dairy farmers across North America are facing a labour crunch. Finding labourers willing to work in agriculture is nothing new. For years, many labour-intensive sectors of agriculture have relied on migrant workers seeking work that average Americans and Canadians are no longer willing to do. But this phenomenon is relatively new in the dairy sector... Read More
Category: Ag Policy
You've likely seen Environment Canada's Tweet celebrating #WorldFoodDay and thanking farmers...well, some farmers. If not, here it is: Today is #WorldFoodDay. Thanks Farmers! Let’s help keep the planet healthy and productive. Tips here: https://t.co/D4WBHIjjU8 — Environment Canada (@environmentca) October 16, 2016 Seems nice enough, yeah? Well, then you follow the link. It doesn't lead to... Read More
World anything Day is a lot to take in. You’d think it might be easier to digest when a designated day for something global was also for something so familiar as food. But I didn’t sense that with World Food Day, which arrived and passed Sunday without much fanfare, at least in North America. Why’s... Read More
The Manitoba government is planning to implement a carbon pricing system with the goal of reducing emissions, but what it will look like has yet to be determined. Unlike her colleague from next-door Saskatchewan, Manitoba's minister of sustainable development did not walk out of the federal/provincial/territorial environment ministers meeting in protest last week when Prime... Read More
For a peek at the future of the U.S. dairy industry and the potential impact of the November presidential election, who better to ask than Orion Samuelson? The dean of U.S. farm broadcasting, who grew up on a Wisconsin dairy farm, has been on the air at Chicago’s WGN Radio since 1960 and offers a... Read More
The federal agriculture minister says the prime minister's announcement of a national carbon pricing framework this week shouldn't come as a surprise to the farm community. Lawrence MacAulay also says it will be up to the provinces to decide how agriculture fits into their carbon policies. Ottawa will require provinces implement a minimum price on... Read More
In 2014, the Canadian Roundtable for Sustainable Beef commissioned a study to assess the beef industry's performance in social, economic, and environmental areas. The results from the two-year 'farm to fork' assessment were published this week, along with a strategy for advancing and measuring sustainability efforts going forward. The findings, which were shared at the... Read More
With a count of 198 nays to 84 yeas, Nathaniel Erskine-Smith's controversial private member's bill C-246 was voted down in the House of Commons this week. This means the bill is dead and will not move forward to committee. Titled "The Modernizing Animal Protections Act," Liberal MP Erskine-Smith's bill focused on banning shark finning and... Read More
Farmers and farm groups are voicing concerns about the impact the carbon tax announced by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will have on farming and food production in Canada. Trudeau said the government will require provinces meet a minimum federal price on carbon of $10 per tonne in 2018, rising to $50 per tonne in 2022.... Read More
Yesterday, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau blindsided not just provincial environment ministers but also premiers (and perhaps Canadians) by announcing a national carbon tax scheme that must be implemented by 2018. Saskatchewan premier Brad Wall released an emotionally-charged statement yesterday outlining how detrimental the carbon tax platform will be to Saskatchewan's economy and the cost to... Read More