The Western Canadian Wheat Growers Association has hired a new executive director as Blair Rutter has stepped down from the position. Rutter joined the Wheat Growers in 2005 and led the organization in advocating for ending the Canadian Wheat Board's monopoly, while pushing for improved market access, a less restrictive variety registration process and improved... Read More
Category: Ag Policy
The AgriInvest program was designed to help Canadian farmers manage small declines in income, but the Canadian Federation of Agriculture wants the government to recognize the benefits of the program are much broader in scope. As one of the four main business risk management programs under the five-year Growing Forward 2 framework, AgriInvest offers producers... Read More
The Canadian dairy sector’s problem with too much skim milk supply could get worse if the Trans-Pacific Partnership becomes reality, according to analysis done by Al Mussell and his colleagues at Agri-Food Economic Systems. Milk, in simple terms, consists of butterfat and skim milk, with Canada’s dairy quota production system based on demand for butterfat.... Read More
The 2015 federal election is being described as a "change" election. As with the Alberta election earlier this year, the electorate wanted change, and that's what they're getting. However, many rural areas where local economies rely on agriculture did not vote Liberal, and so there was a fair amount of groaning and complaining among farm... Read More
The Ontario Superior Court denied the request for a stay and interpretation on seed treatment regulations submitted by the Grain Farmers of Ontario (GFO) this afternoon. "We are extremely disappointed that the judge did not rule in our favour, leaving the grain industry in a very difficult situation as farmers try to arrange seed orders... Read More
Canola oil stands to be one of the “big winners” if the Trans-Pacific Partnership deal is ratified. Negotiations on the 12-country deal concluded earlier this month, with Canadian grain and oilseed, beef and pork sectors welcoming the market access in it. Lawrence Yakielashek, general manager of FarmLink Marketing Solutions, explains in the interview above how... Read More
Do big changes in Ottawa mean big changes for Canadian agriculture? Ron Bonnett, president of the Canadian Federation of Agriculture joins host Kelvin Heppner on this week’s TWORA podcast to discuss the result of Monday’s federal election and what it means for the farm community. New rules have been announced on who can buy farmland... Read More
"It's a true lesson for all of agriculture," says Peter Johnson in this week's special edition of Wheat Pete's Word. "When we start throwing stones at each other, all we do is a disservice to the whole industry..." In this episode of Wheat Pete's Word, host Peter Johnson catches us all up to speed on... Read More
After seeking input through the summer, Saskatchewan Agriculture Minister Lyle Stewart has introduced amendments to The Saskatchewan Farm Security Act that will further restrict who can buy farmland and give the Farm Land Security Board more power to enforce the legislation. A survey of more than 3,200 people showed 87 percent not supporting foreign ownership,... Read More
Uncertainty goes hand in hand with change, and so after almost a decade of Conservative government, the shift to a Liberal majority in Ottawa brings with it plenty of questions, including questions about the future of Canadian agriculture (in no particular order): Who's going to be the next ag minister? The Liberals have several ag... Read More