In case you haven't heard, Canada has finally been accepted into negotiation for membership into the Trans-Pacific Partnership or TPP. The members of the partnership and those that are negotiating to get in are all looking for access to bigger markets for their products and economic growth. Canada is truly going to be on the... Read More
Category: Ag Policy
Do you think your job is tough? Seeding and planting (lingo depending on where you live) season is a real hectic time. You get up early and go home late. The days are long but it is nothing in my mind in comparison to what the human resources department is going through at the Canadian... Read More
Government cutbacks aren’t surprising for anyone. They’ve been debated, we’ve been warned, and now the axe is falling. Of course that makes words like ‘streamlining’ and ‘efficiency’ go-to terms, even though there is no proof, and instead of loss of local control. The perfect example is news that should be devastating for the entire industry.... Read More
The Federal Government released its budget yesterday and agriculture definitely had to buck up its fair share of budget cuts. According to Ag-Minister Gerry Ritz on Global Regina this morning, AgCanada has been cut $300 million in budget. Farmer organizations seem to be playing a wait and see approach as more details develop. Ritz stated... Read More
I am not surprised by the decision that has been made by the US government to appeal the recent decision by the World Trade Organization. Many American producers and packers were hoping that the government would not appeal but the level of shock should be low. The American Farm Bureau and the NCBA recently passed... Read More
The Ontario Government recently announced that they will be ending the relationship of horse racing and slot machines. Some free marketers are cheering the decision and others are weeping for the end of the horse racing business in Ontario. I spoke to several farmers this week and this is definitely a hot button issue. A... Read More
With rumors swirling that Viterra is potentially going to be sold to non-Canadian entity like Glencore or ADM, many Canadians are speculating that the Federal Government might intervene in the deal. This would be similar to the Potash Corp sale which was kibosh-ed by Saskatchewan Premier Brad Wall and Prime Minister Stephen Harper. If you... Read More
The Alberta Government has always held to the position that the Land Stewardship Act was created to protect Alberta's environment and allow for sustainable development to occur in the province. While everyone may agree that that is a noble goal, not everyone agrees with how the government is going about it. The Alberta Government maintains... Read More
The current beef-trade relationship between the U.S. and Canada is the best it's been in a long time. That's good. We do a lot of business with the U.S. and from a geographical perspective, there is a "convenience factor" that will always keep that relationship somewhat open no matter the issue. However, even with that... Read More
It's been a while since we heard anything on the Bill 36 front. In fact, the last big news regarding Alberta's Land Stewardship Act was that it was to be suspended pending a review by the government's property rights task force. Well, the review process is finished and it appears as if Premier Allison Redford's... Read More