We could easily call this episode of the Beef Market Update the "even Steven" episode or the "good news bad news" episode as it seems as though every point has a counter-point and every yin, a yang. In some cases it's less of a counter-point than it is a "wait just a minute, not so... Read More
Category: Agriculture Policy
This week the George Morris Center released a paper, which discusses the TPP negotiations and the potential impact on supply management. Al Mussell is the author of the report and he strongly believes that the TPP / supply management discussion is not an all or none scenario. DOWNLOAD THE REPORT Al Mussell believes that Canadian... Read More
At Canada's Farm Progress Show today, I asked Gerry Ritz about Canada's involvement in the TPP negotiations and how it might impact the supply management in Canada of poultry, dairy and eggs. If you cannot see the above embedded audio player, click here
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
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