Total Canadian farm cash receipts breached the $100 billion mark for the first time in record history in 2025. However, surging expenses and soft crop markets kept a lid on overall profitability, as national realized net farm income was down slightly in 2025. According to data released by Statistics Canada on May 27, realized net... Read More
Category: Ag Policy
The United States and Mexico are kicking off a series of bilateral negotiating rounds without Canada ahead of the first official review of the North American trade agreement. U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) Deputy Ambassador Jeff Goettman is leading an American delegation to Mexico City for an initial two days of meetings on May 28-29. According... Read More
Agriculture crises rarely arrive one at a time, and few people understand that better than former Alberta agriculture ministers Shirley McClellan and Verlyn Olson. In this fifth episode of The Final Mile podcast, hosted by Shaun Haney and sponsored by Results Driven Agriculture Research (RDAR), the two former ministers reflected on the realities of leading... Read More
Competing in global commodity markets is a race Canada can’t win long-term, says Ted Bilyea, former executive vice-president of Maple Leaf Foods and distinguished fellow with the Canadian Agri-Food Policy Institute (CAPI). In this episode of Ag Policy Connection, Bilyea says that Canada’s advantage lies in differentiation — creating food products consumers specifically want and... Read More
In this episode of The Truth About Ag, hosts Kristjan Hebert and Evan Shout are joined by Pierre Petelle, president and CEO of CropLife Canada, for a discussion on regulation, innovation, and Canada’s competitiveness in agriculture. Petelle outlines CropLife Canada’s role in advocating for a business environment that encourages companies to bring new crop protection... Read More
Alberta farmer and former farm group leader Tara Sawyer has been sworn in as Alberta's new Minister of Agriculture and Irrigation, as of May 21. Premier Danielle Smith unveiled a series of changes to the provincial cabinet on Thursday, after finance minister Nate Horner and his colleague Matt Jones announced they would not be seeking... Read More
Canada’s ability to grow agricultural exports and strengthen trade relationships in Indo-Pacific markets depends on addressing critical transportation bottlenecks, says Fertilizer Canada president and CEO Michael Bourque. In this conversation with RealAgriculture’s Shaun Haney, Bourque discussed a coalition letter sent to Prime Minister Mark Carney and Transport Minister Steve MacKinnon urging federal leadership on long-term... Read More
The Canadian Oilseed Processors Association (COPA) has named Mark Walker as its new executive director, effective May 19, 2026. Walker was previously the vice-president of markets and trade with Cereals Canada, leading domestic and international market development. He has also served as a board member of the Canadian Agri-Food Trade Alliance, as a manager with... Read More
Health Canada has launched a 45-day public consultation on slashing red tape for industrial hemp, a move long sought by hemp growers and industry who say the crop should be treated as an agricultural commodity rather than a controlled substance. According to a notice published in the Canada Gazette, Part I on May 16, the... Read More
Alberta’s canola producer organization is calling on the federal government to compensate farmers for financial losses tied to the trade dispute with China. In a letter sent May 8 to Agriculture Minister Heath MacDonald and Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne, the Alberta Canola Producers Commission says Ottawa must offset the economic fallout from China's anti-dumping investigation... Read More