A photo surfaced yesterday showing former federal trade minister Ed Fast and current federal minister of international trade Chrystia Freeland sharing a full-on hug in the House of Commons at Ottawa. Wait a minute...how can this be? Fast is a Conservative with the former ruling government. Freeland is with the still-shiny-new current Liberal government. Aren't... Read More
Category: Canadian Agricultural Policy
Just over a week after Canada's Trade Minister Chrystia Freeland stormed out of trade talks uttering words like "impossible" and "incapable," there she was with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Sunday signing off on a final version of the massive agreement. The treaty now heads back to the governments of the 28 EU member states... Read More
Mario Tenuta has been studying greenhouse gas emissions in agriculture for longer than he's willing to admit. Never before has he seen this much interest in the topic. "We've always had interest in carbon sequestration and the use of nitrogen fertilizers and manures, but now where we are called to some form of action and... Read More
Canadian farm groups are welcoming the signing of the Canada-European Union trade deal on the weekend. Seven years after negotiations began, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, European Council President Donald Tusk, and European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker signed the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) at a ceremony in Brussels on Sunday. "Seeing Canada's largest... Read More
It appears the Canada-European Union trade deal is back on track, as the Belgian government has reached a deal to support CETA. After days of negotiating, Belgian Prime Minister Charles Michel says they were able to reach an agreement with the region of Wallonia that provides guarantees for the agriculture sector and changes to the... Read More
It doesn’t matter whether Hillary Clinton, Donald Trump or the Man in the Moon is elected president of the United States on November 8. Exports, market access, and jobs have long been driving the agenda for this week’s tri-national agricultural accord meeting in Niagara Falls with Canada, Mexico, and the U.S. And that’s not about... Read More
The stalling of the Canada-European Union trade deal has renewed discussion about Canada moving ahead on ratifying its participation in the Trans-Pacific Partnership — even if the U.S. isn't part of the deal. "If we're going to take a timeout on CETA (the Canada-EU deal), why don't we push to get TPP done? The Japanese... Read More
It's up to the European Union to get its members on board with the Canada-EU trade agreement. Canada has done its part. That was the message from Canada's trade and agriculture ministers on Monday. "Canada has done its job. The negotiations between Canada and the EU are finished," says Lawrence MacAulay, minister of Agriculture and... Read More
Snowy, wet weather has halted harvest in many areas over the last few weeks, leaving everybody wondering when they'll be able to get back in the field, if at all. In Alberta, growers who have crop insurance through AFSC (Agriculture Financial Services Corporation) may be eligible for an unharvested acreage benefit if they can't get... Read More
Canada's Minister of International Trade walked out of talks in Belgium on Friday, expressing despair over the chances of Canada and the European Union finalizing their trade deal. Chrystia Freeland is heading home without an agreement after three days of meetings with Belgian and European Leaders — less than a week before Prime Minister Justin... Read More