Bill C-18 — the proposed legislation that includes changes to plant breeders' rights — continues to move through Parliament, despite the New Democrats saying they'll vote against it. During the Report Stage in the House of Commons on Monday, Opposition Agriculture Critic Malcolm Allen introduced 51 motions to delete all 51 clauses of the bill... Read More
Category: Canadian Agriculture Policy
Ontario and Quebec ag ministers met recently to discuss opportunities to create an action plan for growing domestic and export markets in cooperation, including focusing on the SIAL international food trade show held annually in Toronto and Montreal. According to a department press release, Jeff Leal, Ontario’s Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, and... Read More
So who’s going to buy CWB (formerly "the Canadian Wheat Board")? And where’s the money for new elevators coming from? Will they become "just another grain company"? How will farmers benefit? These are all questions I’ve heard farmers asking each other during intermissions at hockey rinks, at coffee shops and on Twitter over the last... Read More
Egg Farmers of Canada has announced a partnership with the University of Waterloo to establish a research chair in public policy. Bruce Muirhead, the university’s associate vice president, external research and professor in the school's history department, will fill the position, for which Egg Farmers is providing $110,000 per year for up to seven years.... Read More
A new group made up of several Ontario commodity groups marked the launch of Farm Action Now with an inaugural meeting held earlier this week. The "task force" of farm organizations, representing a broad-section of Ontario's agriculture sector, has been formed, organizers say, to evaluate the fate of Ontario agriculture in the face of looming... Read More
Believe it or not, there are several opportunities, over many months, to shape a bill that's presented in parliament. While, yes, hours of work are put into to drafting a bill that may become law, the parliamentary process allows for interested individuals or groups to have their say on what they want to see changed... Read More
The federal and Manitoba governments are offering AgriRecovery funding to help flooded livestock producers cover feed and transportation costs. The Manitoba government estimates 75,000 acres of hayland belonging to approximately 330 farms around Lake Manitoba and Lake Winnipegosis were flooded in May and June. Earlier today, Federal Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz and Manitoba Agriculture, Food... Read More
Editor’s note: Gary Stanford is currently in Geneva, representing Canadian farmers at the Global Grains conference. Follow along by searching the #GaryInGeneva hashtag on Twitter. Gary Stanford, farmer and president of the Grain Growers of Canada wants farmers to know that Bill C-18, the Agricultural Growth Act, contains important and positive changes to several pieces... Read More
Merck Animal Health has announced "significant progress" in the implementation of its Zilmax Five-Step Plan (follow that link for details). With insights from the company’s advisory board, an extensive assessment and analysis of existing, as well as new product data, was conducted, Merck says. Merck had suspended sales of Zilmax in August of 2013 following... Read More
Farmers of North America says its bid to acquire the former Canadian Wheat Board and its grain handling assets has been rejected by CWB's management. FNA was looking to raise up to $380 million from Western Canadian farmers to purchase a majority stake in CWB and use its assets to launch a farmer-owned grain and... Read More