After decades of debate among farmers and politicians, it took less than 15 months for the machinery of the federal government to dismantle — some might describe it as steamroll — the Canadian Wheat Board's single desk following the Conservative majority in the 2011 federal election. The behind-the-scenes of how former federal Agriculture Minister Gerry... Read More
Category: Canadian Agriculture Policy
Louis Dreyfus Company (LDC) has announced plans to expand its canola crushing facility at Yorkton. The facility's new capacity will be over two million metric tonnes per year, which is more than double its current capacity. LDC initially opened the Yorkton facility in 2009 and currently employs approximately 120 people. Construction of the additional canola... Read More
"If I'd give any advice, I'd say don't be afraid to ask questions...don't ask a question because you know the answer. Ask a question because you genuinely want to know, and get their opinion and get their advice. And when you ask that question, when you explore that curiosity, you're wiser, and the folks who... Read More
After undergoing some major changes through the '80s and '90s, business risk management (BRM) programs for farmers across Canada have remained largely the same for the last two decades. While there have been a few tweaks to AgriStability and its siblings in the BRM family of programs, AgriInsurance, and AgriInvest, the risks that farmers and... Read More
The Canadian Pork Council (CPC) is disappointed the Government of Canada has accepted restrictions on access to products in the Comprehensive and Progressive agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) put forward by the United Kingdom as part of the terms for it to join the deal. Rene Roy, pork producer from Quebec and chair of the... Read More
Ahead of this week's federal budget, farmers in Ontario and points east were eagerly anticipating news of how approximately $34.1 million collected against sales of fertilizer was going to be spent in an effort to "return" the proceeds to those who paid the tariff. The answer to that question is what we lead off with... Read More
The United Kingdom has reached an agreement to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership, better known as the CPTPP. It's the first time a new member has joined the CPTPP since the original 11 Pacific Rim countries, including Canada, reached the deal in 2018. From an agricultural perspective, the Canadian Cattle Association... Read More
Bill C-234 — the private member's bill that would remove the federal carbon tax from natural gas and propane used on farms — received final approval at third reading in the House of Commons on Wednesday. The bill passed with a 176-146 vote, as Conservative, New Democrat, Bloc Quebecois, and Green Party MPs voted in... Read More
The federal budget announced earlier this week had a handful of agriculture-related commitments, including $333 million over 10 years for the establishment of the Dairy Innovation and Investment Fund. The fund, set to be administered by Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, is for research and development of new products that use solids non-fat (SNF), market development... Read More
Within hours of Chrystia Freeland, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance, introducing the 2023-24 federal budget, comments in support of or criticism against the government's proposed budget began to roll in. Livestock groups, including the Canadian Cattle Association and Dairy Farmers of Canada, are welcoming the government's commitment to establishing a Foot-and-Mouth (FMD) disease... Read More