There are so many moving parts in the agriculture industry — shifting food trends eventually are mirrored in production changes, and evolving markets and economics drive policy changes. Behind all this change, however, are the people in leadership positions within agriculture. And, according to Ontario's Deputy Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, Deb Stark,... Read More
Category: Western Canada
Another Ag Excellence conference is in the books. It was actually the first one that I have ever attended and it was a great time. One of the unique aspects of the conference is that there is such a wide swath of producers in terms of the Canadian geography but also genre of production. From... Read More
Grain markets got an American Thanksgiving boost as an unexpected update from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) surprised the oilseed complex, with soyoil leading, up 7.4% for the week. Soybeans weren’t far behind as they continue their run, up 5.1%, while canola held on a bit to climb 2.6%. Corn was supported by the... Read More
President-elect Donald Trump says he plans to spend part of his first day in the Oval Office issuing a notification of intent to withdraw the U.S. from the "potential disaster" that is the Trans-Pacific Partnership. Trump has spoken in favour of bilateral deals, and possibly got a jump on one with Japan by meeting Prime... Read More
Saskatchewan Agriculture Minister Lyle Stewart reiterated the province's opposition to the federal government's carbon tax plan at Agribition this week. "It's going to impose huge costs on agriculture if it rolls out the way it's been heralded. It'll have the effect of making us uncompetitive in most of our markets because our competitors are not... Read More
We are two months from the Donald Trump inauguration and as he builds his cabinet, both sides of the aisle cheer or express disappointment. But there are other things happening inside the Trump camp that are likely creating stress for the future of his trade policy. Going back to the campaign, there has been one... Read More
In 1971, John Willmott was a cattle producer in southern Ontario and director for the Royal Agricultural Winter Fair in Toronto when he was invited to judge cattle at a new event called Canadian Western Agribition in Regina. Fast forward 45 years, the 83-year-old Willmott has been involved in Agribition in some way every year... Read More
Whether producing award-winning newscasts or producing Canada's largest livestock show, the process behind the scenes is similar, says the new CEO of Canadian Western Agribition. Chris Lane joined Agribition in July after working as a senior news producer for CBC in Saskatchewan, Alberta and the Maritimes. "It's really about people," he explains, as we chatted... Read More
Next year marks Canada's 150th birthday, and you can bet there will be some phenomenal events held in conjunction with the occasion. For the agriculture industry, 4-H Canada is planning a summit of global proportions. In this interview filmed at October's Advancing Women Conference, Shaun Haney sits down with Jen Christie (@savvyfarmgirl), newly-minted chair of... Read More
Remember during the US election when many accused the economy of separating from results on Wall Street? May I present to you what happened at Deere today on Wall Street. John Deere report its quarterly earnings and the stock hit an all time high. At a time when corn is struggling in the doldrums of... Read More