Plant breeders are about to be shoved aside, at least temporarily, as the star attractions of Canada’s plant breeders’ rights system. Coming soon to a plant breeders’ forum near you – the lawyers. Government and industry players predict that 1997 will see some high profile court cases under plant breeders rights legislation. “Last year, our […] Read more
Stories by Barry Wilson
Shades of Tory policies appear in Liberal playbook
IT COULD be considered Don Mazankowski’s revenge on the provinces. In the past half decade, a little-noted trend of government farm support spending has been the narrowing gap between federal and provincial contributions. Part of it is because Ottawa has been cutting its support levels far faster than have the provinces. And part of it […] Read more
Goodale takes rap for actions in case
OTTAWA – Is the federal government offending legal tradition by trying to change the Canadian Wheat Board Act while the legislation is facing a constitutional challenge in court? At least one respected Canadian constitutional specialist believes so. Howard McConnell, a University of Saskatchewan law professor, recently suggested that by introducing new legislation which includes continuation […] Read more
Agribition attendance steady, cattle dipped
REGINA (Staff) – Despite record-low temperatures early in the week, Canadian Western Agribition attendance was on par with last year’s total of 143,000. International attendance was down to 300 guests from 23 countries and 21 American states. Last year there were 463 international visitors from 23 countries and 27 states. The Sale of Champions, which […] Read more
Grain commission ponders cost recovery
OTTAWA – The Canadian Grain Commission likely will announce some fee increases in 1997, even though it has been exceeding cost recovery targets for most of the past half decade. Commission spokesperson Paul Graham said recently that the fee structure for the Winnipeg-based organization is being re-assessed. He said the final decision on which fees […] Read more
MPs explore routes for fixing highway system
OTTAWA – It is time for a multi-billion dollar upgrade of Canada’s aging national highway system, says the House of Commons transport committee. But how to pay for it is yet to be determined. Committee chair, Winnipeg Liberal MP Reg Alcock, told a news conference Dec. 17 one possibility is a deal between private operators […] Read more
Agriculture has unlikely champion in Toronto MP
IT’S TIME to wake up the city! The words, exclamation mark and all, were written on a note passed by Toronto-area Liberal MP Julian Reed, just after some stirring comments to the Commons agriculture committee about rural problems. More precisely, the speech was about urban ignorance of rural problems. Afterwards, Reed was asked if his […] Read more
Food industry complains loudly about Ottawa’s user fees
OTTAWA – Government bureaucrats trying to collect fees and food industry officials wanting to avoid paying squared off for three hours in a recent House of Commons agricultural Committee session. Representatives of Canada’s farm and food sectors told MPs government emphasis on charging for more services is a burden that undermines their competitive advantage. Robert […] Read more
Fee collectors justify charge
OTTAWA (Staff) – Government food industry cost-recovery fees are generating too little money to maintain existing service levels, a senior Agriculture Canada bureaucrat said recently. Art Olson, assistant deputy agriculture minister, told a House of Commons committee that government cost-recovery efforts are falling far short of the mark. In the current government financial year, the […] Read more
New year will be eventful for agriculture
OTTAWA – If years are judged by their potential to affect farmers and farm policies, 1997 is shaping up to be a dandy. “The last three years have been years of massive changes, a whirlwind of activity,” national farm leader Jack Wilkinson marveled in a year-end interview. “The new year looks like more of the […] Read more
