Canada’s auditor general is criticizing Transport Canada for lack of safety oversight on railroads. A Feb. 25 report from the office says the federal institution tasked with regulating transportation has made important improvements to safety and inspections, but “it did not assess whether its oversight activities improved rail safety.” More than $328 billion worth of […] Read more
Stories by Glacier FarmMedia
Bibeau vows clarity soon on temporary worker rules
Federal Minister of Agriculture Marie Claude Bibeau told members of a parliamentary committee March 12, that clarity for temporary foreign workers is coming soon. Previously, temporary foreign workers arriving in Canada had been told they could do their mandatory, government-required quarantine at or near their place of employment prior to March 15. Conservative party agricultural […] Read more
MP defends grain drying bill at committee
A bill offering financial relief from carbon pricing for farmers drying grain recently came before a parliamentary committee. On March 9, MPs sitting on the standing committee on agriculture had a chance to question the bill’s creator, Conservative MP Philip Lawrence. The proposed law reached committee after receiving support from each party outside of the […] Read more
Transport Canada’s rail safety oversight draws fire
Canada’s Auditor General is criticizing Transport Canada for lack of safety oversight on railroads. A Feb. 25 report from the office says the federal institution tasked with regulating transportation has made important improvements to safety and inspections, but “it did not assess whether its oversight activities improved rail safety.” More than $328 billion worth of […] Read more
New carbon market will not credit past farming practices
Draft regulations for Canada’s new carbon market show farmers won’t receive credit for removing any greenhouse gas emissions before 2017. Minister of Environment and Climate Change (ECCC) Jonathan Wilkinson announced March 5 the offset market, known as the Federal Greenhouse Gas Offset System. But producers won’t be getting any credit for being zero-till, or having […] Read more
Union blasts safety measures, foreign worker system
A union representing thousands of Canadian food workers says “consistency and enforcement” remain a problem when it comes responses for its members during COVID-19 pandemic. Derek Johnstone, special assistant to the national president of the United Food and Commercial Workers Union of Canada (UFCW), told a parliamentary committee on Feb. 18 that the past year […] Read more
Processing study ends soon; cattle producers make recommendations
The federal committee on agriculture is expected to soon wrap up its study into Canada’s processing capacity. Beginning in November 2020, MPs have heard from more than 50 witnesses on the issue. During a Feb. 23 meeting, the Canadian Cattlemen’s Association testified. In an accompanying brief, seven recommendations on how to “create an environment that […] Read more
Grain drying relief moving forward
Despite voting against a new law to exempt certain farm fuels from the carbon tax, the federal government says relief for grain drying is coming. On Feb. 25, Bill C-206, An Act to amend the Greenhouse Gas Pollution Pricing Act (qualifying farming fuel), got a step closer to becoming law after receiving second reading and […] Read more
Canada’s food policy gets advisory panel
Canada’s Food policy development is taking a major step forward: An advisory committee featuring industry, academic, and government members tasked with guiding the policy was announced on Feb. 19. Public consultations for a “Food Policy for Canada” started in 2017, resulting in the release of a report from Agriculture Canada highlighting what was heard in […] Read more
Budget could include new BRM program, labour action plan
A pre-budget consultation report from the House of Commons finance committee recommends several measures directly tied to agriculture. The multi-partisan committee heard testimony and received submissions from more than 800 groups and individuals. Mostly virtual meetings took place in December, and the consultation report was released Feb. 16. Canadians don’t know when the next budget […] Read more
