VANCOUVER — Cannabis growers will be eligible for federal agricultural funding after production becomes legal this fall. But they won’t be able to access business risk management money. Agriculture ministers meeting in Vancouver at their annual meeting last month agreed that because cannabis is considered an agricultural crop, producers will be able to apply for […] Read more
Author Archives
Semi-dwarf hemp varieties recommended
OUTLOOK, Sask. — An experienced hemp grower says first-time growers should consider semi-dwarf varieties. Larry Marshall, who farms at Shellbrook, Sask., told attendees of a recent field day at the Canada-Saskatchewan Irrigation Diversification Centre, where variety trials of hemp are being grown, that shorter crops are easier to manage. He said he noticed that the […] Read more
EIA found in Saskatchewan horse
The Canadian Food Inspection Agency has confirmed a case of equine infectious anemia in a Saskatchewan horse. This is the first case in the province this year but there have been several in Alberta. Saskatchewan usually has the highest number of positive cases, according to CFIA statistics. The positive test was confirmed July 20 after […] Read more
Farmers want role in program review
It appears a review of business risk management programs will continue without a panel that includes farm groups
VANCOUVER — Farm leaders say the decision by Canada’s agriculture ministers to continue reviewing business risk management programs is positive, but they wonder how producers will be involved. Ministers, at their annual meeting last week, accepted a report from an external panel of experts appointed six months ago and directed officials to move forward on […] Read moreNo ad-hoc farm aid if trade goes awry
VANCOUVER — Current farm safety nets will have to be enough if an escalating trade war hurts farmers financially, say Canada’s agriculture ministers. They did not discuss any ad hoc support during their annual meeting last week, in the event that tariffs and retaliatory tariffs harm the sector. Federal minister Lawrence MacAulay said the Canadian […] Read more
Japan lifts ban on Canadian wheat over GMO
International trade action against Canada after the discovery of an isolated patch of genetically modified wheat growing in Alberta is over. Japan last week lifted its temporary suspension of Canadian wheat and flour imports after conducting its own scientific testing. South Korea lifted its restriction June 26. Federal Agriculture Minister Lawrence MacAulay and International Trade […] Read more
Tariffs not that unusual in Canada-U.S. trade relations
An economist says protectionism has been the rule rather than the exception over the years between the two countries
MOOSE JAW, Sask. — U.S. President Donald Trump’s move to protectionism isn’t all that unusual, considering the trade history between the United States and Canada, says University of Saskatchewan agricultural economist Richard Gray. He said the last 20 years under the North American Free Trade Agreement have been the exception rather than the rule. He […] Read moreUrban-rural divide called threat to farmer voice
A former NFU executive director says farmers find themselves caught between the progressive and populist movements
MOOSE JAW, Sask. — A wider urban-rural divide is squeezing farmers between progressive and populist movements, says a public policy expert, and that could result in a diminished farm voice at the political table. Kevin Wipf, a former National Farmers Union executive director who now works with Alberta’s justice department, told the recent Farming For […] Read moreFarmers favour sharing data with universities
MOOSE JAW, Sask. — Farmers are most willing to share data with university researchers and least willing to share with government, according to a survey by a University of Saskatchewan agricultural economics graduate student. Madeline Turland presented results from a survey last fall of 571 Saskatchewan farmers at the recent Farming For Profit? conference. “Aggregating […] Read more
Advisory panel left out of farm program review
VANCOUVER — Canada’s agriculture ministers wrapped up their annual meeting here today with an agreement to continue looking at business risk management programs. However, officials will do that work, not the expert advisory panel struck last December that included farmers and industry players. Industry and the panel had asked for an extension after the one-year […] Read more
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