As the roiling Canadian Wheat Board legislative and legal war moved toward a 2011 climax, federal opposition politicians promised to keep the issue alive in 2012. Prominent members of the Liberal and New Democratic parties said in Winnipeg Dec. 14 that the CWB issue has crossed into the realm of the general public and is […] Read more
News
Court rejects delay in CWB law
A Manitoba court judge has ruled he will not temporarily suspend a law ending the Canadian Wheat Board’s monopoly, while he decides whether the law should be struck down. Judge Shane Perlmutter scheduled court hearings for Jan. 17-18 to decide whether the law should be declared invalid because federal agriculture minister Gerry Ritz acted illegally […] Read more
WTO fails to break logjam
GENEVA — The three-year impasse in world trade talks deepened last week as 153 country representatives met for three days and emerged with no clue about how to restart meaningful negotiations. It means at least a two-year hiatus while trade officials try to figure out what to do. It could mean much longer. By that […] Read more
Co-ops push for tax break incentives
Budget legislation that offers a tax break on co-op earnings is the most important policy change the federal government could make to support the sector, says a co-operative researcher. Lou Hammond Ketilson from the University of Saskatchewan’s Centre for the Study of Co-operatives said in a Dec. 8 Parliament Hill speech that co-ops are “an […] Read more
Water pricing may be in cards
Pricing and conservation pressure loom large in the future of Canada’s approach to water. Roger Gibbins, president of the Canada West Foundation, believes a growing focus on water conservation worldwide will inevitably lead to water pricing, which assigns a market value to water to encourage conservation. Speaking to the annual meeting of the Alberta Irrigation […] Read more
Seed association appoints students to promote ag
The contradiction is difficult for Andrea De Roo to comprehend: everyone on the planet has to eat, yet few people want a career in the agriculture and food industry. “I think it’s upsetting, especially in Saskatchewan, where we’re such an agriculture province,” said De Roo, a third year agriculture student at the University of Saskatchewan. […] Read more
CO2 leak normal
An independent study has confirmed what previous examinations of the Cenovus Energy enhanced oil recovery project near Weyburn, Sask., also concluded: carbon dioxide is not leaking from underground storage. The study, which was led by IPACC02 Research Inc., an environmental non-government organization in Regina, found normal carbon dioxide levels on farmland owned by Cameron and […] Read more
Suncor wins green award
The Canadian Renewable Fuels Association has presented Suncor Energy Inc. with its 2011 Green Fuels Award. The award honours pioneers in developing low carbon renewable fuel in Canada, such as ethanol and biodiesel. Suncor is one of the largest players in renewable energy in Canada. Its St. Clair ethanol plant in Ontario and five operating […] Read more
Glaring problems
A recent reading of Robert Arnason’s article, Beef group to introduce bankruptcy insurance (WP Nov. 17), triggers a number of glaring problems with the position of the Manitoba Livestock Marketing Association as detailed by feeder and feedlot specialist Michael Buchen. While I appreciate the shrewd advice Mr. Buchen offers my fellow cattlemen and I, to […] Read more
Brazil plans major growth
CHICAGO – Canadian farms are getting larger every year, but they’ve got a long way to go to catch up to some of the mammoth operations in Brazil. Aurelio Pavinato, chief operating officer of SLC Agricola, told growers attending DTN’s Ag Summit that the company he helps manage farms 617,500 acres of cotton, soybean and […] Read more
