Canada’s largest farm lobby has joined a coalition of major industrial sectors that is urging federal and provincial governments to develop a national energy strategy that includes renewable fuels. The Canadian Federation of Agriculture joined the New Energy Alliance, which issued a statement to energy ministers meeting in Alberta today to consider the abundance of […] Read more
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Energy Coalition wants national strategy to include biofuel
Churchill port can survive monopoly end
The company that owns the Port of Churchill said the loss of the Canadian Wheat Board’s monopoly on western Canadian grain sales will present challenges but nothing that can’t be overcome through discussions between stakeholders. Mike Ogborn, managing director of OmniTrax, said his company is preparing for what it considers an inevitable end to single-desk […] Read more
Tempers heat up over CWB issue
ST. ANDREWS-BY-THE-SEA, N.B. — Amid the general congeniality of last week’s federal-provincial agriculture ministers’ meeting, the Canadian Wheat Board issue emerged as one of the few bare-knuckle battles. Manitoba New Democratic Party minister Stan Struthers squared off against federal Conservative minister Gerry Ritz over federal plans to end the CWB single desk on Aug. 1, […] Read more
Innovative water technology hitting brick wall: report
Canada must reduce barriers holding back the development of technology that would make agriculture a more efficient water user, says the director of a policy think-tank. Dianne Cunningham, director of the Lawrence National Centre for Policy and Management at the University of Western Ontario’s Richard Ivey School of Business, said layers of government red tape […] Read more
Lakeside Packer workers ink new deal
Workers at XL Lakeside in Brooks, Alta., have accepted a new union contract that includes better wages and benefits. More than 90 percent of workers agreed July 13 to accept the negotiated agreement and avert a potential lockout at the slaughter plant. The contract provides for new health and safety protections, feed safety provisions and […] Read more
CN discontinues key line for Churchill
Canadian National Railway is planning to discontinue a portion of unused rail line in northeastern Saskatchewan between Tisdale and Hudson Bay, Sask. Warren Chandler, a spokesperson for CN Rail in Edmonton, confirmed that the company has reclassified a portion of its Tisdale, Sask., line to the “discontinued” designation. “On July 6, CN did place 55 […] Read more
National livestock traceability helpful, despite missed deadline
ST.-ANDREWS-BY-THE-SEA, N.B. – Two years ago, Canada’s agriculture ministers, with the exception of Saskatchewan, promised to see a national mandatory livestock traceability system in place by the end of this year. On July 8 at the end of the annual ministers’ meeting, they recognized “progress being made on a national livestock traceability system due to […] Read more
Trade negotiations vital to livestock sector: CCA
EDMONTON – Trade talks are more of a marathon than a sprint, says the chair of the Canadian Cattlemen’s Association. However, Travis Toews said the results for the cattle industry are worth the time, money and effort. “They are critically important,” he told Alberta Beef Producer delegates during their semi-annual meeting. Toews said it’s hard […] Read more
Sask. unseeded acreage claims set new record
The number of unseeded acreage benefit claims in Saskatchewan has surpassed the 2010 record. As of Monday, July 18, the Saskatchewan Crop Insurance Corp. had registered 13,243 claims. That compares to 12,314 last year. So far, 5,104 claims worth $155.5 million have been paid out. Last year, the total payout for unseeded acreage claims was […] Read more
Ag ministers agree on farm program principles
ST. ANDREWS-BY-THE-SEA, New Brunswick – Federal and provincial agriculture ministers have agreed to principles that will drive the next national farm policy framework and the emphasis is on innovation rather than safety nets. The goal, ministers said July 8 at the end of their annual summer meeting, is profitability, sustainability and adaptation. Changes to business […] Read more
