Livestock groups had asked that phrases in Bill C-293 such as “regulate commercial activities that can contribute to pandemic risk, including industrial animal agriculture” and “phase out commercial activities that disproportionately contribute to pandemic risk, including activities that involve high-risk species” be changed, but the wording remained in the bill that the House of Commons passed in June.  |  File photo

Pandemic response bill worries livestock groups

Industry says Bill C-293 contains ill-defined terms and heavy-handed language that unfairly targets animal agriculture

Glacier FarmMedia – A federal bill that purports to protect Canada from the next pandemic is drawing fire from the agriculture sector. In a recent editorial titled “Is Bill C-293 Canada’s ‘Vegan Act?’” Sylvain Charlebois, director of Dalhousie University’s Agri-Food Analytics Lab, said the bill “represents an unprecedented governmental intrusion into personal dietary choices and […] Read more

Producers recently said during a Saskatchewan Cattlemen’s Association meeting that the group has more important things to worry about than whether it should change its name.  |  File photo

Name change for cattle group meets resistance

Members attending Saskatchewan Cattlemen’s Association meeting say talk of changing group’s name is a distraction

SWIFT CURRENT, Sask. — The idea of changing the Saskatchewan Cattlemen’s Association name did not sit well with producers attending their fall district meeting here late last month. They overwhelmingly spoke in favour of maintaining the name as is and passed a resolution saying so. Chief executive officer Grant McLellan said the organization isn’t contemplating […] Read more

Cow-calf pairs are grazing in a pasture with a barbed-wire fence in the foreground.

Beef strategy measures sector’s gains

Recent update sums up the final years of Canada’s 2020-24 road map that was developed to guide the cattle industry

Glacier FarmMedia – Lower emissions, more exports and a more positive perception of the sector — those are a few of the wins the beef industry says it is celebrating from the last two years. The reported gains come from an update of the 2020-24 national beef strategy, a road map backed by seven major […] Read more


If you’re trying to reach non-farmers through social media with constructive messages about farming, arguing with people who attack you is counterproductive, says a seasoned agricultural communications professional. | Getty Images

Producers advised against fighting with trolls online

This is part of a series of stories that reporter Ed White will file this summer about the different approaches that can be taken when advocating for agriculture. Fighting trolls might look cool in fantasy movies or when you’re playing Dungeons and Dragons, but it doesn’t achieve much in the real world. If you’re trying […] Read more

Dr. Cheryl Waldner, a professor and researcher at the University of Saskatchewan’s Western College of Veterinary Medicine, won the 2024 Canadian Beef Industry Award for Outstanding Research and Innovation. She was named to the honour during the 2024 Canadian Beef Industry Conference in Saskatoon. | Amanda Waldner photo

Prof receives cattle research award

Glacier FarmMedia – A well-known innovator in beef cattle health and welfare was honoured by her peers Aug. 21. Dr. Cheryl Waldner, a professor and researcher at the University of Saskatchewan’s Western College of Veterinary Medicine, won the 2024 Canadian Beef Industry Award for Outstanding Research and Innovation. She was named to the honour during […] Read more



The countdown to the lockdown deadline set by the railways runs out at one minute past midnight tonight. | File photo

Time runs out for a negotiated settlement for Canada’s railway labour dispute

Deadline for lockout set by two major railways expires tonight at one minute past midnight

UPDATED: 0745 CST August 22, 2024 – Glacier FarmMedia – As pressure mounts on the federal government to intervene in the labour dispute between Canada’s two largest railways and their workers, the threat of a stoppage became reality earlier today. The countdown to the lockdown deadline set by the railways ran out at one minute […] Read more

“The agriculture sector is in the midst of a transition characterized less and less by diesel and more and more by data,” said CFA first vice-president and Saskatchewan grain farmer Todd Lewis.
 | Getty Images

Farmers want data strategy

WHITEHORSE — Data will drive productivity growth on Canadian farms, farm organizations told agriculture ministers last month. They called for a national data strategy during a roundtable at the Canadian Federation of Agriculture summer meeting and ahead of the federal-provincial-territorial annual ministerial meeting. “The agriculture sector is in the midst of a transition characterized less […] Read more


Canada Beef and the CCA are getting up to $5,865,110 and $453,364, respectively, for advertising campaigns, trade missions, technical training and educational seminars. | Screencap via cattle.ca

Beef sector has plans for recent federal funding

Indo-Pacific, Middle East regions are identified as priorities for $6 million in new marketing and beef promotion money

Glacier FarmMedia – Canada Beef and the Canadian Cattle Association have plans for the recently announced boost to marketing budgets, meant to promote Canadian beef around the globe. In early July, federal agriculture minister Lawrence MacAulay announced more than $6 million for the two industry organizations under the AgriMarketing Program, an initiative of the Sustainable […] Read more

Nathan Phinney, Lawrence MacAulay and Eric Bienvenue wearing cowboy hats in front of a Sustainable Ag Partnership banner

Feds announce $6 million beef marketing boost

The Canadian beef industry is getting a more than $6-million national boost from the federal government promote Canadian beef abroad. “Canadian beef has earned a top spot on the world stage because of the commitment to quality and sustainability that our producers hold themselves to,” said agriculture minister Lawrence MacAulay in a news release today. […] Read more