The agricultural deal the federal government brought was too tasty a meal to spit out. But it was still hard to swallow for some provincial leaders after meetings in Saskatoon last week, not to mention some lingering bitterness once everyone was done at the table. The new federal, provincial and territorial agreement for Canadian agriculture […] Read more
Tag Archives WP editorial
The silence of science could be deafening
Scientific tools and knowledge allow the world to build and breed better crops that provide healthy foods and cheaper fuels. Now the world is setting goals that include more crop production with fewer emissions from inputs. While the latest seeding tools with the precise placement of nutrients and fertilizer treatments are doing their part to […] Read more
Farmers stuck in middle of food vs. fuel debate
Farmers may feel they are caught in the middle of a debate that pits their crops against their crops. Are canola, soybeans, wheat and corn food? Or are they fuel? Does it matter, so long as there are price incentives to grow the crops? The Russian invasion of Ukraine has left the world short of […] Read more
WTO: It’s alive
The World Trade Organization lives. It hasn’t generated many headlines in recent years — the Canada-U.S. softwood lumber dispute aside — but the conclusion of the 12th Ministerial Conference in Geneva featured some welcome gains in international trade rules. It seems the WTO has been quietly rumbling along throughout the pandemic and last week saw […] Read more
Front of package, back of the line
Health Canada’s plan to put warnings on ground beef and pork makes little sense and can’t be logically explained to Canadians. In a few months the nation’s most trusted food advisor intends to place front-of-package warnings on some of the most popular, safe and affordable foods Canadians can consume: ground beef and ground pork. Paradoxically, […] Read more
Short-term easements a good natural option
The decision to enter a land conservation easement can be difficult for active ranchers. Land, or the capital it holds, is the basis of most operations so giving up control is a choice based on faith in an unknowable future. For many, an easement assures that what has been done on the land will continue […] Read more
All stick, no carrot leads to carbon blindness
Bills, bills everywhere. The federal government has plenty to vote on and examine at committee but the bills that astonish many farmers are the ones from their energy utilities and providers. Especially annoying are the line items related to the carbon tax. Last June, private member’s Bill 206 was passed by the House of Commons. […] Read more
Doors gradually open to GM cereal production
Genetically modified wheat is finding paths into crop production in some parts of the world, and the science behind it is increasingly established and sound. It could lead to higher yields and reduce production risks, enhancing the global food supply. So why isn’t it on the table globally? The primary answer is lack of widespread […] Read more
Mind the aggie gap between rural, urban
The gaps between agriculture and the wider world are getting bigger. The first data from the nation’s census of agriculture was released last week. It comes out every five years, and every five years we see one constant trend: fewer farmers. While the nation’s population rises, the rural and agricultural population falls and the cultural […] Read more
Bloom off the rose for federal transport act
Four years ago next week, Parliament passed Bill C-49, which became the Transportation Modernization Act. It was a popular piece of legislation for the grain shipping side of the agricultural community. Transport Canada and the Canada Transportation Agency went right to work and rolled it out in time for the 2018-19 harvest. For a couple […] Read more
