(Country Guide file photo)

Ag sector equity rises in 2016

Reading Time: < 1 minute CNS Canada –– Agriculture sector equity rose slightly in 2016, according to a Statistics Canada balance sheet on the industry. Farm sector equity totaled $500.3 billion for the year ending Dec. 31. That’s a 4.5 per cent increase, or $21.6 billion, from the same period a year ago, according to the report released Wednesday. Farm […] Read more

(Photo courtesy Canada Beef Inc.)

U.S. Trade Representative says no deadline for NAFTA deal

Reading Time: 2 minutes Washington | Reuters — U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer said on Wednesday there was no deadline for completing NAFTA trade talks between the United States, Canada and Mexico even as lawmakers warned that U.S. business would be hurt by prolonged negotiations. “There is no deadline. My hope is that we can get it done by […] Read more


U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue, Canadian Agriculture Minister Lawrence MacAulay and Mexico’s Secretary of Agriculture Jose Calzada (l-r) speak at the Port of Savannah, Ga. on June 20. (Stephen B. Morton photo courtesy Georgia Ports Authority)

NAFTA agriculture ministers see ‘few’ differences over trade

Reading Time: < 1 minute Garden City, Ga. | Reuters — The U.S., Canada and Mexico have “relatively few” differences on agricultural trade, agriculture ministers from the three countries said in a joint statement after meeting Tuesday to discuss the renegotiation of the North American Free Trade Agreement. However, some “irritants” are present for each country in the runup to […] Read more

A Whole Foods Market store in San Francisco. (WholeFoodsMarket.com)

Whole Foods CEO hints at another brand under Amazon

Reading Time: < 1 minute Reuters — After Amazon.com completes its takeover of high-end grocer Whole Foods Market, it might launch another brand with different standards, the grocery chain’s chief executive said in remarks reported in a securities filing on Monday. Amazon plans to keep the natural grocer’s high standards, Whole Foods CEO John Mackey said, adding, “They’re not stupid […] Read more


Quebec Agriculture Minister Pierre Paradis. (MAPAQ.gouv.qc.ca)

No charges against Quebec’s ex-ag minister

Reading Time: < 1 minute Quebec’s director of prosecutions has decided not to pursue criminal charges against the province’s fired agriculture minister over allegations of “acts of a sexual character.” The province’s director of criminal and penal prosecutions (DPCP) announced in a release Monday that the office was “not reasonably convinced” culpability could be proven against the provincial member for […] Read more



(Dave Bedard photo)

Hourly employees in agriculture among lowest paid

Reading Time: < 1 minute CNS Canada –– Hourly-wage employees in agriculture and related production were among the lowest earners nationally, according to data from Statistics Canada. The agency on Thursday released data on wages paid to payroll employees in 2016. It reported the average hourly wage paid to full-time employees, excluding overtime pay, tips, incentives and performance pay arrangements, […] Read more

Sea surface temperature anomalies over the Pacific for the week centred on May 31. (CPC.ncep.noaa.gov)

U.S. forecaster sees El Nino unlikely through fall

Reading Time: < 1 minute Reuters — A U.S. government weather forecaster on Thursday said there are no active El Nino or La Nina patterns and that neutral conditions are likely in the Northern Hemisphere during fall 2017. However, chances for El Nino remain elevated, between 35 and 50 per cent, relative to the long-term average into the fall, the […] Read more


(Staff photo)

Federal food policy consultations underway

Reading Time: 2 minutes The long-discussed-and-debated notion of a public pan-Canadian food policy has taken a move forward with a new online survey from the federal government. Agriculture Minister Lawrence MacAulay on Monday announced an initial round of consultations and called on the public to “share their input to help shape a food policy that will cover the entire […] Read more

(Dave Bedard photo)

Ontario minimum wage increases concern farmers

Reading Time: 3 minutes Changes to the way labour is regulated and paid for in Ontario will have detrimental effects on farm profitability, say farm organizations. Premier Kathleen Wynne and Labour Minister Kevin Flynn announced the changes this week, outlining the proposed legislation after a review of the acts that govern labour in Ontario was completed. The largest impact […] Read more