McCain Foods’ french fry processing plant near Coaldale, Alta. (University of Lethbridge video screengrab via YouTube)

McCain to double Alberta french fry plant capacity

Lethbridge-area plant to more than double staff count

Reading Time: 2 minutes Alberta’s plans to boost its irrigated acres are being met near the starting line with a major french fry producer’s plans to double the capacity of its plant there. McCain Foods announced Monday it will put up $600 million to build two new production lines for frozen french fries and potato specialty goods at its […] Read more

As globalization fades new strategies needed

As globalization fades new strategies needed

Reading Time: < 1 minute Don’t expect a return to normal geopolitical conditions — at least not if you think the past several decades were normal. That was Janice Gross Stein’s message March 8, in an opening address to the Canadian Crops Convention. The noted political scientist and founding director of the Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy […] Read more


“The biggest innovation to disrupt farming,” is what Simon Somogyi calls it. What happens when milk doesn’t have to come from a cow?

Milk is where it (won’t) happen

Futurology: So far, much of the fretting has all been about fake beef. Instead, the real threat looks to be fake milk. When it hits the market in five years, how will the dairy industry fight back?

Reading Time: 3 minutes This is the fifth in a series of articles about the future of agriculture. The series isn’t an attempt to forecast next month’s canola prices, but a look at what Canadian agriculture might look like in the long term, 20 years from now. Simon Somogyi is the Arrell Chair in the Business of Food and […] Read more

(RyanJLane/E+/Getty Images)

Meat lobby says U.S. voluntary label rule could spur trade action

Ottawa to review Washington's proposed 'Product of USA' rule

Reading Time: 5 minutes U.S. meat industry lobbyists say Washington’s proposed new rules governing voluntary ‘Product of USA’ or ‘Made in the USA’ labels would “impose the same standard” as that country’s now-defunct mandatory country-of-origin labelling (COOL) law — and frustrate U.S. packers who import Canadian meat or livestock. The U.S. Department of Agriculture and its Food Safety and […] Read more


Around 20 per cent of Mexico’s corn imports from the U.S. are white corn, used to make food products such as tortillas. (Bhofack2/iStock/Getty Images)

U.S. demands formal trade talks with Mexico over GMO corn dispute

U.S. says new rules a breach of CUSMA

Reading Time: 3 minutes Chicago/Washington | Reuters — The United States requested formal trade consultations with Mexico on Monday over U.S. objections to its southern neighbour’s plans to limit imports of genetically modified corn and other agricultural biotechnology products. The U.S. Trade Representative’s office announced the request for technical talks after months of informal discussions with Mexican officials over […] Read more

(Screengrab from Merit Functional Foods video via YouTube)

Merit Foods stakeholder looking to buy company

Burcon 'actively engaged' with company's receiver

Reading Time: 2 minutes One of the joint-venture owners of Winnipeg pea and canola protein processor Merit Functional Foods says it’s in talks to buy full control of the cash-strapped company. Two days after Merit entered a court-ordered receivership, Vancouver-based Burcon NutraScience announced Friday it “intends to submit a formal proposal to acquire the business.” Burcon said Merit’s receivership […] Read more


A view of the “Bridge of No Return” from the South Korean side of the DMZ between North and South Korea. (Bob Hilscher/iStock/Getty Images)

North Korea’s Kim demands more farmland to boost food production

Reading Time: 2 minutes Seoul | Reuters — North Korean leader Kim Jong Un ordered improvements to infrastructure and expansion of farmland to ramp up food production, state media said on Thursday, amid warnings of an impending food crisis. Kim gave instructions to revamp irrigation systems, build modern farming machines and create more arable land as he wrapped up […] Read more

(Screengrab from Merit Functional Foods video via YouTube)

Plant protein processor Merit Foods in receivership

Company owes $95 million to EDC, FCC

Reading Time: 3 minutes The company behind a new Prairie processing plant extracting plant-based proteins from peas and canola has landed in receivership, in the high eight figures’ debt to its secured lenders. PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) on Wednesday announced it’s the receiver for both Merit Functional Foods Corp. and the numbered company that owns Merit’s processing plant and property in […] Read more


'We’re kind of getting lost trying to imitate meat when we should not be doing that,’ says one Quebec food industry representative.

‘We’ll need to be very creative’ in future food production

Futurology: Is anyone ready for the non-beef future coming our way? Sylvie Cloutier isn’t so sure

Reading Time: 3 minutes This is the third in a series of articles about the future of agriculture (find the other articles here). The series isn’t an attempt to forecast next month’s canola prices, but a look at what Canadian agriculture might look like in the long term, 20 years from now. In the second article, entrepreneur Robert Saik […] Read more

External view of the U.S. Department of Labor headquarters in Washington, D.C. on Aug. 30, 2020. (File photo: Reuters/Andrew Kelly)

U.S. to crack down on child labour amid massive uptick

Food processing plants among alleged offenders

Reading Time: 3 minutes Washington | Reuters — The Biden administration in the U.S. announced measures to crack down on child labour on Monday amid a steep rise in violations and investigative reports by Reuters and other news outlets on illegal employment of migrant minors in dangerous industries. U.S. officials said the Labor Department had seen a nearly 70 […] Read more