Reading Time: 2 minutes London | Reuters — U.S. spices maker McCormick and Co. Inc. has won the battle to buy Reckitt Benckiser Group’s North American food business, paying a higher than expected US$4.2 billion to add extra seasonings and sauces. London-listed Reckitt said in April it was reviewing options for the unit, which includes French’s mustard and Frank’s […] Read more
Reckitt cuts the (French’s) mustard with food business sale
Toronto juice firm backed for ‘cold pasteurization’
Reading Time: 2 minutes A Toronto organic juice processor that bills itself as shunning conventional pasteurization for its products has picked up federal funding to develop a “new-to-Canada” way to extend their shelf life. The federal government on Friday announced a “repayable investment” of up to $6.3 million from the AgriInnovation program for Greenhouse Juice Co. to set up […] Read more
Pearce: Heavy rains cause losses in Ontario potato fields
Reading Time: 3 minutes After a month of good growing conditions and positive reports amid sporadic news on disease potential, word from one of Ontario’s potato-growing regions is that roughly 1,000 acres of potatoes have been lost due to flooding. Drenching rains in midwestern Ontario have left both commercial fields and variety plots ruined. Rainfall amounts from June 22 […] Read more
Ontario redrafts vegetable grower organization governance
Reading Time: 2 minutes Ontario’s Farm Products Marketing Commission (OFPMC) is proposing a new governance structure for the Ontario Processing Vegetable Growers, which has been without a board of directors since March. The commission last week released proposed amendments to provincial Regulations 441 and 400, which would set up an eight-member OPVG board with an OFPMC-appointed chair. The amendments […] Read more
CFIA eyes replacing ‘Cellared in Canada’ claim for wine
Reading Time: 2 minutes Labels declaring blends of imported and domestic wine sold in Canada as “Cellared in Canada” could soon be on the way out in favour of more specific wording. The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) on Thursday announced a round of consumer and stakeholder consultations, running until June 30, on a proposal for new wording on […] Read more
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
Five tips for eco-friendly gardening
The word eco-friendly can be used in many areas of our lives: at work, at home, at play. Being eco-friendly in all these aspects is quite a simple concept with incredible opportunities for creativity. The bottom line is eco-friendly is all about working with nature, not against it. As gardeners we play an ever-increasing unique[...]
Read more
Read more
Greig: Late spring planting means more soybeans in Ontario
Reading Time: 3 minutes Ontario farmers are stopped across most of the province as consistently wet weather holds up planting and pushes farmers to plant more soybeans instead of corn. Significantly higher than normal rain in southern Ontario and record rainfall between Toronto and Ottawa mean that near the end of May, corn planting isn’t complete and there remains[...]
Read more
Read more
Eggplant value chain project replaces most imports
Reading Time: 3 minutes Canadian-grown eggplant and okra have replaced about 800,000 kg of imports over the past several years, creating a research-to-grower-to-market success story. The Vineland Research and Innovation Centre has played a central role helping with research and bringing together the parts of the industry needed to create a food chain success. The eggplant and okra case[...]
Read more
Read more
Sobeys, Safeway parent seeks cost-cutting ‘leverage’
Reading Time: 2 minutes Empire Co., the parent firm for about 1,500 grocery stores across Canada, plans to restructure from a regional to a “largely national” operation cutting $500 million in annual costs by the end of 2020. Nova Scotia-based Empire — whose stores operate under brands including Sobeys, Safeway, IGA, Foodland, FreshCo, Thrifty Foods, and Lawton’s — on[...]
Read more
Read more
A message from April Stewart, Country Guide's Associate Editor
