Reading Time: 2 minutes Seed potato growers on Prince Edward Island who lost sales this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, or have had to store or throw out stock, can soon apply for provincial compensation. The provincial government on Monday announced $1.19 million for a new Seed Potato Recovery Program, for seed growers “who can demonstrate that they […] Read more
P.E.I. seed potato growers backed for lost sales, costs
Pandemic compensation plan to take applications until mid-January
Horticultural industry bowed, not broken by COVID-19
Industry needs to examine where it sources labour, both domestically and internationally, says chair of the Ontario Fruit and Vegetable Growers Association
Reading Time: 4 minutes Despite extraordinarily difficult issues during the COVID-19 pandemic, Bill George is optimistic about the future of the Canadian horticultural sector. “I’m very proud of how producers have risen to the challenges,” he says. “They always will find a way to get things done.” George is the chair of the Ontario Fruit and Vegetable Growers Association […] Read more
Syngenta buys biologics group Valagro
Reading Time: < 1 minute Zurich | Reuters — Syngenta, the Swiss agrichemicals giant owned by ChemChina, has acquired Italian biologicals group Valagro, a company with US$175 million in 2019 sales that uses natural solutions to fight pests and diseases and to improve crops. Syngenta said in a statement Tuesday the acquisition positioned its crop protection business as a key […] Read more
Canada adds step on U.S. romaine lettuce imports
E. coli testing to be required on Salinas Valley romaine
Reading Time: 2 minutes Canadian importers of U.S.-grown romaine lettuce will now face an extra step that’s expected to help prevent another outbreak of romaine-related illnesses due to E. coli. The Canadian Food Inspection Agency said Friday it will begin next week to require importers to provide proof that their U.S.-grown romaine didn’t come from certain California counties. Otherwise, […] Read more
Charred U.S. west’s ‘wet ashtray’ wine grapes left to birds
Reading Time: 3 minutes Reuters — Heavy ground smoke clouded Hanson Vineyards in Oregon’s picturesque Willamette Valley for more than a week following a Labour Day windstorm that kicked up wildfires across the western United States. Jason Hanson expects his crews may only harvest five tons of grapes, including his Chardonnay and Gamay varieties, down from the 25 to […] Read more
‘Lightning siege’ sparks wildfires across California wine country
Almost 11,000 strikes reported over 72 hours
Reading Time: 2 minutes Vacaville, California | Reuters — Lightning strikes sparked dozens of wildfires in northern California’s wine country on Wednesday, burning dozens of structures and forcing thousands to flee their homes. California was hit by nearly 11,000 lightning strikes in 72 hours, sparking 367 fires, nearly two dozen of them major, as the state suffered a record […] Read more
Feds line up projects for surplus food program
NGOs backed to gather, distribute 12 million kg of food
Reading Time: 3 minutes The federal government has lined up eight projects to source and distribute perishable produce, meat, eggs and seafood piling up across Canada due to the COVID-19 pandemic. As part of the federal pandemic response, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced in early May that Ottawa would budget $50 million for a food surplus purchase program. The […] Read more
Feds put up $58.6 M for temporary foreign worker supports
Reading Time: 3 minutes Glacier FarmMedia – The federal government is announcing $58.6 million in new money to further support temporary foreign workers in Canada’s agricultural sector, it was announced July 31. Spending is expected to focus on health and safety of temporary foreign workers in Canada. Farmers will be eligible to access $35 million, administrated through Agriculture and […] Read more
Wendy’s secures Canadian greenhouse lettuce supply
Alberta grower to provide sandwich, salad lettuce nationwide
Reading Time: 2 minutes The Canadian wing of U.S. burger chain Wendy’s is going strictly indoors, in southern Alberta, to supply all the lettuce for its salad, burger and chicken sandwich offerings across the country. Whole Leaf, based outside Coaldale, about 20 km east of Lethbridge, was announced last week as the lettuce supplier for the chain’s 384 stores […] Read more
Ontario to insure for crop loss due to lack of labour
AgriInsurance offering hailed as a first in Canada
Reading Time: 2 minutes Ontario’s federal/provincial AgriInsurance program has been temporarily expanded to include coronavirus-related labour shortages as a covered cause for crop loss. Producers already enrolled in an eligible production insurance plan and hit by crop losses due to labour disruptions during the 2020 growing season will be able to get further insurance coverage, the Ontario and federal […] Read more
A message from April Stewart, Country Guide's Associate Editor
