General

Reading Time: 2 minutes Proposed exemptions to the federal regulations on “Product of Canada” and “Made in Canada” food claims will be the subject of an online consultation until May 16. Participants will be asked to consider “specific guideline details” such as exemptions for certain ingredients that are difficult to source within Canada, such as sugar. “We define that […] Read more

Reading Time: < 1 minute The exact where and when remain to be announced, but Canada will host a ministerial meeting of the Cairns Group of ag exporting countries in 2011. Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz made the announcement at the conclusion of the 2010 Cairns Group ministerial meeting in Punta del Este, a coastal town in southern Uruguay. “Hosting the […] Read more

Reading Time: 2 minutes Pointing to “serious” management problems, Canada’s auditor general says the federal agriculture department needs to improve how it runs its research work if it wants to meet its stated goals. Research handled or funded by Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) is “important to Canada’s food production and its ability to compete internationally,” Sheila Fraser said […] Read more

Reading Time: < 1 minute The national body representing Canada’s food banks has picked up over $850,000 in federal funding for programming to help improve food safety at food bank facilities. “When volunteers sign up to help out at a food bank, they need the right training and equipment, and this investment will make sure those resources are available,” federal […] Read more

Reading Time: 2 minutes Canadian “natural” food retailer Planet Organic has shed its vitamin manufacturing division and half a dozen health food stores to help pay down debt. The Edmonton-based company, which operates nine Planet Organic natural food supermarkets across Canada and 11 Mrs. Green’s supermarkets in the U.S., said Wednesday it’s sealed a deal to sell its supplement […] Read more

Reading Time: 2 minutes Encouraging farmers to commit to an on-farm safety plan is the focus of this year’s Canadian Agricultural Safety Week, running until Saturday. The co-ordinators behind Ag Safety Week, including the Canadian Federation of Agriculture (CFA), Canadian Agricultural Safety Association (CASA), Farm Credit Canada (FCC) and Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, have developed a multi-year theme, Plan•Farm•Safety. […] Read more

Reading Time: 3 minutes High school students across Canada are the target of a new campaign that suggests careers in agriculture as a way to avoid the “typical office job.” The Canadian Association of Diploma in Agriculture Programs (CADAP) last week rolled out its national initiative, dubbed “Ditch the Office,” including a website and “social media” platforms such as […] Read more

Reading Time: 2 minutes A widespread trimming of patronage appointments across a number of federal boards, agencies, commissions and tribunals will include the Canadian Grain Commission and National Farm Products Council. “The reduction of 245 positions from various federal organizations will not affect the delivery of government services in any way,” federal Treasury Board Minister Stockwell Day said in […] Read more

Reading Time: < 1 minute A national organic growers’ group plans to pick five commodities for a project to see how best to adapt their current on-farm food safety systems to suit organic production. The federal government on Saturday pledged almost $50,000 through its Integrated Food Safety Initiative for the Canadian Organic Growers Association (COG) to develop a strategy for […] Read more