File photo of a pedestrian crossing in front of the World Trade Organization headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland on Dec. 9, 2019. (Photo: Reuters/Denis Balibouse)

Canada, EU, China, others agree on temporary fix to WTO crisis

Reading Time: 2 minutes Brussels/Davos | Reuters — Canada, the European Union, China and 14 other World Trade Organization members agreed on Friday to create a temporary mechanism to settle trade disputes after U.S. action rendered the WTO incapable last month of acting as the umpire of global trade. The Canadian government and the European Commission said separately that […] Read more

(Dave Bedard photo)

Roundup cancer trial postponed to continue settlement talks

Reading Time: < 1 minute Reuters — Bayer AG said on Friday it has reached an agreement with plaintiffs’ lawyers to postpone a Missouri jury trial over allegations its herbicide Roundup causes cancer, to provide room for negotiations to settle the litigation. “While Bayer is constructively engaged in the mediation process, there is no comprehensive agreement at this time. There […] Read more


A worker pushes a cart of marijuana plants at the Canopy Growth facility at Smiths Falls, Ont. on Jan. 4, 2018. (File photo: Reuters/Chris Wattie)

Bargain hunters fire up rally in cannabis stocks

Reading Time: 2 minutes New York | Reuters — Some cannabis stocks are seeing their prices surge as investors hunt for winners in the ashes of an industry shakeout that hammered share prices last year. Shares of Tilray Inc. and Canopy Growth Corp. have climbed more than 20 per cent since the start of the year, while Cronos Group […] Read more




An artists’ rendition of the Merit Functional Foods plant under construction in Winnipeg. Merit also recently picked up support from research “supercluster” Protein Industries Canada to help further develop pea and canola proteins. (Meritfoods.com)

Nestle to source plant proteins from Winnipeg

Reading Time: 2 minutes Winnipeg/Zurich | Reuters — Food company Nestle SA said on Friday it has teamed up with small Canadian plant-based food ingredient makers Burcon and Merit Functional Foods, the second such supply agreement this month that targets Canadian crops. Meat substitutes from plants in burgers, nuggets and many other foods are a fast-growing industry, driving up […] Read more


CME April 2020 live cattle with 20-. 50- and 100-day moving averages. (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: Cattle stumble to two-month low ahead of USDA report

Lean hogs follow cutout values higher

Reading Time: 2 minutes Chicago | Reuters — U.S. live and feeder cattle futures dropped to their lowest prices in about two months on Thursday as traders adjusted positions before a government report that is expected to show an increase in supplies. Hog futures, meanwhile, advanced to their highest prices in about two weeks. The U.S. Department of Agriculture […] Read more

CBOT March 2020 corn with 20- and 50-day moving averages. (Barchart)

U.S. grains: Corn futures hit three-month high on export demand

Profit-taking sparks pullback in CBOT wheat

Reading Time: 2 minutes Chicago | Reuters — U.S. corn futures topped a three-month high on Thursday on improved export demand, while wheat futures traded near a 1-1/2 year high reached a session earlier. Soybeans eased to a one-month low as traders awaited signs of Chinese purchases of U.S. crops in the wake of last week’s initial trade agreement […] Read more


File photo of goats on display at the Hanover Agricultural Fair in Grunthal, Man. in August 2019. (Dave Bedard photo)

No turkeys, pigs, goats: U.S. to let airlines limit service animals

Miniature horses still up for discussion

Reading Time: 2 minutes Washington | Reuters — The U.S. Transportation Department on Wednesday proposed giving airlines the power to bar emotional support animals from cabins and limit the definition of a service animal to a trained dog. The proposed new rules are aimed at preventing passengers from falsely claiming their pets are service animals aboard U.S. airline flights. […] Read more

Victoria Falls, on the Zambezi River on Zimbabwe’s northwestern border with Zambia. (CIA.gov)

Zimbabwe says grain stocks running out after drought

Reading Time: 2 minutes Harare | Reuters — Zimbabwe has only 100,000 tonnes of grain in its strategic reserves, enough to last just over a month, as the southern African nation suffers the effects of a severe drought, according to the agriculture minister. More than half the country’s population faces food shortages after maize harvests halved last year. The […] Read more