Reading Time: 2 minutes Ottawa | Reuters — Protests in Canada against vaccine mandates have disrupted two key U.S. border crossings, and are snarling hundreds of millions of dollars daily of trade, ranging from cattle to car parts. Demonstrations who at first demanded an end to federal COVID-19 vaccine mandates for cross-border truck drivers began Jan. 28 in the […] Read more
Pandemic border protests strand cattle and car parts
Pork industry looks ahead from turbulent 2021
Pork prices expected to stay elevated in 2022
Reading Time: 2 minutes MarketsFarm — Labour shortages caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, high feed costs and lower prices posed constant threats to Canada’s hog industry in 2021. Nevertheless, pork appears to be in a good spot entering 2022, according to two analysts. “2021 was not the best, but not the worst,” said Tyler Fulton, director of risk management […] Read more
Single lanes opened at Alberta border crossing, Mounties say
RCMP 'acknowledges the work that is being done'
Reading Time: 2 minutes Single lanes have reopened in each direction at Alberta’s busiest Canada-U.S. trade window, allowing cross-border supply chains to resume, RCMP report. In response to “concerned citizens in the area of Coutts,” participants in a blockade of vehicles in place at the local border crossing “made the decision to open a lane going northbound and southbound […] Read more
Pulse weekly outlook: Lentil prices decline, may shift in spring
Reading Time: 2 minutes MarketsFarm — Prices for Canadian lentils, along with other pulses in the country, have slightly declined since the start of 2022. However, one pulse buyer thinks the next few months can recharge the market. Lionel Ector, president of Diefenbaker Spice and Pulse at Elbow, Sask., explained that a good Australian lentil harvest in December has […] Read more
Pulse weekly outlook: Early signs point to larger Canadian crops
Reading Time: < 1 minute MarketsFarm — Early signs point to a sizeable increase in Canadian pulse production in 2022-23, but co-operative weather will be needed to meet those expectations. Strong returns over the past year relative to other crops should encourage farmers to seed more peas and lentils in 2022, according to the first outlook for the new crop […] Read more
Study finds no data to show change in butter consistency
Not enough data to link to palm supplement use, either
Reading Time: 4 minutes Updated, Jan. 24 — A panel tasked with reviewing complaints of changes in Canadian butter’s consistency has found there’s not enough data out there to support those complaints — nor to support the allegation that palm byproducts in cows’ rations were the cause. The Expert Working Group on Feed Supplementation, set up by Dairy Farmers […] Read more
Vaccine mandate to lead to inflation, empty shelves, trucking executives say
Parallel mandate for U.S. entry starts Saturday
Reading Time: 3 minutes Ottawa | Reuters — Canadian consumers should soon see higher prices and some empty shelves in supermarkets and other retail outlets because of disruptions stemming from a COVID-19 vaccine mandate for cross-border truckers, top trucking executives warned this week. The mandate, imposed by Ottawa to help curb the spread of the virus, has cost six […] Read more
South Korea lifts temporary suspension of Canadian beef
Reading Time: < 1 minute Reuters — South Korea is lifting its temporary suspension of Canadian beef imports that it imposed after Canada detected a case of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) in December, federal Agriculture Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau said Wednesday. South Korea halted the shipments after Canada last month reported its first BSE case in six years. China and the […] Read more
Oat prices, acres to rise in 2022, analyst says
Reading Time: 3 minutes MarketsFarm — An independent crop market analyst told Saskatchewan oat growers he is bullish for the crop in 2022. Brennan Turner, founder and former CEO of online crop marketing platforms FarmLead and Combyne Ag, delivered a presentation at the Saskatchewan Oat Development Commission’s (SaskOats) annual general meeting in Saskatoon on Wednesday. Turner, a Foam Lake […] Read more
Cross-border supply chains still may face disruptions from vaccine mandates
Reading Time: 2 minutes CLARIFIED, Jan. 13 — Ottawa/Washington | Reuters — COVID-19 vaccine requirements for foreign truckers at the U.S.-Canada border still could cause supply-chain disruptions if both countries do not decide to allow exemptions, the head of the Canadian Trucking Alliance (CTA) said Thursday. Canadian truck drivers who aren’t vaccinated may enter Canada by right — but […] Read more
A message from April Stewart, Country Guide's Associate Editor
