U.S. Representative Ilhan Omar of Minnesota meets a double-amputee rescue dog at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C. on May 21, 2019. (Photo: Reuters/Jonathan Ernst)

Rookie U.S. House Democrats call for COOL revival

Reading Time: 3 minutes Several new members of the U.S. House of Representatives who’ve pressed for stronger language on labour and environmental standards in the revised North American free trade deal now also want it to include country-of-origin labeling (COOL) on meat. A letter to U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer, dated Tuesday and signed by 27 freshman House Democrats, […] Read more

A building housing offices of the Asia Infrastructure Investment Bank in Beijing. (AIIB.org)

Federal Tories critique lack of action on China

Reading Time: 2 minutes MarketsFarm — Federal Opposition House Leader Candice Bergen has publicly ripped the federal government’s lack of action to deal with rising barriers against Canada’s substantial ag exports to China. China halted imports of Canadian meat effective Tuesday, the latest on the list of Canadian products China has blacklisted since the December arrest of Huawei executive […] Read more


Federal International Trade Diversification Minister Jim Carr speaks at the China-Canada economic and financial strategy dialogue in Beijing on Nov. 12, 2018. (Photo: Reuters/Jason Lee/Pool)

Canada says bogus certificates being used to smuggle meat into China

Reading Time: 2 minutes Ottawa | Reuters — Unknown actors are using bogus certificates to smuggle Canadian meat into China, Trade Minister Jim Carr said on Wednesday, a day after Beijing halted beef and pork imports citing falsified paperwork. China, which has already blocked imports of Canadian canola seed and product from three pork plants, said on Tuesday it […] Read more



A Mexican port-of-entry sign on Highway 92 near Naco, Arizona. (Rex_Wholster/iStock/Getty Images)

Mexico becomes first country to ratify USMCA deal

Reading Time: 2 minutes Mexico City | Reuters — Mexico on Wednesday became the first country to ratify the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) agreed late last year to replace the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) at the behest of U.S. President Donald Trump. By a vote of 114 in favour to four against, Mexico’s Senate backed the trade […] Read more



(Photo courtesy Architect of the Capitol, VisitTheCapitol.gov)

Trudeau to meet with Pelosi, McConnell on USMCA

Reading Time: 2 minutes Washington | Reuters — Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau this week is set to meet with Nancy Pelosi, speaker of the Democrat-controlled U.S. House of Representatives, and U.S. Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell, a Republican, in a bid to fast-track passage of a delayed trade deal, two congressional aides said on Monday. Trudeau is to […] Read more

The grocery department at a Northern store in Waskaganish, on James Bay in northern Quebec. (Northmart.ca via YouTube)

Ag minister announces launch of Canadian food policy

Reading Time: < 1 minute Canada has its first food policy, an initiative to increase access to safe, nutritious and culturally diverse food, and to cut food waste. Marie-Claude Bibeau, minister of agriculture and agri-food and parliamentary secretary, Jean-Claude Poissant made the announcement Monday in Montreal. “The Food Policy for Canada is our road map for a healthier and more […] Read more


The USDA building in Washington, D.C. (Art Wager/iStock/Getty Images)

USDA makes some changes to Canadian, world crop estimates

Reading Time: 2 minutes MarketsFarm — Corn planting in Canada has been a struggle this year much like for farmers in the U.S., according to Tuesday’s world agriculture supply and demand estimates (WASDE) from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). USDA’s May WASDE report estimated Canadian corn production at 15.4 million tonnes, but wet conditions in Eastern Canada saw […] Read more

A crenellated walkway on top of the Great Wall of China. (Cia.gov)

Canada frets about potential Chinese crackdown on more exports

Reading Time: 2 minutes Ottawa | Reuters — Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said on Thursday he was concerned that China could broaden its crackdown on Canada’s exports, and that he might seek a meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping later this month. China has already blocked imports of Canadian canola seed and looks set to boost customs examinations […] Read more