Reading Time: 2 minutes Winnipeg | Reuters — Olymel said Friday it was shipping pigs to the United States to help clear a backlog of hogs after it had to temporarily close its Red Deer, Alta. slaughter plant because of a coronavirus outbreak. Olymel shut the plant on Wednesday and declared force majeure — unforeseeable circumstances that prevent contract […] Read more
Olymel shipping backlogged hogs to U.S.
Company-owned hogs to go south after COVID closes Red Deer plant
Olymel to close Red Deer hog plant against COVID-19
Hog deliveries suspended 'until further notice'
Reading Time: 2 minutes Meat packer Olymel plans to temporarily close its hog slaughter and pork processing plant at Red Deer, Alta., winding down that facility’s operations starting this week against a rapidly spreading COVID-19 outbreak among workers. The plant, one of Canada’s largest by slaughter capacity at over 45,000 hogs per week, has notified its hog suppliers and […] Read more
Nigeria’s Okonjo-Iweala makes history as new head of WTO
Geneva-based body leaderless for six months; Trump paralyzed some of WTO's functions
Reading Time: 4 minutes Geneva/Washington | Reuters — Three months after the Trump administration rejected her, former Nigerian finance minister Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala received unanimous backing on Monday to become the first woman and first African director-general of the World Trade Organization. A self-declared “doer” with a track record of taking on seemingly intractable problems, Okonjo-Iweala will have her work […] Read more
Foreign workers to lose some travel exemptions in March
Reading Time: 2 minutes Temporary foreign workers (TFWs) travelling to Canada won’t need to quarantine in a government-supervised hotel when they get here – for now — but by mid-March, Ottawa will put more stringent measures in place. Starting Feb. 22, non-essential travellers and essential workers arriving in Canada will be tested for COVID-19 upon their arrival. Non-essential travellers […] Read more
Glacier’s outdoor ag shows preparing digital event lineup
Each show to host multiple online events during 2021
Reading Time: 2 minutes The company hosting Canada’s Outdoor Farm Show and its western counterpart, Ag in Motion, plans to use the online platforms it set up in 2020 to instead host multiple smaller online events this year. Both outdoor ag shows hosted by Winnipeg-based Glacier FarmMedia — the owner of this website — went online in 2020 due […] Read more
Resilient farmers vs. COVID-19: A ‘cover story’ family farm
For the Burnhams, the lesson of COVID-19 is more of a reminder, really. Family is the core of a farm business
Reading Time: 6 minutes This family deserves special attention, so as we conclude this series with Country Guide we wanted to bring you the story of a family that we call our “Cover Story Family.” In our view, they seemed to pretty much get it right over the past year. Getting it right refers to the bold steps our […] Read more
U.S. livestock: CME hogs touch contract high for third day
Cattle futures up with beef exports
Reading Time: < 1 minute Chicago | Reuters — U.S. lean hog futures climbed on Thursday, setting a contract high for the third consecutive day on firm Chinese demand, traders said. Weekly U.S. pork export sales to China, the world’s top pork consumer, reached a three-month high of 17,873 tonnes in the week ended Jan. 28, according to the U.S. […] Read more
Manitoba crop conference recovers allegedly phished funds
Court order frees event organizers' money from frozen account
Reading Time: 4 minutes The organizers of one of the last big Prairie farm events held before the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic have recovered funds temporarily lost to an alleged phishing scam. The CropConnect Conference — an annual crop production and farm management conference co-organized by Manitoba grain, oilseed and pulse grower groups — has received back almost […] Read more
Kraft Heinz reported in talks to sell Planters snack business
Pandemic-based surge in snack demand wanes
Reading Time: < 1 minute Reuters — Kraft Heinz is in talks to sell its Planters snack business to Skippy peanut butter maker Hormel Foods for about US$3 billion, the Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday, citing people familiar with the matter. The deal could be announced as soon as next week if talks do not fall apart, the Journal […] Read more
South Africa’s barley growers face bleak outlook on alcohol ban
Ban reinstated against COVID-19 surge
Reading Time: 2 minutes Johannesburg | Reuters — South African barley farmers are bracing for a tough market ahead as demand for the grain used to make beer falls and stockpiles grow after a ban on the sale of alcohol was reinstated as the country battles a surge in COVID-19 cases. The government in December enforced its third ban […] Read more
A message from April Stewart, Country Guide's Associate Editor
