Reading Time: 2 minutes New Brunswick plans to end its ban on the entry of temporary foreign workers (TFWs) next week as the province moves to the “yellow” level in its COVID-19 pandemic recovery plan. The ban, announced April 28, will end effective May 29, Premier Blaine Higgs said Friday in an announcement some farmers say comes too late […] Read more
New Brunswick to lift ban on temporary foreign workers
Damage 'already been done' for farmers, NFU-NB says
JBS resumes second shift at Alberta beef plant
Out of 650 COVID cases at plant, 11 are 'active'
Reading Time: 2 minutes Meat giant JBS’s Alberta beef packing plant has resumed two daily shifts as of Thursday, as fewer than a dozen of its 2,600-plus employees are now sidelined by COVID-19. The JBS plant at Brooks, about 170 km east of Calgary, is “slowly returning to two shifts as of today,” the company said Thursday in a […] Read more
What’s your emergency plan?
It’s more than COVID-19. Here’s why having an emergency plan ready for action is more important — and more achievable — than ever
Reading Time: 10 minutes You can look at it as one of the good sides of COVID-19. It’s reminding all of us that emergencies do happen, they can come when you least expect them, and they can upset practically every part of your operation. Even before COVID-19, it was easy to find experts eager to tell us why we […] Read more
CBOT weekly outlook: Ag commodities steady
Slack demand for biofuel has dragged on corn
Reading Time: < 1 minute MarketsFarm — Crop commodity values on the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) have largely stabilized as COVID-19 restrictions are relaxed in several U.S. states. “We’ve been playing this virus for a few months now,” said Scott Capinegro of Barrington Commodities in Barrington, Ill. COVID-19-related lockdown measures decimated demand for ethanol, which put considerable pressure on […] Read more
USDA sets coronavirus aid payments for corn, soy, wheat
Reading Time: < 1 minute Chicago | Reuters — U.S. farmers that grow crops including corn and soybeans will receive coronavirus assistance payments based on either half of their 2019 production or the supplies they had on hand as of Jan. 15, the government said on Tuesday. The coronavirus aid is the latest in a round of government payments that […] Read more
Trump floats halt to U.S. cattle imports as pandemic hurts ranchers
'We have a lot of cattle in this country'
Reading Time: 3 minutes Washington/Chicago | Reuters — U.S. President Donald Trump said on Tuesday the United States should consider terminating trade deals under which it imports cattle as he looks to help U.S. ranchers hit hard by the coronavirus outbreak. The United States imports cattle from Mexico and Canada to supplement domestic supplies at lower prices and to […] Read more
Canada, U.S. agree on extension for ban on non-essential travel
Reading Time: < 1 minute Ottawa | Reuters — Canada and the United States have agreed to extend a ban on non-essential travel between the two nations by another 30 days as part of the fight against the coronavirus, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said on Tuesday. U.S. and Canadian officials had said last week it was likely that the measure […] Read more
U.S. livestock: Firm cash market lifts live cattle
Weaker pork prices, supply ideas drag on hogs
Reading Time: 2 minutes Chicago | Reuters — U.S. live cattle futures closed higher on Friday, with the front contract gaining against back months, led by higher cash cattle prices, traders said. Cash cattle traded as high as $120/cwt in the southern Plains on Friday, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said, up from trades a week earlier that ranged […] Read more
Packaged-food majors see sales spike in pandemic
Big brands may benefit from larger, more secure supply chains
Reading Time: 2 minutes Reuters — General Mills on Monday said it saw record demand for its pantry staples, becoming the latest packaged food maker to see business spike during the COVID-19 pandemic, as homebound shoppers stocked up on comfort foods during lockdowns. The company joins Nomad Foods, Premier Foods, Nestle, Mondelez and other processed food makers, which have […] Read more
More Mexican beef headed to U.S. dinner tables as supply crunch bites
"I think we're going to leap past Canada this year"
Reading Time: 3 minutes Mexico City/Chicago | Reuters — More Mexican steaks and other beef cuts are headed north of the border after the coronavirus outbreak has hobbled U.S. meat processing plants, potentially offsetting fears of shortages affecting businesses from fast-food chains to grocery stores but angering U.S. ranchers. The Mexican industry chalks up the export growth to new […] Read more
A message from April Stewart, Country Guide's Associate Editor
