Reading Time: 3 minutes On one hand, the federal government stated the obvious when it identified the food system as one of the 10 critical infrastructures supporting Canadians during the pandemic crisis. After all, who can survive without food? Nevertheless, the guidance document issued by Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness Minister Bill Blair this week sent an important signal, […] Read more
Opinion: The changing conversation around food
Stating that food security is critical during the COVID-19 crisis means farm issues won't be sidelined
Manitoba gathering data to press case for exempting grain drying from federal carbon tax
Reading Time: 2 minutes The Manitoba government is gathering data to make the case for exempting grain drying fuels from the federal government’s carbon tax. “So we’ll get the numbers together and then to (federal agriculture) Minister (Marie-Claude) Bibeau and we’ll continue to lobby on behalf of our ag producers,” Manitoba’s Agriculture and Resource Development Minister Blaine Pederson said […] Read more
Throne speech kicks off Parliament with nod to agriculture
Reading Time: 2 minutes The federal throne speech opening the first session of Canada’s 43rd Parliament further committed the Liberal minority government to combating climate change, supporting natural resource sectors and removing international trade barriers. Including a pledge to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050, the speech, delivered Thursday in Ottawa, showed the government again demonstrating its commitment to a […] Read more
CBOT weekly outlook: Impeachment process stifles markets
Reading Time: < 1 minute MarketsFarm — U.S. President Donald Trump’s impeachment hearings have dominated headlines and stalled progress in numerous trade developments, leaving the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) starved of meaningful news. The Canada-U.S.-Mexico Agreement (CUSMA) has yet to be ratified by the U.S. House of Representatives. The trade pact, meant to replace the North American Free Trade […] Read more
Bibeau remains federal agriculture minister in shuffle
Reading Time: 3 minutes Updated, Nov. 21— Quebec MP Marie-Claude Bibeau retains her role as federal minister of agriculture and agri-food in Wednesday’s cabinet shake-up for the Liberals’ minority government. Bibeau will join her colleagues — including returning Transport Minister Marc Garneau and new Labour Minister Filomena Tassi, a Hamilton MP and former minister for seniors — in having […] Read more
China to resume imports of Canadian beef and pork
Reading Time: 2 minutes Reuters – China will resume imports of Canadian beef and pork, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said on Tuesday, some four months after Beijing blocked shipments amid an escalating diplomatic feud between the two countries. “Good news for Canadian farmers today: Canadian pork and beef exports to China will resume,” Trudeau tweeted. The Chinese embassy in […] Read more
Beijing’s refusal to order U.S. farm buys becomes pain point
Reading Time: 2 minutes Washington/Beijing/Reuters – U.S. President Donald Trump’s demand that Beijing commit to big purchases of American farm products has become a major sticking point in talks to end the Sino-U.S. trade war, according to several people briefed on the negotiations. Trump has said publicly that China could buy as much as $50 billion of U.S. farm […] Read more
Canada, China meet over canola stalemate
Reading Time: 4 minutes [UPDATED: Oct. 31, 2019] Glacier FarmMedia – Canada and China finally had a face-to-face meeting *Oct. 28 in Geneva on China’s de facto import ban of Canadian canola seed. The private consultation under the auspices of the World Trade Organization (WTO) went well, according to Brian Innes, the Canola Council of Canada’s *vice-president of public […] Read more
Oil vs Corn: U.S. lawmakers set hearing on fractious biofuels policy
Reading Time: 2 minutes The U.S. oil and corn industries will continue a long-running public battle over America’s biofuels policy on Tuesday during a Congressional hearing about the Trump administration’s use of “secret waivers” for refineries. The hearing set by the Energy and Commerce Committee will air out the grievances of two key political constituencies heading into next year’s […] Read more
Carbon costs affecting grain drying for Prairie farmers
Opponents say the rebates won't fully cover the additional costs farmers must pay
Reading Time: 2 minutes Glacier FarmMedia – Farmers in Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta struggling to get their crops harvested will also be paying higher costs for drying thanks to the federal carbon levy. While the federal carbon price offers relief for gasoline and light fuel oil costs used in tractors and trucks, there is no exemption for grain drying […] Read more
A message from April Stewart, Country Guide's Associate Editor
