Lisa Jenereaux and her brother William Spurr.

Producers pivot in the face of changing climate

No one ever said farming was easy. Now, challenges posed by weather extremes have some producers looking at their enterprises a little differently

Reading Time: 9 minutes A recent study by Farmers for Climate Change revealed that climate is a top worry for producers. Respondents listed reduced profits and yields due to extreme weather events as key concerns. Many producers expressed interest in adopting new practices to develop greater resiliency. Seventy-six percent of producers said extreme weather had an impact on their […] Read more

Shawn Moen at McLaren Vintners, a large-scale winemaking facility specializing in professional custom and contract production. McLaren Vale, South Australia.

Summer Series: Business connections

[Change Management] Planning a new venture? Keep close to other innovative and entrepreneurial minds

Reading Time: 5 minutes Of course farmers are proudly independent, and of course there are huge advantages in fixing your own problems and setting your own direction. But if diversification might be on your agenda, or if you’re dreaming of launching an innovative new business, there can be big costs too. Today, there’s even more proof that mixing with […] Read more


Grapes growing on a vine in a vineyard at Niagara on the Lake, Ontario. Photo: Linda Yolanda/iStock/Getty Images

Wine sector support program extended

Program must continue to help Canadian wineries compete with imports, sector says

Reading Time: < 1 minute A program that pays grants to Canadian wineries to help them adapt to industry and competitiveness challenges has been extended to 2027, the federal government announced today.

File photo of a vineyard in South Australia. (Alicat/iStock/Getty Images)

Australian wine industry faces hangover from China’s tariffs

Over two billion litres of wine in storage

Reading Time: 2 minutes Sydney | Reuters — Australia’s wine industry faces severe oversupply problems that will need years to resolve, experts say, pointing to Chinese tariffs, high production and export bottlenecks during the COVID-19 pandemic. Vineyards nationwide have enough wine in domestic storage to fill 859 Olympic swimming pools, Rabobank said this week in its third-quarter wine report. […] Read more


(Dave Bedard photo)

FCC offers new credit line against ‘current economic environment’

Ag lender to waive loan processing fees

Reading Time: 2 minutes Farm Credit Canada’s recent outreach to specific agrifood sectors hit by unusual environmental conditions has now extended to those hit by the broader “economic environment.” The federal ag lender on Tuesday said it will offer an unsecured credit line of up to $500,000 with loan processing fees waived, “to help producers, agribusinesses and agri-food operations […] Read more

A vineyard at Naramata in B.C.’s Okanagan Valley. (File photo by Dave Bedard)

Global wine trade hits record-high value but volumes fall

Canada 27th in production, sixth in imports

Reading Time: 2 minutes Paris | Reuters — The global wine trade reached record-high value last year, supported by a sharp rise in prices, but the amount of wine sold fell due to weaker demand and logistical problems, an industry body said. The International Organisation for Vine and Wine (OIV) said on Thursday that global wine exports in 2022 […] Read more


File photo of barrels on display in a Nova Scotia vineyard. (Tashka/iStock/Getty Images)

Wastewater regulation eased for Nova Scotia on-farm processing

Reading Time: < 1 minute Nova Scotia has introduced regulatory changes that allow on-farm processing operations to better manage wastewater on their smaller scale. The changes, which took effect May 11, come at the request of the Nova Scotia Federation of Agriculture (NSFA) — which has said that owners of small farm-level processing facilities shouldn’t be treated the same as […] Read more

(Xinzheng/Getty Images)

New China import rules bring headaches for food, beverage makers

Cooking oil, milled grains among foods moved to higher-risk categories

Reading Time: 3 minutes Beijing | Reuters — Makers of Irish whiskey, Belgian chocolate and European coffee brands are scrambling to comply with new Chinese food and beverage regulations, with many fearful their goods will be unable to enter the giant market as a Jan. 1 deadline looms. China’s customs authority published new food safety rules in April stipulating […] Read more


(Groupe Soufflet video screengrab via YouTube)

InVivo in talks to acquire French agribusiness Soufflet

Firms see limited overlap outside grain trading

Reading Time: 2 minutes Paris | Reuters — Co-operative group InVivo has entered exclusive talks to acquire family-controlled Soufflet in a deal that would create one of Europe’s biggest agricultural businesses with 10 billion euros (C$15.5 billion) in sales, the French firms said on Wednesday. The potential consolidation comes as France, the European Union’s largest agricultural producer, is trying […] Read more

Wine grapes are seen hanging with remnants of smoke and ash at Hanson Vineyards at Woodburn, Oregon, about 45 km south of Portland, on Sept. 17, 2020. (Photo: Reuters/Shannon Stapleton)

Charred U.S. west’s ‘wet ashtray’ wine grapes left to birds

Reading Time: 3 minutes Reuters — Heavy ground smoke clouded Hanson Vineyards in Oregon’s picturesque Willamette Valley for more than a week following a Labour Day windstorm that kicked up wildfires across the western United States. Jason Hanson expects his crews may only harvest five tons of grapes, including his Chardonnay and Gamay varieties, down from the 25 to […] Read more