Reading Time: < 1 minute It’s too soon to hold Breakfast on the Dairy Farm again. But a version of it — Walk thru on the Dairy Farm — is being held on Aug. 7 at Happy Cow Dairy in Red Deer County. “Organizers have worked with Alberta Health Services to follow all COVID-19 safety protocols while still offering a […] Read more
Take a walk thru on the dairy farm
Walk thru event being held Aug. 7
New B.C. youth work rules: Heavy lifting, ag chem handling out
New standards also lift province's 'general working age' to 16
“Light farm and yard work” are deemed appropriate for workers at ages 14 and 15 under new employment standards taking effect in British Columbia this fall. The province on Wednesday announced changes to its Employment Standards Act, which have been through the development and consultation stages since 2019, have now been finalized and will take […] Read more
Farm transfer tax treatment bill now law, feds say
Government to add amendments against tax loopholes
Despite a previous statement from her ministry, Canada’s finance minister says a bill standardizing the tax treatment of farm transfers is now officially on the books. However, while Bill C-208 is now in federal tax law, further amendments are en route to plug legal loopholes the bill may have opened. Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland on […] Read more
Industry-led code of conduct for food retailers on horizon
Fees create 'uncertainty' for producers, processors
A report from a federal-provincial working group says the retail sector has levied an increasing number of fees on suppliers, and is proposing the formation of a code of conduct as a potential solution. Canada’s agriculture ministers are now calling on industry to lead the process. They had formed the working group to study the […] Read more
Eichler back as Manitoba ag minister in shuffle
Pedersen not seeking re-election
Manitoba’s provincial agriculture files return to the desk of their former handler in a cabinet mini-shuffle Thursday. Premier Brian Pallister has named Ralph Eichler, MLA for the Interlake-area riding of Lakeside since 2003, as minister of agriculture and resource development, replacing Blaine Pedersen. Pedersen announced Thursday he will not seek re-election but will serve out […] Read more
Anthrax kills southeastern Saskatchewan sheep
Spores forced up by changes in soil moisture
Dramatic shifts in soil moisture are again bringing anthrax spores to the surface on the Prairies, this time in a southeastern Saskatchewan sheep pasture. Lab results on Wednesday confirmed anthrax as the cause of death of one animal in a flock of sheep in the R.M. of South Qu’Appelle, about 50 km east of Regina, […] Read more
Saputo to buy British cheesemaker Wensleydale
Canadian dairy firm expands U.K. assets
One of the world’s largest dairy processors is set to expand its reach further into the U.K. with a deal for the maker of Yorkshire Wensleydale cheese. Montreal-based Saputo announced Monday it has an all-cash deal in place to buy Wensleydale Dairy Products Ltd. for 23 million pounds (about C$39.7 million). Pending U.K. regulatory approvals, […] Read more
Co-op, Blair’s joint venture to sell one crop input centre
Regulator sees overlap between Co-op, Blair's at Lipton
A new joint venture formed to run seven existing crop input retail centres in central and southeastern Saskatchewan will settle for six. The federal Competition Bureau on Wednesday announced an agreement with Federated Co-operatives (FCL) and the ag retail arm of the Saskatchewan-based Blair’s Family of Companies toward approval of their proposed joint venture. Blair’s […] Read more
Biden seeks to lift limits on U.S. farmer dealings with tractor makers, packers
Executive order to address corporate 'abuses of power'
Washington | Reuters — U.S. President Joe Biden wants to give that country’s farmers more power in negotiating the sale of livestock to big processors and in deciding who repairs their tractors, the White House said on Tuesday. The executive order, expected within days, will also address such competitive issues as delayed airline baggage, cellphone […] Read more
More upgrades planned for Nestle ice cream plant
Two more production lines to be added
The southwestern Ontario plant supplying Haagen-Dazs, Real Dairy and Drumstick ice cream and Parlour frozen desserts across Canada is set for another $41.3 million expansion, including two new production lines. Nestle Canada said June 23 it expects to break ground in September for a 26,600-square foot expansion of its London, Ont. plant with “additional buildings, […] Read more