A new pre-budget report from the House of Commons’ finance committee is recommending several measures directly related to agriculture — including sought-after tweaks to AgriStability and creation of an entirely new business risk management program. The multipartisan committee heard testimony and received submissions from more than 800 groups and individuals. Mostly-virtual meetings took place in […] Read more
Budget could include new BRM program, ag labour plan
Proposal for 'AgriResilience' program goes to Freeland
Advisory council named to steer national Food Policy
Development of Canada’s Food Policy is taking a major step forward with the naming Friday of a new advisory council featuring industry, academic and government members tasked with guiding the policy. Public consultations on a “Food Policy for Canada” started in 2017, leading to the release of a 2018 report from Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada […] 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
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
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
CFA seeks continued ag support in next federal budget
Federation also presses for Buy Canadian campaign, processing support
Federal budget consultations are underway, with agricultural groups lobbying the government to support the industry further in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland on Jan. 25 launched pre-budget consultations and since then, her schedule has involved several meetings with stakeholders. “We want to hear ideas from Canadians, from all walks of […] Read more
USDA can steer farm aid money to fight climate change, Vilsack says
Reuters — The White House wants to tap a pool of funds from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Commodity Credit Corp. (CCC) to support on-farm efforts to fight climate change, Tom Vilsack, President Joe Biden’s nominee to run the USDA, said Tuesday. The Depression-era program of up to $30 billion in annual funding was tapped […] Read more
Virtual tours gather global audience for Vermilion farm
"We're letting people into our way of life"
Reading Time: 3 minutes Chatsworth Farm is a long way from Scotland and even farther from Nigeria. But that hasn’t stopped the Vermilion-area farm from welcoming tour groups from these countries half a world away — virtually, that is. “I started doing tours in March as soon as our first lockdown came into place,” said Charlotte Wasylik, who operates […] Read more
Winter’s here but pandemic poultry are still a hit across Alberta
Reading Time: 5 minutes Backyard chickens saw a boom during the early days of the pandemic — and the interest hasn’t waned yet, despite the wintry weather. “I’ve had eight incubator package requests already through November and December,” said Tammy Wheatley, owner of The Urban Chicks, a company near Calgary that rents chickens out for the summer. “The pandemic […] Read more
U.K. to ask to join Trans-Pacific trading bloc ‘shortly’
Bilateral deals signed or in works with several CPTPP members
London | Reuters — Britain will soon submit its application to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) trade bloc, trade minister Liz Truss said on Wednesday. Since deciding to leave the European Union, a process it completed at the end of 2020, Britain has been seeking out new trading arrangements around […] Read more
Dairy farmers must register to get further trade compensation payouts
Expect letters soon explaining process, AgMin says
Dairy farmers wanting to get in on a three-year, $1.405 billion federal compensation program for market share lost to free trade deals must register for the program by March 31 in each of those years. Agriculture Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau on Tuesday laid out further specifics for the Dairy Direct Payment Program, which is set to […] Read more
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