The post of top bureaucrat in Prince Edward Island’s agriculture department now has its third occupant in as many months. Premier Dennis King on June 7 named Brian Matheson, previously director of policy and agriculture resources at the agriculture and land department, as its acting deputy minister, replacing Laurie Loane. Loane, who’d been named deputy […] Read more
Senior P.E.I. ag official to fill deputy minister post
Seeding in Alberta complete, forage growers struggle with dry weather
Alberta Crop Report: Conditions as of June 11
Reading Time: 3 minutes With the exception of a few feed crops, seeding is essentially finished in Alberta. Producers are actively spraying and scouting fields. Areas of concern vary from smoke and frost in the north to flea beetles and cutworms in other pockets of the province. In the week ending June 11 there were rainfall events providing 15 […] Read more
Trump simplifies reviews of genetically modified farm products
Council Bluffs | Reuters — U.S. President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Tuesday directing federal agencies to streamline the review process for agricultural biotechnology including genetically modified livestock and seeds. Trump signed the order during a visit to an ethanol plant in Council Bluffs, Iowa. The executive order, he said, would “speed up […] Read more
Trump calls off tariffs after Mexico vows to tighten borders
Washington/Mexico City | Reuters — The United States and Mexico struck a deal on Friday to avert a tariff war, with Mexico agreeing to rapidly expand a controversial asylum program and deploy security forces to stem the flow of illegal Central American migrants. U.S. President Donald Trump had threatened to impose five per cent import […] Read more
Do crops really grow better in the north?
Study aims to show processors and investors that northern vigour produces superior crops
Reading Time: 3 minutes Some call it northern vigour. Others call it the northern advantage. And now, one group of Alberta researchers are setting out to prove what some farmers have been saying all along — that crops really do grow better up north. “In this part of Alberta, we have 19 hours of daily sunlight in the summer, […] Read more
Canadian crop development behind average
MarketsFarm — Crop development is running behind average across much of Canada, with excessive moisture delaying seeding in Ontario and dryness slowing crop development across the Prairies. That’s according to the latest satellite data from the federal Crop Condition Assessment Program (CCAP), created in partnership between Statistics Canada and Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada. Crop development […] Read more
Cash advance boost to take effect next week
Regulations permanently expanding loan limits under the federal Advance Payments Program — and temporarily boosting interest-free advances for canola growers — are in place for applications to begin next Monday at the earliest. Agriculture Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau said Monday amendments to the Agricultural Marketing Programs Regulations are now in place to boost the APP loan […] Read more
Target Trump’s base if trade spat worsens, Mexican farm lobby says
Mexico City | Reuters — The Mexican government should target agricultural goods produced in states that have voted for U.S. President Donald Trump’s Republican Party if the trade conflict between the two neighbours worsens, the head of Mexico’s main farm lobby said on Friday. Bosco de la Vega, head of Mexico’s national farm council CNA, […] Read more
Prairie dryness concerns to persist
MarketsFarm — Large areas of Western Canada remain on the dry side, with little moisture in the immediate forecasts. And while it’s still early in the growing season, the interplay of conflicting patterns from the south and north will determine whether the dry areas receive timely precipitation during the growing season. “We are looking at […] Read more
Restaurant Brands to boost outlets by 54 per cent within 10 years
Reuters — Restaurant Brands International said on Wednesday it plans to expand all three of its brands to more than 40,000 restaurants globally, a 54 per cent jump, over the next decade. Big fast food chains, including McDonald’s and KFC owner Yum Brands, have been aggressively expanding their international operations to counter slowing growth in […] Read more
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