Reading Time: < 1 minute Thanks to a $650,000 donation from Agrium, Agriculture for Life is undertaking its largest safety initiative — the Rural and Farm Safety Mobile Unit. The unit is a trailer with educational displays, and will be taken to rural schools, communities, fairs, and other events around North America to educate, encourage and promote farm safety to […] Read more
New mobile unit will take farm safety education on the road
Produce sector needs help with CFIA changes
Low margins in the industry leave little capacity to cover rising research costs if an existing formula is scrapped
Reading Time: 2 minutes Sweeping regulatory changes at the Canadian Food Inspection Agency and limited funds for research are among the challenges facing fruit and vegetable growers, says Ron Lemaire, president of the Canadian Produce Marketing Association. “The foundation for Canada’s fresh produce supply chain is made up of approximately 25,000 small-, medium- and large-size farms that produce vegetables, […] Read more
Irving’s potato arm plans new plant for Lethbridge
Cavendish Farms, the potato arm of J.D. Irving Ltd., is set to build a $350 million frozen potato processing plant at Lethbridge to double its local capacity and replace the old York Farms plant it owns there. Moncton-based Cavendish announced Monday it has picked up Lethbridge city hall’s approval to buy a new plant site […] Read more
PMRA seeks phase-out for neonic pesticide imidacloprid
Canadian farm use of the pesticide imidacloprid, from the controversial neonicotinoid family, is facing a three- to five-year phase-out from approval over its potential risks to aquatic insects. Health Canada’s Pest Management Regulatory Agency (PMRA) on Wednesday announced it had completed a re-evaluation of the pesticide and has kicked off a 90-day public consultation period, […] Read more
Canada expects Britain to be part of CETA
London | Reuters –– Canada expects Britain to be part of the CETA trade deal between Canada and the European Union, and stands ready to work with Britain on how the system will function after Brexit, Finance Minister Bill Morneau told BBC radio on Wednesday. He also defended Canada’s NAFTA trade deal with the U.S. […] Read more
Thailand to accept Alberta seed potatoes
Alberta is now the third Canadian province from which seed potato growers are eligible to export to Thailand. Federal Agriculture Minister Lawrence MacAulay on Monday announced a new export agreement by which Thailand will accept imports of seed potatoes produced in Alberta. “Alberta has a very innovative and progressive seed potato industry and is looking […] Read more
Producers wait on the weather to cooperate to resume harvest
Alberta crop conditions as of October 18
Reading Time: 2 minutes Fields in the North West, North East and Peace Regions as well as some areas in the Central Region received some more snow over the past weekend. Consequently, harvesting operations were practically at a standstill, changing less than one per cent provincially from last week with about 73 per cent of the crops now in […] Read more
Canada’s Onex to buy U.S. grocery chain Save-A-Lot
Reuters — Food retailer and wholesaler Supervalu Inc. said it will sell its Save-A-Lot business to Canadian private equity firm Onex Corp. for US$1.37 billion rather than spinning off the discount grocery chain as previously planned, the companies said on Monday. Eden Prairie, Minnesota-based Supervalu had been looking to separate the more profitable division, which […] Read more
Belgian ‘Non’ clouds EU meeting to approve CETA
Luxembourg | Reuters — European Union trade ministers meet in Luxembourg on Tuesday aiming to approve a free trade agreement with Canada but facing regional opposition in Belgium that threatens to scupper the entire deal. All 28 EU governments now back the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA), which would be the bloc’s first trade […] Read more
CETA hits resistance in Belgian fortress Wallonia
Namur, Belgium | Reuters — The Belgian fortress city of Namur, besieged by European armies down the centuries, issued a declaration of war on the global economic order Friday, with a vote to reject a planned EU-Canada free trade agreement. The parliament of the region of Wallonia voted in its seat at Namur after a […] Read more
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