Darlene Compton, shown here on provincial budget day in 2020, is Prince Edward Island’s new ag minister. (PrinceEdwardIsland.ca)

P.E.I. finance minister moves to ag file

Darlene Compton named agriculture minister in shuffle

Prince Edward Island’s deputy premier now handles the provincial agriculture file following a cabinet shuffle Friday. Premier Dennis King has named Darlene Compton, MLA for the riding of Belfast-Murray River, as minister of agriculture and land, justice and public safety minister and attorney general, replacing Stanhope-Marshfield MLA Bloyce Thompson. Thompson, who had handled the ag […] Read more




Photo: McCain Foods Ltd.

McCain acquires predictive crop technology

McCain Foods Ltd. has purchased predictive crop intelligence technology from Resson, a ‘vision intelligence technology’ firm headquartered in Fredericton, N.B. McCain has been a long-time partner with Resson, working together for nine years to develop algorithms that forecast farm yields using remote sensing technology. The technology will enable producers to make more appropriate decisions through […] Read more


Signage outside McCain’s Farms of The Future site at Florenceville-Bristol, about 110 km northwest of Fredericton. (Photos courtesy McCain)

Learning from McCain’s regenerative farming practices

Potato processing giant aims to 'de-risk' practices for growers

In 2021 McCain said it was going to launch three regenerative potato farming operations by 2025 and would label them “Farms of the Future.” The first, just outside of Florenceville-Bristol, N.B., now offers data to reflect on the effectiveness of the practices at the potato farm after its first fully operational season. “If we don’t […] Read more

Kellogg’s Canadian operations include its Mini-Wheats plant at Belleville, Ont. and its Canadian office in Mississauga. Other cereals and snack brands imported by Kellogg Canada are produced elsewhere in North America, the company says. (Kellogg Co. photo)

Kellogg to spin off into three food companies

Plant-based foods, North American cereals to be hived off

The company that makes Mini-Wheats cereal, Pringles potato crisps and MorningStar veggie burgers now plans to see those each of those three product lines go their separate ways by the end of next year. Michigan-based Kellogg Co. said Tuesday its board has approved a plan to break into three yet-to-be-named independent publicly-traded companies by way […] Read more


Some green initiatives just aren’t practical on large- scale commercial operations, says Terence Hochstein, executive director of the Potato Growers of Alberta.

Ottawa’s focus on green programs a concern for some farm groups

Focus On Practical Energy: While the programs are fine, producers also need ones that don’t fall into the green ‘bucket,’ they say

Reading Time: 4 minutes The flood of federal funding for adopting environmentally friendly farming practices is a positive step, but also a “drop in the bucket,” says the general manager of Alberta’s cereal commissions. Producers should definitely apply for the On-Farm Climate Action Fund (which offers 85 cents on the dollar for certain green practices), said Tom Steve of […] Read more

Snack maker chooses Airdrie for potato chip facility

Snack maker chooses Airdrie for potato chip facility

Reading Time: < 1 minute Alberta agriculture is adding another notch to its economic diversification belt. Super-Pufft, one of North America’s largest makers of salty snacks for retailers and national brands, is opening a $50-million potato chip-processing facility in Airdrie. “Hopefully very soon we’ll open our state-of-the-art facility that is going to cater to Western Canada and western United States,” […] Read more


Close-up file photo of an alfalfa plant in a Canadian field. (Jennifer Seeman/iStock/Getty Images)

P.E.I. seed potato producers backed for ‘soil-building’

Province puts up $3 million for BMP program

In an attempt to support its potato farmers following trade suspensions with the U.S. over potato wart, the government of Prince Edward Island plans to put up $3 million in new funding for a program that will help farmers shift to “soil-building crops.” “In our meetings with industry and the P.E.I. Potato Board, the need […] Read more

A sign with McDonald’s golden-arches logo is on display near one of the chain’s restaurants in Moscow on May 16, 2022. (Photo: Reuters/Evgenia Novozhenina)

Golden arches to go dark in Russia as McDonald’s exits after 30 years

Russia, Ukraine form nine per cent of chain's revenue

Reuters — McDonald’s Corp. on Monday became one of the biggest global brands to exit Russia, laying out plans to sell all its restaurants after operating in the country for more than 30 years following the invasion of Ukraine. The world’s largest burger chain, which owns about 84 per cent of its nearly 850 restaurants […] Read more