Reading Time: 5 minutes It could have been so much better. If China hadn’t got mad at us. If there hadn’t been a trade war. If PED hadn’t arrived. If the weather had been a bit more co-operative. But the past year was also a reminder that efforts to make things better do pay off. Look no further than […] Read more
2019 was a difficult year — but also one of great progress
Lots of things didn’t go right in 2019, but there are many reasons why Alberta is a great place to farm
Ontario’s broiler egg tracking systems backed for upgrades
Systems used to track broiler hatching egg and chick production in Ontario will get upgrades using federal-provincial cost-shared funding. The federal and Ontario governments on Monday last week announced up to $141,450 through the Place to Grow: Agri-food Innovation Initiative, a Canadian Agricultural Partnership program, for the Ontario Broiler Hatching Egg and Chick Commission (OBHECC). […] Read more
Amended CUSMA pact includes anti-COOL clause
The new Canada-U.S.-Mexico Agreement (CUSMA), a free trade deal set to replace NAFTA, includes language meant to block any future bids at a trade-disrupting country-of-origin labeling (COOL) law. The new clause would, in theory, checkmate a move made last summer by some Democrat members of the U.S. House of Representatives to have a new North […] Read more
New livestock transport rules include grace period for all sectors
Enforcement of new federal rules for livestock transport, due to take effect Feb. 20, will focus on handler education and awareness for the first two years — and across all affected livestock species, not just cattle. The now-amended Humane Transportation of Animals regulations are meant to focus on the time frames during which animals are […] Read more
Fictional nation Wakanda removed from USDA trade list
Reuters — The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) said it removed the fictional country of Wakanda from an online list of nations that have free trade agreements with the United States on Thursday. The Kingdom of Wakanda is the home of Black Panther, the Marvel superhero, and is portrayed in comic books and the 2018 […] Read more
Puerto Rico cries foul over U.S. Congress’s cockfighting ban
San Juan | Reuters — An attempt by the U.S. Congress to ban cockfighting in Puerto Rico has set off a debate about animal cruelty, put thousands of jobs at risk and sparked a possible power struggle between the U.S. territory’s government and Washington. The 500-year-old tradition of cockfighting in Puerto Rico was due to […] Read more
New body needed to thwart threat of livestock epidemic, says group
Livestock groups and processors back creation of Animal Health Canada to prevent a devastating disease outbreak
Reading Time: 4 minutes Avian influenza, H1N1 flu and now African swine fever have all posed threats to Canada’s livestock sector. And while there are a host of regulations overseen by numerous organizations, it’s a patchwork that leaves the country vulnerable to a devastating disease outbreak, says a group representing both livestock, dairy and poultry associations and leading meat […] Read more
Maple Leaf lands ‘sustainability-linked’ credit
Canadian food processor Maple Leaf Foods is taking its recently-established sustainability cred to the bank. The Toronto food firm announced Wednesday it’s the first Canadian company to secure “sustainability-linked terms” for its credit facilities. Specifically, the company has picked up an unsecured committed revolving line of credit and two unsecured committed term facilities for a […] Read more
U.S. seals demise of WTO appeals bench, trade officials say
Geneva | Reuters — The fate of the World Trade Organization’s top court was effectively sealed on Monday after the United States said it would not back a proposal to allow it to continue, trade officials said, although the WTO chief vowed to find a solution. The Trump administration has been blocking appointments to the […] Read more
Vietnam considers CPTPP-level tariff cuts on U.S. ag products
Hanoi | Reuters — Vietnam is considering cutting tariffs on several U.S. products, the ministry of finance said in a statement on Monday, after U.S. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross urged Vietnam to reduce its trade surplus during a visit to Hanoi last month. Tariffs on chicken and processed chicken meat, almonds, grapes, wheat, pork and […] Read more