Alberta says it will again apply for intervener status if the federal government is granted leave to appeal a ruling that shut down its plans for an open market in Prairie barley. In a column distributed by the provincial agriculture department, Agriculture Minister George Groeneveld said the province “will remain in the fight until it […] Read more
Alta. would intervene in CWB case: minister
Pork council joins call for higher hog prices
The Canadian Pork Council yesterday joined six other national hog farmer groups in calling for “immediate lifts” in farmer returns and wholesale and retail pork prices. Speaking from the World Pork Conference in Nanjing, China, the CPC and farmer groups from Britain, France, the Netherlands, New Zealand and South Africa said their farmer members are […] Read more
Packers’ group names Canadian spokesman
Robert de Valk, an Ottawa-based consultant on food regulatory issues, is the new Canadian government affairs director for the North American Meat Processors Association (NAMP). The group, which represents North American meat processors and their associates from offices in Reston, Va. (near Washington, D.C.) and in Ottawa, said in a release that de Valk’s appointment […] Read more
Biotech not on consumers’ radar for food fears
Calgary — Despite a year of food scares and non-stop headlines about E. coli in fresh produce, consumers in the U.S. aren’t re-thinking their acceptance of food with biotech ingredients. Those attending the 2007 Agricultural Biotechnology International Conference’s (ABIC 2007) public forum here at the University of Calgary earlier this week heard that while confidence […] Read more
Agrium shuts N plant for lack of gas
Fertilizer maker Agrium warns to expect further tightening in world nitrogen markets in 2008 as it closes its nitrogen fertilizer plant at Kenai, Alaska by the end of this month, for want of a natural gas supply. The Calgary company, one of the world’s biggest wholesalers of fertilizers, said in a release today that it’s […] Read more
Biotech supporters urged to take leadership role
Calgary —At the same time that the world’s biotech scientists and regulators were deep in the 2007 Agricultural Biotechnology International Conference (ABIC 2007) conference here, Canada’s media had been been invited to a press conference in the same building with Dr. Florence Wambugu, one of the world’s leading scientists helping Africa feed itself. The press […] Read more
Pioneer rolls out new soy breeding tool
DuPont’s seed breeding firm Pioneer Hi-Bred plans to have new soybean varieties in 2008 selected for higher yield potential using a new breeding process. The patented molecular breeding process, which Pioneer calls Accelerated Yield Technology (AYT), uses molecular markers to track and select soy seed lines for native genetics with higher yield potential. The company […] Read more
Beef herd vaccinated for E. coli
Top Meadow Farms, a commercial beef operation in Ontario and Saskatchewan, has laid claim to the title of the world’s first beef producer to vaccinate cattle against E. coli 0157:H7. Bioniche Life Sciences, the Ontario manufacturer of the vaccine, said in late August it had already sold its first order, while the product remains under […] Read more
Quebec ag receipts keep just ahead of bills
Quebec’s farm revenue rose in the first half of 2007 compared to the same time in 2006 — an increase that stayed just ahead of a corresponding rise in expenses, the provincial statistics agency reported today. L’institut de la statistique du Quebec (ISQ) reported overall farm cash receipts of $3.32 billion for the first half […] Read more
It’s Organic Week in P.E.I.
Prince Edward Island’s Agriculture Minister Neil LeClair has proclaimed the week of Sept. 23 as Organic Week in the province. The proclamation is meant to raise awareness of the importance of the organic sector in the province. “The demand for organic products currently exceeds supply, and that provides a major opportunity to expand and diversify […] Read more
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