Farm stakeholder groups and Prairie provincial agriculture ministers got their chance Thursday to bring their concerns about grain transportation by rail to the federal minister responsible. Federal Transport Minister Marc Garneau and Agriculture Minister Lawrence MacAulay held a roundtable meeting with grain sector representatives Thursday in Saskatoon, and met also with the Prairies’ agriculture ministers. […] Read more
Saskatchewan presses for rail interswitching, revenue cap
Cargill to exit Canadian egg processing
U.S. agrifood giant Cargill is set to step out of the Canadian egg processing business and sell its Toronto-area plant to another processor in the same line of work. The company announced Thursday it plans to sell its egg processing plant at Etobicoke to Global Egg Corp., which also operates out of Etobicoke, for an […] Read more
CP trims outlook on delayed Prairie harvest
Rain delays in this year’s Prairie grain harvest have bit into third-quarter revenues and earnings expectations for Canadian Pacific Railway (CP). The Calgary company on Wednesday booked overall net income of $347 million on revenues of $1.554 billion for its quarter ending Sept. 30. While net income was up seven per cent, total revenues were […] Read more
Gay Lea to buy central Ontario butter maker
A U.S.-owned artisanal butter processor in central Ontario is set to become an arm of Ontario dairy co-operative Gay Lea Foods. Michigan-based butter producer Butterball Farms has agreed to sell Stirling Creamery, based at Stirling, Ont., north of Belleville, to Gay Lea effective Nov. 1. Financial terms of the deal weren’t disclosed, though Gay Lea […] Read more
Pork packer HyLife to enter expansion mode
Manitoba hog slaughter and pork processing firm HyLife says it’s setting itself up for major expansions of its hog finishing and pork processing capacities. The company on Friday said “steady growth in demand” for its pork products overseas calls for an investment of up to $125 million in its integrated pork operations, to start “as […] Read more
Dairy firms plan joint processing venture in Winnipeg
Manitoba dairy producers are expected to get a new outlet for their raw milk from a new joint venture to process butter and dairy ingredients in Winnipeg. Mississauga-based dairy co-operative Gay Lea Foods and ingredient processor Vitalus Nutrition of Abbotsford, B.C. on Monday announced a joint venture to be based at an unnamed “existing food […] Read more
Saskatchewan to thin out wolf pack along treeline
Aiming to prevent “wolf-livestock conflicts” in the region, Saskatchewan’s environment department will again offer a wolf hunting season along the provincial forest fringe starting Saturday. The wolf hunt, running from Oct. 15, 2016 through to March 31, 2017, is to be allowed in wildlife management zones 43 (Melfort, Tisdale), 47 (North Battleford, Turtleford), 48 (Preeceville, […] Read more
AVC to handle non-routine care for New Brunswick horses
New Brunswick’s government, which co-ordinates veterinary services in the province, has reached a deal with the University of Prince Edward Island’s Atlantic Veterinary College (AVC) to provide “specialty services” for horses. Details of the agreement in principle, announced last week, are “still being finalized,” the province said in a release, but service delivery is expected […] Read more
CP to chart weekly grain handling performance online
Canadian Pacific Railway plans to launch a new weekly “supply chain scorecard” next week, to chart its own performance handling Prairie grain. The Calgary company announced the new program Friday for an online launch Wednesday (Oct. 19), noting the scorecard “will include, when necessary, detailed information on any internal or external factors affecting grain movement” as […] Read more
Premium Brands buys Toronto burger processor
Toronto custom burger maker Belmont Meats has become the latest subsidiary of Vancouver food processing firm Premium Brands. Premium Brands, which owns assorted processing and distribution businesses across Western Canada, Ontario and the U.S., on Thursday announced it has paid $50 million – $49.2 million in cash and $800,000 in Premium common shares — for […] Read more
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