CNS Canada — Two weeks after rallying on Parliament Hill to protest Trans-Pacific and European trade agreements, some dairy farmers say the government is still slacking when it comes to supporting their industry. The immediate crisis, according to Jan Slomp, a Vancouver Island dairy farmer and president of the National Farmers Union, is diafiltered milk. […] Read more
Diafiltered milk issue sours on slow federal response
Ottawa weighs options over U.S. milk proteins
Winnipeg | Reuters — Canada is working on a plan to shore up its sheltered dairy industry, including measures to counter fast-rising imports of milk proteins from the U.S., according to the federal agriculture minister. Any new support risks widening a trade dispute among North America’s dairy farmers over $150 million worth of U.S. milk […] Read more
Saputo eyes Brazil for acquisitions
Reuters — Saputo Inc., one of Canada’s largest dairy producers, has an eye on Brazil for possible acquisitions, and could make deals worth as much as $3.5 billion, its CEO said Thursday. The struggling global dairy industry is fragmented, potentially yielding opportunities, Lino Saputo Jr. said. The company would like to buy cheesemaking plants in […] Read more
Gay Lea buys Ontario artisanal cheesemaker
Another storied eastern Ontario artisanal cheesemaker is set to go co-op. Gay Lea Foods, billed as Ontario’s biggest and Canada’s second-biggest dairy co-operative, announced a deal Wednesday to buy Black River Cheese Co. effective June 1 for an undisclosed sum. Based in Prince Edward County at Milford, about 45 km southeast of Belleville, Black River […] Read more
Agropur halts its diafiltered milk imports
Updated, May 11, 2016 — Canadian dairy processing co-operative Agropur says a three-month national program to subsidize use of Canadian dairy ingredients will allow it to “immediately” end its own imports of diafiltered milk. “We had pledged to stop importing diafiltered milk as soon as conditions allowed,” co-op president Serge Riendeau said Tuesday in a […] Read more
Ottawa plans talks toward dairy farmers’ CETA compensation
The federal government has pledged to meet with dairy sector representatives within 30 days to draw up a compensation plan for concessions made in Canada’s planned free trade pact with the European Union. “Our conversations will address, among other issues, transition support for producers and processors, as well as proposed program and investment options,” Agriculture […] Read more
Danone sales rise as dairy product demand revives
Paris | Reuters — Danone on Tuesday reported stronger than expected first-quarter sales and said it was on track to deliver higher sales and profits this year despite challenging conditions in Brazil and Russia. The world’s largest yogurt maker, whose brands include Actimel and Activia, reported a 3.5 per cent increase in first-quarter like-for-like revenue, […] Read more
Russian cheese lovers find way around import ban
Moscow | Reuters — An entrepreneur has found a way to supply Italian parmesan, Dutch Gouda and British Cheddar to cheese connoisseurs in Russia, sidestepping a ban on importing European food that the Kremlin imposed in the fallout from the conflict in Ukraine. Russia’s government banned wholesale imports of fresh food products from the European […] Read more
Wal-Mart jumps into milk processing
Reuters — Wal-Mart said it will build a dairy processing plant in Indiana to supply private-label milk to about 600 stores, curtailing business with some suppliers in the retailer’s sole foray into food processing in the U.S. The move — announced by Wal-Mart last Friday but not widely reported by media until Tuesday — helped […] Read more
Mastitis preventive gets joint Canada/U.S. approval
A new drug to help limit mastitis in dairy cows — and keep a lid on the use of antimicrobials to treat it — has picked up joint approval from Health Canada and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. The two agencies on Thursday announced “simultaneous” approvals for Elanco Animal Health’s injectable drug pegbovigrastim, to […] Read more
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