Livestock

Quebec’s provincial cabinet has tapped Deputy Ag Minister Michel Saint-Pierre as the government’s point man on reworking income security programming for Quebec farmers. Saint-Pierre was appointed Thursday as associate general secretary to the provincial executive council, effective May 17. His mandate, the province said, will also involve concluding a new agreement on the operation of […] Read more

Two weeks after opening for business, the federal cull breeding swine program has had enough uptake to get it over halfway to its target. The Canadian Pork Council, which is administering the cull on behalf of the federal government, said Wednesday that over 75,000 breeding animals were committed to the program in its first two […] Read more

The Alberta government will put up $300,000 to process ground pork from animals slaughtered through the new federal cull breeding swine program, for use by the province’s food banks. The provincial funding, announced Wednesday, is meant to help pay to process the sow carcasses from the cull program into usable meat with the Alberta Food […] Read more

Newfoundland and Labrador’s latest budget offers the province’s farmers a number of new programs aimed at further developing the industry. The budget, released Tuesday, forecasts a surplus of $544 million for 2008-09 and confirms a $1.4 billion surplus for 2007-08. It also forecasts the province’s net debt will drop from its March 2007 level of […] Read more

Quebec will boost its funding for the federal/provincial Prime-Vert program to include programs that help farmers improve water quality and cut excess greenhouse gases (GHGs). The Quebec program, funded through the recently-extended portion of the federal/provincial Agricultural Policy Framework, promotes best-management practices and supports projects that allow farms to comply with environmental regulations, laws and […] Read more

Campbell Soup Co. says it will close its southern Ontario food plant next year as it sheds several businesses to “enhance long-term profitability.” The 48-year-old facility at Listowel, about 65 km west of Guelph, employs about 500 people making mostly frozen products such as soup, entrees, ramen noodles and Pepperidge Farm-brand products. New Jersey-based Campbell […] Read more

The University of Guelph will get a raise for its agri-food and rural research and development through a five-year, $300 million funding agreement with its home province. Agriculture Minister Leona Dombrowsky on Monday announced the funding levels for 2009 to 2013 inclusive, as part of a 10-year agreement that’s subject to annual review and to […] Read more

Canada’s biggest grain company is continuing its expansion into the southern U.S. feed milling industry. Viterra, whose Unifeed Hi-Pro feed division works under the name Hi-Pro Feeds in the U.S., will invest US$24.2 million to buy the feed milling assets of Gore Bros. and Gore’s Trucking. The companies, run by the Gore family of Texas […] Read more

Small and medium-sized food processing companies in Alberta will soon have a simpler path to earn and keep up their food safety accreditation under a new federal/provincial program announced Friday. The provincial agriculture department and the Canadian General Standards Board (CGSB), an arm of the federal public works department, have inked an agreement under which […] Read more