A 3D reconstruction of microscope image data from 
a lygus bug nymph treated 
with fluorescent nanoparticles. The red channel is the nanoparticle fluorescence, which shows the path of the nanoparticle and helps researchers discover the location in the pest where the active ingredient will be most effective.

A (very) small solution to big ag problems

Nanotech may be the future of precision crop protection, says Lethbridge scientist

Reading Time: 4 minutes In just a few years, crop spraying could become largely a thing of the past. Nanotechnology may take its place using its ability to target specific crop pests. Farmers hear a lot of such whizzy claims. But a Lethbridge researcher is so confident in nanotech-based crop protection that he’s working to ensure it doesn’t follow […] Read more

File photo of grilled pork intestine on skewers at a street food stall in the Philippines. (Junpinzon/iStock/Getty Images)

Philippines to host Canada’s Indo-Pacific ag office

AAFC/CFIA base to be set up in Manila, Bibeau says

Canada’s agriculture department and food safety agency will carry out their part of the federal government’s Indo-Pacific strategy from a new office in Manila, Philippines. Federal Agriculture Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau announced the office’s location Wednesday in Ottawa during a meeting with the Canadian Agri-Food Trade Alliance (CAFTA), which represents Canada’s export-dependent ag commodity groups on […] Read more


File photo of a federal office building in downtown Winnipeg. (Dave Bedard photo)

AAFC projecting canola ending stocks to tighten

New-crop wheat ending stocks figure boosted

MarketsFarm — Canadian canola ending stocks in both the current marketing year and upcoming 2023-24 season will be tighter than earlier estimates, according to supply/demand projections from Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) on Tuesday. Factoring in Statistics Canada’s latest acreage estimates and its data for stocks as of March 31 — figures both released in […] Read more

File photo of picketing federal workers represented by the Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC) at Gatineau, Que. on April 20, 2023. (Photo: Reuters/Blair Gable)

Federal workers reach tentative deal

Over 120,000 PSAC members back on job Monday

Over 120,000 striking federal government employees are expected to return to work starting Monday morning (May 1) after reaching tentative agreements overnight. The Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC) announced after midnight Monday it had reached tentative agreements for workers in four bargaining units who negotiate with the federal Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat. Among […] Read more


(File photo)

Pulse weekly outlook: Larger pea, chickpea exports expected

China, Bangladesh among major destinations

MarketsFarm — Canadian pea, chickpea and edible bean exports will likely beat earlier expectations during the current 2022-23 marketing year, according to updated supply/demand projections from Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada. The stocks-to-use rations for the three crops should also tighten as a result. In its report Friday, the government agency upped its call for Canadian […] Read more

File photo of a federal office building in downtown Winnipeg. (Dave Bedard photo)

AAFC raises canola stocks projections

StatCan's early acreage estimates due out this week

MarketsFarm — Canola ending stocks for both the current marketing year and 2023-24 were raised slightly by Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) in its latest supply/demand projections, released Friday. The government agency lowered its canola export forecast for 2022-23 by 200,000 tonnes from March, now pegging movement at 8.4 million tonnes. With domestic usage left […] Read more


File photo of a federal office building in downtown Winnipeg. (Dave Bedard photo)

Some 155,000 federal public workers on strike over pay dispute

Some AAFC, CGC work to be affected

Ottawa | Reuters — More than 155,000 public sector workers in Canada began a strike Wednesday after failing to reach a wage deal with the federal government by a Tuesday night deadline, in action that will affect tax filings and passport services during peak demand. The Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC) union said contract […] Read more

Youth Employment Program has March 27 deadline

Reading Time: < 1 minute Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada recently announced an investment of approximately $13 million to enhance the Youth Employment and Skills Program and to help support approximately 1,200 jobs for youth in the sector. The program is now accepting applications. It offers support for 50 per cent of wages to a maximum of $14,000 to agriculture employers […] Read more


(Dave Bedard photo)

AAFC supply/demand estimates mostly unchanged

Wheat exports up, but domestic usage cut

MarketsFarm –– Supply/demand estimates for Canadian crops were largely left unchanged in Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada’s (AAFC) latest projections, with only the wheat numbers seeing small adjustments in the report released Tuesday. Projected Canadian wheat exports for the 2022-23 marketing year were raised to 24.3 million tonnes, up by 200,000 from the February estimate. Domestic […] Read more

Yellow peas. (Victoria Popova/iStock/Getty Images)

Pulse weekly outlook: AAFC report makes minor changes

Revisions mainly in dry peas, chickpeas

MarketsFarm — Following the latest supply and demand estimates from Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC), MarketsFarm Pro analyst Mike Jubinville said their numbers “all seem reasonable enough.” There were only a handful of small tweaks to pulses in the AAFC report released Friday. For the most part, the revisions came with dry beans and chickpeas. […] Read more