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
Wal-Mart jumps into milk processing
Meat packers desperate for workers despite jump in jobless rate
Farm Vote: There are 1,000 job vacancies at slaughter plants, but Canadians shun them
Reading Time: 2 minutes Despite job losses in other sectors, Canada’s pork industry is still struggling to build a sustainable workforce. “For us in Western Canada, it really comes down to availability of labour,” said Darcy Fitzgerald, executive director at Alberta Pork. “We need to have workers available for us, and often, they’re not Canadian, only because we don’t […] Read more
India is a country of two agricultures
The nation is a world player in food, but full of contrasts and contradictions
Reading Time: 4 minutes My visit to India a few years ago covered a lot of agricultural ground — a 1,500-kilometre loop starting in Ludhiana and ending in New Delhi. Our team — nine young agricultural professionals from five countries — experienced a transportation strike, a hit-and-run, watched a car slide off the road and into the jungle, and […] Read more
NOT WORKING: Alberta’s food processing industry needs a big fix
If the province wants a vibrant food industry, it will ‘have to do things differently,’ says expert
Reading Time: 3 minutes Alberta’s food-processing industry faces a grim future without a “disruptive intervention,” says an agri-food industry veteran. “Current approaches toward innovation and growth — particularly in the food industry here in Alberta — are not working,” said Jerry Bouma of Toma & Bouma Management Consultants. “If we seek success and want to grow this industry, we’re […] Read more
U.S. bird flu causes egg shortage, emergency measures
Chicago/New York | Reuters — As a virulent avian influenza outbreak continues to spread across the Midwestern U.S., some egg-dependent companies are contemplating drastic steps — importing eggs from overseas or looking to egg alternatives. A spokeswoman for Archer Daniels Midland said that as egg supplies tighten and prices rise, the food processing and commodities […] Read more
Don’t just grow crops, grow food processing
A stronger ag-sector would be the result, says AWC general manager
Reading Time: < 1 minute Think big picture, says the general manager of the Alberta Wheat Commission. “We’ve seen the ministry roll out a rural development strategy, and we support that,” said Tom Steve. “But if you look at who the wealth creators are in rural communities, it tends to be the farmer… we need to find a way to […] Read more
It’s a shame that Canada imports more food products than it exports
Canada should look to countries like the Netherlands, which is a leading exporter of roasted coffee even though it doesn’t grow coffee beans
Reading Time: 3 minutes Canada’s agri-food trade profile continues to be in deficit. As the demand for specific items heats up around the globe, it’s apparent that a rethinking of our processing, value adding and export aggression is long overdue. Considering the low value of the Canadian currency, this is an opportune time to push our products onto the […] Read more
Lessons to learn from Quebec’s agriculture and agri-food industry
Canada is about food and Quebec is about processing — employing 475,189 in 2,100 facilities, most co-operatively owned
Reading Time: 3 minutes I spend a lot of time in Quebec and find the culture and the history of the province fascinating. It is in many regards, Canada’s little bit of Europe and the feel in the country is cosy. What most folks don’t see as they travel the countryside past long narrow tracks of land, vineyards and […] Read more
Exciting times for Canadian farmers
Straight From the Hip: Rising farmland values reflect the solid fundamentals that are driving agriculture forward in this country
Reading Time: 3 minutes There is a lot of excitement in Canadian agriculture today. From the tremendous increase in farmland values to food processing — Canada is a country that has it all! In all my travel, I have never met a person who did not want to live, farm, visit or be educated in Canada. The ultimate destination, […] Read more
Cyber-Savvy Farmer
