Members of the National Farmers Union (NFU) gathered on Parliament Hill Wednesday to demand a ban on investor ownership of farmland. The demonstration was organized by the NFU Youth Caucus and Farm Workers’ Working Group. The goal was to demand protection of food sovereignty and help farmers, especially young ones, gain more access to farmland. […] Read more
NFU takes demand for ban on investor ownership to Parliament Hill
Organization's youth caucus concerned amid ‘transition crisis’
Sierra Leone passes new laws to boost landowners’ rights
Freetown | Reuters — Sierra Leone’s parliament on Monday passed two laws that lawyers say will help boost the rights of rural landowners and women against land grabs by big mining and agribusiness firms. The West African country has a history of sometimes deadly conflict between local communities and foreign companies that have cleared huge […] Read more
Exemptions, extensions to be granted for rail crossing upgrades
New amendments would exclude low-risk field-to-field crossings
Some farmer-owned field-to-field grade crossings over Canadian rail lines are now expected to be exempted altogether from looming federal requirements for safety upgrades. Proposed amendments to the Grade Crossings Regulations, announced June 18 by Transport Minister Omar Alghabra, this week cleared their 30-day public comment period. The amendments are expected to tweak rules which were […] Read more
Bankrupt oil firms must clean up inactive wells, Supreme Court rules
Ottawa/Winnipeg | Reuters — Canada’s Supreme Court ruled on Thursday that bankrupt oil companies must clean up inactive wells, overturning lower court decisions that prioritized paying creditors and potentially raising the risks of investment in the industry. The 5-2 ruling means that the Alberta Energy Regulator (AER), which had appealed the earlier court decisions, can […] Read more
When visitors come on your land
Reading Time: < 1 minute Alberta Beef Producers’ wildlife committee has reviewed the Occupiers’ Liability Act and posted its findings at albertabeef.org. Landowners must warn visitors of hazards and ensure the property is safe. If there’s an injury or death, negligence needs to be shown and if the farmer was somehow negligent in communicating a situation on the farm, that […] Read more
What’s a fair rent for a pasture? ‘It depends’
Higher cattle prices and a decline in available pastures putting upward pressure on rental rates
Reading Time: 2 minutes Higher cattle prices have some producers and landowners revisiting their pasture leases. “Pasture rental rates can be difficult to figure out because there are many factors to consider such as local availability of land and pasture, localized demand, quality of the pasture, condition of the existing fences and water, and bargaining,” said Dean Dyck, a […] Read more
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