Chickpeas. (CalypsoArt/iStock/Getty Images)

Some Canadian Exotic Grains customers compensated

CNS Canada — A few producers who did not receive payment from Canadian Exotic Grains Ltd. have been compensated through the Canadian Grain Commission’s Safeguards for Grain Farmers Program, the commission said Tuesday. Canadian Exotic Grain’s grain dealer license was revoked April 26 after the company was unable to pay producers. On June 4, Saskatchewan […] Read more

The legalization of cannabis is expected to create thousands of new jobs — from production workers to office staff. Shown here is an Ontario marijuana facility.  (Photo: Reuters/Blair Gable)

Ontario delays start date of retail cannabis sales

Toronto | Reuters — Ontario’s newly elected Tory government said Monday it will delay the start date of recreational marijuana sales in the province and will allow private retailers to sell cannabis rather than government-run stores. Ontario will allow private retailers to sell recreational marijuana starting on April 1, officials from the province’s Progressive Conservative […] Read more


Hop growers Brent and Kari Tarasoff and brew master Marc Shields have seen incredible growth in their microbrewery over the past year — but the brewing business is not for the faint of heart.

Ponoka microbrewery eyes world domination

Reading Time: 5 minutes Kari and Brent Tarasoff had no intention of opening a brewery when they began growing hops in Penticton, B.C. four years ago. But their five-year plan got thrown out the window last year when they opened Siding 14 Brewing Company in Ponoka with two partners. And pretty soon, they’ll need to toss out their new […] Read more

Photo: Thinkstock

German farmers seek 1 billion euros in drought aid

Hamburg | Reuters – Farmers in Germany need special aid of around 1 billion euros ($1.17 billion) because of damage to harvests caused by drought and heatwave, the head of German farming association DBV said on Monday. The aid should be paid to farmers who have lost 30 percent and more of their harvests, DBV […] Read more


(Arysta.cl)

UPL to buy crop chem firm Arysta

Indian chemical manufacturer UPL has raised the financial backing for an all-cash deal to become what’s expected to be the world’s fifth biggest crop chemical firm. UPL on July 20 announced it will pay $4.2 billion to buy 100 per cent of Arysta LifeScience — the maker of Everest and Inferno herbicides, among other products […] Read more

(Dave Bedard photo)

Dwindling diesel supplies could boost price

CNS Canada — Strong global demand and a looming North American harvest could send diesel prices higher in coming months. According to one energy analyst in Chicago, farmers may want to buy some fuel before prices get too high. “We’re telling our people to hedge some of your exposure, because we do think that, barring […] Read more


The grand chamber of the Court of Justice of the European Union, in Luxembourg. (Curia.europa.eu)

GMO rules cover plant gene editing technique, top EU court says

Brussels | Reuters — Crops obtained by plant breeding technique mutagenesis should fall under laws restricting the use of genetically modified organisms (GMOs), Europe’s highest court said on Wednesday, in a victory for environmental campaigners. The biotech industry had argued that much of mutagenesis, or gene editing, is effectively little different to the mutagenesis that […] Read more



Look to halal markets, says analyst

Reading Time: < 1 minute There are many opportunities for Alberta products in the global halal market, says provincial marketing specialist. “I hesitate to put dollar figures on it, but the easiest way to look at it is how entire countries would open up to our meat products,” said Grant Winton. “Take Indonesia, for example. It is the world’s fourth-largest […] Read more

(Camso video screengrab)

Michelin to buy ag track maker Camso

The Michelin Man is set to take on much more field work with a US$1.45 billion deal for Quebec off-the-road track and tire manufacturer Camso. The deal, pending regulatory approval, calls for France’s Michelin to combine its off-the-road (OTR) business with Camso in a new division. “By joining forces with Camso, Michelin will create the […] Read more