After months of back and forth between the U.S. and China, the countries have announced the first of a possible three-phase deal that will lead to further negotiation on remaining items. Agriculture appears to be the main focus of the October 11th announcement which includes a major escalation in the buying of U.S. agricultural products…. Read More
We are still waiting for the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement — NAFTA 2.0 — to be ratified in both Canada and the U.S. In both countries, major political happenings are dragging on the process: a federal election here in Canada, and the threat of impeachment of the president in the U.S. Canada West Foundation’s Carlo Dade says… Read More
Change is constant. It’s also uncomfortable and difficult. And, according to one policy analyst, significant agriculture trade flow and economic change is on the horizon — is Canada ready? “Part of the reason for putting together this policy note is to sort of to help people understand we need to appreciate the breadth and depth… Read More
U.S. Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue is a man of the people. There was no better evidence of that than this week when he sat with dairy farmers at the World Dairy Expo to listen to their concerns. Quite simply, U.S. dairy farmers are in a tough spot. After five years of depressed milk prices, producers… Read More
The 43rd federal election is less than three weeks away, and the chair of Soy Canada is wondering why agriculture hasn’t been brought up more during election debates. There’s a multitude of issues to be brought up, yet no party seems to really be keeping a close eye on farmers. In particular, Soy Canada chair,… Read More
The president of the Canadian Agri-Food Trade Alliance (CAFTA) is sounding the alarm surrounding the lack of trade being done with the European Union since Canada-European Union Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) came into effect two years ago. “When CETA was first signed, agri-food exporters were promised a means to increase exports by billions… Read More
We’ve seen results from an early-campaign survey on what Canadians are worried about in regards to food, and we’ve heard from each of the four main parties heading into this federal election. But what I want to know is, what are YOUR priorities, Canadian agriculture? As media, I watched the debate, I interviewed Sylvain Charlebois… Read More
The Liberals, Conservatives, and NDP have been battling it out in Question Period over the past year, and on the election trail – who is a bigger supporter of Canadian dairy farmers and the future stability of supply management? Both the Liberals and Conservatives are in favour of compensation for dairy farmers based on market… Read More
The ag leaders debate on Tuesday night was a very entertaining two hours featuring lots of banter, blame, wild statements, and the frequent mention of climate change. The Liberals, Conservatives, NDP, and Green Party all had the chance to outline their respective party’s agricultural agenda for farmers across the country. But on that point, the… Read More
While harvest delays and yield challenges might typically support a commodity’s price in the markets, Canadian canola has a bigger issue – its large carryout. “It just hangs over like a wet blanket, and it’s something we’ve known was coming, and yet it creates a whole market situation where things just really feel like a… Read More
The Beef Farmers of Ontario (BFO) and Les Producteurs de bovins du Québec (PBQ) are calling on federal party leaders to include, as a first priority in the mandate of the Minister of Agriculture & Agri-Food, a beef cattle investment and assistance program to help farmers in Ontario and Quebec mitigate the harm of recent… Read More
Minister of International Trade Diversification Jim Carr has put out a statement in regards to the government’s talks with China over blocked canola exports. Earlier this year, China revoked the export license of a major Canadian canola company citing various pests were found in the product. Later, a second company was hit with the same… Read More
The Canadian Meat Council (CMC) is calling on the various government parties for action this upcoming election, as they feel they’ve been in the dark for upwards of three months. The CMC says China’s temporary suspension on pork and beef exports is costing those in the industry close to $100 million. If it persists, the… Read More
Canada’s relationship with China is complicated — it involves extradition, unlawful retribution arrests, non-tariff barriers, fake CFIA documents, and a spying telecom company. In the months since the recall of former Canadian ambassador to China John McCallum, the agriculture industry has been waiting very impatiently for a new ambassador. Agriculture’s hope has been that a… Read More
Canada’s 11,000 dairy farmers are getting a pay out from the government over trade deal concessions, and America’s farmers have seen not one, but two government payments — but what about Canada’s 100,000 export dependent farmers impacted by global trade disruptions? The AGgrowth Coalition, an umbrella group representing export-dependent farmers, is calling on the federal… Read More