Sometimes knowing when to quit is important. This is definitely something that the Friends of the Canadian Wheat Board and the CWB Alliance need to learn. This week, a number of former directors are pleading with the Canadian Supreme Court to rule in their favor. According to the Brandon Sun, Eight former farmer-elected directors of… Read More
Category: Ag Policy
NAFTA has been very valuable for agriculture in Canada and the US. An agreement signed by Prime Minister Harper and President Obama looked to further reduce trade barriers. This agreement specifically addresses the crop protection industry and will streamline the product-approval process. As a result, I’m confident we’ll see significant benefits for Canadian farmers. How… Read More
Only days ago it was Canada Day; a day to celebrate our country and embrace all things Canadian. Some think of poutine, but I, and the thousands of other dairy and poultry farms, celebrate our truly Canadian supply management system. It’s how I feed my family, how I feed my country and how I help… Read More
We could easily call this episode of the Beef Market Update the “even Steven” episode or the “good news bad news” episode as it seems as though every point has a counter-point and every yin, a yang. In some cases it’s less of a counter-point than it is a “wait just a minute, not so… Read More
This week the George Morris Center released a paper, which discusses the TPP negotiations and the potential impact on supply management. Al Mussell is the author of the report and he strongly believes that the TPP / supply management discussion is not an all or none scenario. DOWNLOAD THE REPORT Al Mussell believes that Canadian trade negotiators can… Read More
At Canada’s Farm Progress Show today, I asked Gerry Ritz about Canada’s involvement in the TPP negotiations and how it might impact the supply management in Canada of poultry, dairy and eggs. If you cannot see the above embedded audio player, click here
In case you haven’t heard, Canada has finally been accepted into negotiation for membership into the Trans-Pacific Partnership or TPP. The members of the partnership and those that are negotiating to get in are all looking for access to bigger markets for their products and economic growth. Canada is truly going to be on the… Read More
Do you think your job is tough? Seeding and planting (lingo depending on where you live) season is a real hectic time. You get up early and go home late. The days are long but it is nothing in my mind in comparison to what the human resources department is going through at the Canadian… Read More
Government cutbacks aren’t surprising for anyone. They’ve been debated, we’ve been warned, and now the axe is falling. Of course that makes words like ‘streamlining’ and ‘efficiency’ go-to terms, even though there is no proof, and instead of loss of local control. The perfect example is news that should be devastating for the entire industry…. Read More
The Federal Government released its budget yesterday and agriculture definitely had to buck up its fair share of budget cuts. According to Ag-Minister Gerry Ritz on Global Regina this morning, AgCanada has been cut $300 million in budget. Farmer organizations seem to be playing a wait and see approach as more details develop. Ritz stated… Read More
I am not surprised by the decision that has been made by the US government to appeal the recent decision by the World Trade Organization. Many American producers and packers were hoping that the government would not appeal but the level of shock should be low. The American Farm Bureau and the NCBA recently passed… Read More
The Ontario Government recently announced that they will be ending the relationship of horse racing and slot machines. Some free marketers are cheering the decision and others are weeping for the end of the horse racing business in Ontario. I spoke to several farmers this week and this is definitely a hot button issue. … Read More
With rumors swirling that Viterra is potentially going to be sold to non-Canadian entity like Glencore or ADM, many Canadians are speculating that the Federal Government might intervene in the deal. This would be similar to the Potash Corp sale which was kibosh-ed by Saskatchewan Premier Brad Wall and Prime Minister Stephen Harper. If you… Read More
The Alberta Government has always held to the position that the Land Stewardship Act was created to protect Alberta’s environment and allow for sustainable development to occur in the province. While everyone may agree that that is a noble goal, not everyone agrees with how the government is going about it. The Alberta Government maintains… Read More
The current beef-trade relationship between the U.S. and Canada is the best it’s been in a long time. That’s good. We do a lot of business with the U.S. and from a geographical perspective, there is a “convenience factor” that will always keep that relationship somewhat open no matter the issue. However, even with that… Read More