Canada’s food retailers have been looking to reduce competitive price wars — but it’s not enough to ease continued food inflation. That’s market analyst Kevin Grier’s take on what’s happening across Canada’s food retail landscape. Earlier this week, Grier joined RealAg Radio host Shaun Haney to discuss his latest Grocery Trade Report and says grocery retailers may… Read More
Jasper Wyman & Son Canada Inc., one of Canada’s largest wild blueberry producers is receiving $971,000 in federal government funding to increase exports and upgrade to new equipment. Jasper Wyman & Son Canada Inc. farms approximately 1,200 acres of wild blueberries in Canada. In addition to the federal funds, the company has also been granted… Read More
Like so many other countries, Canada’s birth rate is less than its death rate. The logical conclusion, then, is that if Canada wants to maintain or grow its population, it will have to not only welcome but also actively recruit people from other countries to live here. The topic of immigration is highly political leading… Read More
Gay Lea Foods Co-operative Ltd., a cow, and goat milk dairy processor will receive up to $16.9 million through the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario (FedDev Ontario) and Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada’s Dairy Processing Investment Fund (DPIF). With this funding, Gay Lea Foods is expanding its Teeswater, Ont., facility and will install advanced… Read More
Over the past number of years, there has been an increase in labour shortages for both meat processors and those in mushroom production. To put it in perspective, there are nearly 1,700 empty butcher stations at meat processing plants across Canada, and as far as mushroom production goes, their job vacancy rate has almost doubled… Read More
What do honey, olive oil, and organic food have in common? They’re high on the list of food fraud cases in Canada. Food fraud, defined as mislabeling and misrepresentation of food products to deceive consumers or create unfair competition, may cost the global food industry between $10 and $15 billion per year, affecting about 10%… Read More
Sollio Agriculture, the rebranded agriculture branch of La Coop fédérée, and Olymel L.P have announced plans to purchase pork producer F. Ménard. The Quebec-based fully integrated pork company employs over 1,200 people, and its activities range from genetics to marketing, by way of animal feed, breeding, slaughtering, and primary and further processing. The company has… Read More
The Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food along with the Minister of International Trade Diversification met with leaders of various Canadian pork and meat organizations earlier this week to discuss the latest in trade woes with China. “We are working closely with farmers, industry, provinces and exporters to restore market access to China as quickly as… Read More
The debate surrounding what should be considered meat — and what isn’t — continues to spark conversation across the food industry. What are plant-based burgers, such as the Impossible Burger and Beyond Meat, actually made of? Dr. Frank Mitloehner, professor at the University of California-Davis, was a guest on AgriTalk last week where he shared… Read More
Following consultation with the food and agriculture industries along with individual Canadians, the federal government has announced the first-ever national food policy for Canada. The policy seeks to address reliable access to healthy food, especially for children, and to reduce food waste, according to a press release. Canadian food waste tips the scales at more… Read More
A flock of chickens in the southeast corner of Manitoba has contracted a confirmed case of infectious laryngotracheitis (ILT), an acute herpes viral respiratory tract infection of chickens, turkeys, and pheasants, that may result in severe production losses and mortality as high as 85%. ILT is on the list of four notifiable diseases at the… Read More
The province of Manitoba and the federal government have announced more than $1.1 million will go to cheese producing company Bothwell Cheese. The New Bothwell-based facility will use the money to modernize its facility. “Our goal is to retain and grow our world-class food enterprises to meet the growing demand for protein-rich foods while fostering… Read More
Ontario sheep and cattle producers who work with many of the province’s independent meat processors could soon find themselves fully responsible for their livestock’s hides. In April, one of the few processing companies in the province that collects hides from small and medium-sized abattoirs, announced it was ceasing operations. It had been serving Ontario abattoirs… Read More
Quebec’s farmer union and its beef producers are calling on the Canadian Food Inspection Agency to stop Beyond Meat from using the word “meat” when referring to its plant-based products, such as burgers and sausages, Quebec’s TVA Nouvelles reports. Beyond Meat launched its meat-alternative product line in Canada on May 1, 2019. L’Union des producteurs… Read More
For those who handle the grocery shopping in the household, you might be surprised to hear that recent run ups in grocery store prices are somewhat of an anomaly. As Kevin Grier, with KG Market Analysis and Consulting explains, price inflation of grocery items has actually been low to negative in the past few years,… Read More