For months since the North American Lamb Company (NALCO) announced it had gone into receivership, it’s been unclear as to who would take over the Alberta assets of the company, including a large feedlot and processing facility at Picture Butte. Finally public, the majority of the Alberta assets of NALCO have been acquired by Préval AG,… Read More
Category: Food Processing
OPINION Travel with me to a time not long ago when the government in Ontario was of the red variety. The former premier, at one point, went so far as to also serve as agriculture minister, in an effort, one can only imagine, to show her commitment and respect for the portfolio. Kathleen Wynne’s government… Read More
Update, as of Nov. 9: Maple Leaf Foods says it is implementing workarounds to maintain operations at its plants while a team of cybersecurity experts continues to work on resolving the “comprehensive” outage caused by a cyberattack. CEO Michael McCain told investors in a quarterly earnings call on Nov. 8 that all the company’s plants… Read More
Despite the rate of inflation slowing, food prices continue to tell a different story. The latest grocery report released by Kevin Grier Market Analysis and Consulting lays out what’s behind the increasing cost of food, with little evidence that excessive profit-taking by grocers is the culprit. The blame game is certainly being played, says Kevin… Read More
The cost of food, fuelled by inflation levels not seen in decades, is the top “life” issue concerning Canadians. That’s the headline emerging from the Canadian Centre for Food Integrity (CCFI) 2022 public trust research report, released during the organization’s annual summit in Toronto this week. The 2022 findings illustrate that the cost of food… Read More
Global need, market prices, and implications from the pandemic have all demonstrated the benefits of bolstering local agriculture infrastructure, something that Alberta NDP ag critic, Heather Sweet, says the province needs to play catch up on. When comparing the Prairie Provinces, Alberta is showing far less traction with breaking ground on new value-added processing than… Read More
In any large-scale livestock operation, pen checkers have their hands full surveying herds daily looking for animals who are showing signs of illness, something that is now being streamlined by a monitor by Allflex Livestock Intelligence. The monitor, which can be a collar or a tag, tracks changes in the animal’s temperature, movement and also… Read More
TELUS is changing the name of its agriculture division to reflect an additional focus of the unit. TELUS Agriculture & Consumer Goods will “deliver data insights and a wide range of integrated digital solutions to customers beyond the agricultural sector,” it says. Through this added focus, TELUS Agriculture & Consumer Goods says it will now… Read More
Whether the idea comes sitting in the tractor, around a boardroom, or in the middle of the night, actually converting an idea into a viable business can be a daunting task. To help move ideas forward, a non-profit company in Saskatchewan is focused on streamlining that process for food- and beverage-minded entrepreneurs. The Saskatchewan Food… Read More
As the large pricing gap continues between cattle producers, feeders, packers and retailers, the Saskatchewan Stock Growers Association (SSGA) is now looking for answers from the Canadian federal government as to why and what can be done about it. Although the price gap concerns have been looming for quite awhile, it has widened since the… Read More
Details on Health Canada’s new front of package (FOP) labelling have been released, and the regulations include some welcome news for livestock producers. Under the original proposal, ground beef and pork would have been labelled as “high in saturated fat,” prompting producers and industry organizations to lobby against the inclusion. The beef and pork sectors said… Read More
Eighty-six partners from different sectors across Canada have come together with a singular focus: to set a benchmark and identify the key indicators that establish a baseline for Canada’s food safety and sustainability. The process and findings also create transparency within the industry, which ultimately could create trust or showcases opportunities for improvement and growth…. Read More
Discussions are underway on whether or not a new beef packing facility would be viable in Saskatchewan. The industry has sustained healthy margins over the past two-and-a-half years and with Saskatchewan being the literal breeding ground for upwards of one million cows, it’s no wonder the province is up for consideration. Saskatchewan Stock Growers Association… Read More
Although ground meat, such as beef or pork, is a single-ingredient food product, proposed regulation changes by Health Canada could require front-of-package labelling warning of the food’s saturated fat content. Single-ingredient foods, such as eggs, vegetables, and fruit, are usually exempt from some labelling requirements, under Health Canada. Other countries that have implemented front-of-package regulations… Read More
In an effort to gain a better understanding of agriculture on the Prairies, Liberal Member of Parliament for King-Hants in Nova Scotia, Kody Blois, recently visited Saskatchewan to learn about innovation happening in the province, and to hear what challenges producers are facing. Blois serves as the chair of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Agriculture and… Read More