Federal Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food Lawrence MacAulay and Saskatchewan Agriculture Minister Lyle Stewart today announced a $6.3 million commitment to 24 livestock and forage-related research projects and $2 million over two years to the Livestock and Forage Centre of Excellence. Background: Livestock centre of excellence receives $4.5 million from federal gov’t A&W donates $5M to the… Read More
The Canadian government has conceded the same access to the country’s dairy, poultry and egg markets in the new Trans-Pacific Partnership as was agreed to the initial version of the deal in 2015 when the U.S. was still part of the TPP. Canada and the other 10 countries concluded negotiations on Tuesday for the updated… Read More
According to the dictionary, a sin tax is “a tax on items considered undesirable or harmful, such as alcohol or tobacco.” There is mounting pressure from activist groups to add animal proteins to that list of so-called “sinful” items. They argue meat creates added healthcare costs and negative impacts on the environment. It might sound… Read More
Chicken Farmers of Canada says it is welcoming Alberta producers back to the flock after the province withdrew from the national agreement that determines how much production each province is allocated under the national supply management system for chicken. CFC says it has a new federal-provincial agreement “in hand” after the Farm Products Council of… Read More
McDonald’s has announced that they are “elevating [their] global commitment to source chickens raised with improved welfare outcomes”. It’s a topic that has been on the company’s radar for decades, according to Bruce Feinberg, senior director at McDonald’s, responsible for Global Quality Systems for chicken, beef, pork, fish and dairy products. “Shortly after I joined McDonald’s in… Read More
Chicken Farmers of Canada has named its replacement for outgoing executive director Mike Dungate. Michael Laliberté has been hired to lead the national chicken producer organization’s 25-member staff. Laliberté is very familiar with CFC, having worked for the organization for 26 years, most recently as director of operations. “The Board of Directors undertook a robust,… Read More
We might be hearing more about plant-based protein and meatless burgers in headlines, but when we look around the world, demand for animal-based protein — meat — is still climbing. In this podcast we connect with Carlos Saviani, the vice president of food sustainability with the World Wildlife Fund. You might say he brings a… Read More
No one has to tell University of Guelph agricultural economics master’s student Travis Jansen that farmers like him are well-advised to listen to consumers. But he’s doing more than just listening to them – he’s set to learn from them, too. Jansen, who comes from a family hog farm near Seaforth, knows successful farmers have… Read More
My daughter and grandson share the same birthday, August 7. They’re part of a pork-and-grain farming operation near Thamesville. At their birthday celebration on the weekend, our family barbequed pork sausage from their farm on the campfire. There was no reason to doubt the quality of the sausage. We trust the meat packers in nearby… Read More
Nutreco says it has completed its purchase of Hi-Pro Feeds, and along with the acquisition, is moving its North American animal nutrition business under the name Trouw Nutrition. The Dutch company’s animal nutrition business operates internationally under the Trouw Nutrition brand, with the exception of North America, where Nutreco also operates as Shur-Gain and Landmark… Read More
Count pastured chicken production as another frontier for automation and robotics in agriculture. With demand for pastured chicken rising rapidly, Manitoba farmer Daniel Badiou, through his startup Ukko Robotics, has started manufacturing automated mobile chicken coops. That’s right. They’re basically robots for raising chickens outside. “Every day it will move by itself, and it can all… Read More
Manitoba’s new government is planning to remove what it calls “impractical and costly” regulations to make it easier to build barns and farm buildings and bring the province’s farm building code in line with rules in other Western Canadian provinces. Speaking at Keystone Ag Producers’ annual meeting in Winnipeg last week, Agriculture Minister Ralph Eichler announced… Read More
The Canadian Food Inspection Agency has proposed changes to the rules for the transportation of animals. Discussions about changes to the transport regulations, most of which have been in place since 1977, have been ongoing for a number of years. The draft amendments were finally published in Canada Gazette on December 3 (read the entire proposal here.) The… Read More
The Canadian Food Inspection Agency has approved camelina meal as an Omega-9-boosting feed ingredient for laying hens. “This is another major step for camelina production in Canada,” said Jack Grushcow, founder and CEO of camelina developer Smart Earth Seeds, in a news release on Thursday. “This latest approval makes the crop production economics for camelina… Read More
A lot of angst is simmering in farm circles about the potential for disease to spread between wildlife and domestic livestock, such as poultry. The concerns are warranted, given how quickly disease can race through a herd and create huge losses. But new research from the University of Guelph into the health status of Ontario… Read More