Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has announced his new, larger cabinet set to face the many challenges ahead for Canada, including regional disgruntlement, a threatened economy, and trade disruption around the world. Agriculture is in the middle of all of the these great challenges. Quebec MP Marie-Claude Bibeau will return as minister of Agriculture and Agri-food,… Read More
It’s entirely possible that the United States Congress could ratify the U.S.-Canada-Mexico Agreement (USMCA/CUSMA) before Christmas, says Jim Wiesemeyer, Washington analyst for ProFarmer, as the votes are there — but will they? There is still work to be done in Congress ahead of the holidays, Wiesemeyer says, including passing a spending bill, so ratification before… Read More
This week, the Ontario Federation of Agriculture elected Keith Currie to a fourth term as leader of the general farm organization. Currie has a reputation for building relationships inside and outside the organization and helping change the culture of the farm lobby group. But there’s more work to do. In this interview with RealAgriculture’s Bernard… Read More
While parts of Canada may have been looking for change, the move to a Liberal minority likely won’t change dairy producer priorities. “I would say it’s fairly status quo for us,” says Murray Sherk, Dairy Farmers of Ontario. “We work with whatever party (is) in power. We have good relationships with the Liberal Party…and they… Read More
The Canadian government may have seen some change after the election, but to producer organizations like the Canadian Cattlemen’s Association (CCA), it doesn’t change the fact that they need to be at the table, working with whomever else is there. “I think it’s about what was expected, and as the Canadian Cattlemen’s Association, we work… Read More
Jubilant wouldn’t be the word I’d use the describe the majority of Canadians on this post-election day. That’s even truer in rural Canada. Although Prime Minister Justin Trudeau claimed a clear mandate in his victory speech, the strength of his government looks like one with its knees cut out from under it. Of course, it… Read More
The 2019 federal election has come and gone and the Liberals have come out on top with a minority government. As projected by many polls heading into Monday’s election, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s party won by just 156 seats as of 11:30 p.m. MT compared to the Conservative Party of Canada (CPC) who won 122… Read More
When it comes to the Canadian federal election, many in the agricultural sector have been disappointed the industry hasn’t been much of a debate topic. Saskatchewan farmer Danny Ottenbreit agrees, so when the opportunity to participate in CBC’s The National about the election with Green Party leader Elizabeth May, he felt there was no way he… 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
Farmers descended on The Hague, Netherlands, in droves to protest possible restrictions and regulations on the agriculture industry centred on greenhouse gas emissions. Hundreds of farmers clogged highways for hours, and drove over temporary fences once at the meeting site. At last report, at least three people had been arrested. A recent commission report recommends… 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
It’s not often that the federal agriculture minister gets together in one room with opposing critics to talk about agriculture. Ahead of the 43rd election, the Canadian Federation of Agriculture (CFA) held an agriculture leaders debate where the four main parties — the Conservative Party of Canada, Green Party, Liberal Party, and NDP — stand… Read More
Over the course of the summer, the U.S. Federal Reserve has cut interest rates twice, with the latest drop in its benchmark overnight lending rate taking it to a target range of 1.75% to 2%. Over the same timeframe, the Bank of Canada hasn’t touched interest rates, and the probability of seeing a cut this… Read More
Canadians may not be optimistic about agri-food becoming a primary topic for the upcoming election, but they are thinking about some perhaps surprising agriculture and food-related issues. A survey of 1,524 Canadians, conducted Sept 9 by Angus Reid Global and Dalhousie University’s Agri-Food Analytics Lab, looked to gauge Canadians’ opinion on where they ranked agriculture… Read More