News

Agvisor PRO Inc, a platform that connects farmers with independent advisors, industry experts, and other agriculture professionals for scheduled sessions, has closed a $1.5 million seed funding round.

The seed funding is financed by six Canadian and U.S. agricultural business investors, and builds on the Founder and Friends & Farmer rounds of funding, the company says.

AgVisorPRO also announced the appointment of two new directors to its board: Greg Andrukow and Mareese Keane. The two join Rob Saik as directors of the company.

“As we work to grow the AGvisorPRO channel it is wonderful to have the confidence of a group of investors who have such deep agricultural domain expertise,” says Robert Saik, CEO. “Together with the funding, the addition of Mareese Keane and Greg Andrukow to our board, will accelerate the development of AGvisorPRO into a global platform.”

The company also announced that THRIVE has named AGvisorPRO as a finalist in their 2021 competition.

“Additionally, we are thrilled to be named a finalist in the SVG THRIVE Canada Challenge,” says Saik, “THRIVE is the top agriculture accelerator in the world and we are excited to be recognized as a leading Canadian ag tech start-up.”

One of Canada’s largest agriculture businesses has acquired one of the country’s largest trucking companies.

James Richardson & Sons, Limited has purchased 100 per cent of the outstanding shares of Bison Transport Inc. from Wescan Capital Inc., as of January 1, 2021.

Based at Winnipeg, Manitoba, Bison was founded in 1969 by Duncan Jessiman.

The company says it employs more than 3,700 people while operating a fleet of 2,100 trucks and 6,000 trailers across North America. Bison also owns several other trucking outfits, including H.O. Wolding, Searcy Trucking, and Britton Transport, providing a range of intermodal, dry van, refrigerated, and deck trucking services.

“We are excited about the opportunity to acquire Bison, which has an outstanding reputation for customer service, dependability, employee relations and safety built over the past 51 years,” says Hartley Richardson, president and CEO of James Richardson & Sons, in a news release.

“Bison and its employees have been like members of our family since my father established the company in 1969. So while we have mixed emotions, we are thrilled that we have found a buyer for Bison that shares our values of excellence and that cares for our employees and customers as much as we have over the past 51 years. I have no doubt whatsoever that Bison will continue to enjoy tremendous success in the future as part of the JRSL family,” says Peter Jessiman, president and CEO of Westcan Capital, the Jessiman family’s holding company.

Both Richardson and Wescan say the deal will not result in any changes to Bison’s operations, nor the Bison brand. The head office will be staying in Winnipeg. The company also operates six main hubs, in Winnipeg, Mississauga, Edmonton, Calgary, Regina and Langley.

“As I take a moment to reflect, I take great pride in what we have accomplished here as a team on behalf of the Jessiman family. Having said that, I think that takes a second seat to the renewed energy and excitement I have for our future as part of the James Richardson & Sons group of companies,” notes Bison president and CEO, Rob Penner. “I feel great that the business I have had a part in building has secured its future with such a great organization.”

Financial terms of the deal have not been made public.

Canadian Pacific railway (CP) moved 31.32 million metric tonnes (MMT) of Canadian grain and grain products in 2020 — a record over any prior calendar year.

The company was busy in the fourth quarter, where they moved 8.84 MMT. This beats the previous record by 5.1 per cent.

Joan Hardy, CP vice-president of sales and marketing grain and fertilizers, says achievements like these require focus across the supply chain.

“Their work to create a safe, efficient supply chain is an essential ingredient in our ability to deliver Canada’s crop to consumers at home and around the world,” she says.

CP has also added more than 3,700 new hopper cars to its fleet via purchase or lease. The new high-efficiency railcars carry 15 per cent more grain by volume and 10 per cent more by weight compared to older cars.

Mexico’s president has published a decree beginning the phase out of the use of glyphosate and genetically modified corn in the country.

Biosafety authorities of the country will “revoke and refrain from granting permits” for genetically modified corn, including imports.

The decree from President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador published on December 31, 2020 cites protection of native corn varieties, biocultural wealth, rural communities, gastronomic heritage, and the health of Mexicans, as the primary reasoning.

In accordance with the government’s food self-sufficiency policies, genetically modified corn authorizations will be restricted, until the supply of corn for Mexicans’ diets can be replaced, no later than January 31, 2024.

The regulations also mandate a full ban of glyphosate by the same date, January 31, 2024.

Related: Mexico announces plan to phase out the use of glyphosate