Beef is on display at a Walmart in Beijing on Sept. 23, 2019. (File photo: Reuters/Tingshu Wang)

China applies to join Trans-Pacific trade pact

Second-biggest economy seeks to add to economic clout

Updated, Sept. 17 — Beijing | Reuters — Japan said it would have to determine if China meets the “extremely high standards” of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) after the world’s second-biggest economy formally applied to join. Commerce Minister Wang Wentao submitted China’s application to join the free trade agreement in […] Read more


(MDS.mennonite.net)

Ontario MDS volunteers already moving hay west

Disaster response group spearheading program separate from CFA plan

It’s in the spirit of co-operation in difficult times that a group of Ontario farmers have launched a hay donation program to assist their Saskatchewan counterparts. Mennonite Disaster Service (MDS) Canada, a volunteer organization that provides assistance in the aftermath of disasters in Canada and the U.S., is organizing the latest iteration of Hay West […] Read more

Marie-Claude Bibeau, Dave Epp, Yves Perron and Alistair MacGregor laid out their parties’ positions in an agriculture leaders’ debate on Sept. 9, 2021. (Video screengrab from Canadian Federation of Agriculture via YouTube)

Federal support for farmers focus of ag leaders’ debate

AgriStability, carbon levy exemptions, supply management among topics

An agricultural debate ahead of the federal election gave representatives from political parties an opportunity to pitch their ideas to producers, resulting in debate over how best to support farmers. Thursday evening’s debate, hosted by the Canadian Federation of Agriculture, had plenty of discussion about climate change and how best to support producers in a […] Read more


EU flags in front of the headquarters of the European Commission in Brussels. (Jorisvo/iStock/Getty Images)

EU parliament committee approves farm subsidy reforms

Brussels | Reuters — The European Parliament’s agriculture committee on Thursday approved a deal to overhaul the European Union’s huge farming subsidies, including new measures aimed at making agriculture greener. The committee approved three pieces of legislation, which from 2023 will govern spending from the EU’s Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) — a scheme that will […] Read more

File photo of a roundworm larva. (Dotana/iStock/Getty Images)

Health Canada warns people not to take livestock dewormers

No evidence that drug is effective against COVID-19

“Concerning reports” of people in Canada seeking out veterinary-grade dewormers for personal use have led Health Canada to formally advise against doing so. News reports in Western Canada in the past week have described increased demand from non-farming consumers for veterinary-grade ivermectin, whether at livestock supply retailers or online. While ivermectin is an antiparasitic drug […] Read more


Nova Scotia Agriculture Minister Greg Morrow. (PCPartyNS.ca)

Rookie Nova Scotia MLA named agriculture minister

Greg Morrow sworn in Tuesday

A radio news director from eastern Nova Scotia has been tapped as the provincial agriculture minister for incoming Premier Tim Houston’s Progressive Conservatives. Greg Morrow, the new MLA for Guysborough-Tracadie, was sworn in Tuesday along with the other members of Houston’s 19-member cabinet. Houston’s Tories ousted Iain Rankin’s Liberal government in the Aug. 17 provincial […] Read more

(Dave Bedard photo)

StatsCan sees higher cattle, hog inventories at July 1

Full impacts of West's drought not yet counted

Nationwide head counts of livestock from the “early stages” of Western Canada’s ongoing drought won’t yet show the weather’s full impact, but showed slightly larger herds heading into this summer compared to last year. Statistics Canada on Monday reported the first year-over-year increase in the size of the country’s cattle herd as of July 1 […] Read more


(Photo courtesy Canada Beef Inc.)

Plans afoot to move hay from East to drought-hit West

CFA, BFO spearheading Hay West-style initiatives

Farm groups are spearheading new plans to get livestock feed from Eastern Canada to drought-damaged regions of the western provinces and northwestern Ontario. Details are still pending, but the Canadian Federation of Agriculture (CFA) announced Aug. 12 it has started work on a “Hay West” initiative to get surplus hay “to those struggling in the […] Read more

An inflamed udder affected by edema

Udder edema puts dairy cows under pressure

Dairy Corner: If a chronic problem, a change in ration formulation may be needed

Udder edema is the swelling and visible accumulation of fluid in a cow’s udder at calving, or it may appear a couple of weeks ahead of time in the close-up pen. Fortunately, most distressed cows do not need any producer or vet intervention. That’s because most of these cases disappear on their own, usually after […] Read more