A farm in Switzerland. (Funky-data/iStock/Getty Images)

Swiss voters reject more aid for farmers

Zurich | Reuters — Swiss voters decisively rejected more help for farmers in two referendums on Sunday, heeding the government’s warnings that the measures would send food prices rocketing and hurt the economy, projections for broadcaster SRF showed. Opinion polls had shown early widespread support for more farm aid was fading as the vote neared […] Read more

The goal of the Livestock Welfare Engagement Project is to look at animal welfare in Alberta’s livestock industry.

What’s your take on current livestock welfare?

Animal welfare survey available until Oct. 31

Alberta’s livestock sector has until October 31 to complete a survey as part of the Livestock Welfare Engagement Project being conducted by Alberta Farm Animal Care (AFAC) on behalf of the Alberta government. The goal of the project, says AFAC in a recent press release, is a collaborative look at animal welfare in Alberta’s livestock […] Read more


World crop briefs: North Carolina losing crops, livestock to Florence

CNS Canada — Record-setting rain and floods in North Carolina caused by Hurricane Florence have destroyed the state’s poultry sector with 3.4 million chickens and turkeys reported killed. Pig losses are estimated at 5,500. Widespread power outages and flooded roads are making it difficult to get help to abandoned livestock operations. The state is home […] Read more

A Sept. 12 view from the International Space Station down the eye of Hurricane Florence, which has since weakened to a post-tropical cyclone. (NASA photo)

Florence shuts down U.S. slaughterhouses

Chicago/Los Angeles | Reuters — U.S. food companies kept slaughter plants shut on Monday in southeastern states swamped by Hurricane Florence as flash floods collapsed the walls of at least two hog manure pits, made roads undriveable and delayed rail shipments. Catastrophic flooding from Hurricane Florence, which has dumped up to 36 inches of rain […] Read more





Beef cattle feeding in Ontario. (DebraLee Wiseberg/iStock/Getty Images)

Ontario plugs holes in wildlife compensation plan

Ontario’s agriculture ministry has patched a glitch in its wildlife damage compensation program, in which farmers’ claims risked rejection over the validity of their farm business registrations. “We heard livestock farmers’ concerns with the program so we’re making the first changes effective immediately,” Agriculture Minister Ernie Hardeman said in a release Monday. “We’re also continuing […] Read more

Astronaut Rickey Arnold’s view of Hurricane Florence from the International Space Station on Sept. 10, 2018. (NASA photo)

U.S. farmers rush to clear crops but animals stay in Florence’s path

Chicago | Reuters — As powerful Hurricane Florence advanced toward the southeastern U.S., farmers in North Carolina rushed to harvest corn and tobacco and stock up on pig rations, while the danger of sustained rain and deadly flooding threatened a state where millions of farm animals are housed. “The governor said that North Carolina is […] Read more


A Holstein heifer on pasture in Quebec. (Lurin/iStock/Getty Images)

Sources say Canada ready to offer dairy access in NAFTA talks

Ottawa/Washington | Reuters — Canada is ready to offer the U.S. limited access to the Canadian dairy market as a concession in negotiations to rework the North American Free Trade Agreement, two Canadian sources with direct knowledge of Ottawa’s negotiating strategy said on Tuesday. U.S. President Donald Trump said at the White House that trade […] Read more

Candian Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland speaks to journalists outside the U.S. Trade Representative’s office in Washington on Aug. 28. (Photo: Reuters/Chris Wattie)

Freeland to hold NAFTA talks Tuesday

Ottawa | Reuters — Canadian Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland will meet U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer in Washington on Tuesday for another round of talks to renew the NAFTA trade pact, an official said on Monday, as time runs short to seal a deal. Freeland spokesman Adam Austen did not give details. After more than […] Read more