Provinces and territories can apply starting April 1 for chunks of a three-year, $25 million federal fund to support programs that encourage on-farm adoption of precision ag tools or use of renewables from ag waste. Federal Agriculture Minister Lawrence MacAulay on Monday launched the fund, to flow through what’s dubbed the Agricultural Clean Technology (ACT) […] Read more
‘Clean’ tech adoption up for federal funding
Cargill selling Ontario grain, inputs businesses
Quebec agrifood co-operative La Coop federee is set to stake a larger claim in Ontario’s grain and crop input sector with a deal for Cargill’s assets there. Cargill’s Winnipeg-based Canadian arm announced Thursday it will sell its Ontario grain and crop input outlets and its joint-venture stake in South West Ag Partners to La Coop […] Read more
G3 expanding into Alberta market
The grain company formerly known as the Canadian Wheat Board plans to start work next month on two new elevators including its first in Alberta. G3 Canada announced Tuesday it will build a 42,000-tonne capacity elevator at Wetaskiwin in central Alberta, between Edmonton and Red Deer, and a similar-sized elevator at Maidstone, Sask., about 55 […] Read more
Premium Brands set to buy three meat processors
A pair of Ontario meat processors with “iconic” brands in Canada are among four firms to be picked up on the most recent shopping expedition by specialty food firm Premium Brands. Vancouver-based Premium announced Friday it will pay a total of $227 million in cash, shares and promissory notes for four companies: Concord Premium Meats, […] Read more
Community to ‘transform’ Guelph’s Kemptville ag campus
The home municipality for Ontario Agricultural College’s (OAC) former Kemptville campus is set to remake the site as an “education and community hub.” The municipality of North Grenville, which includes Kemptville, about 40 km south of Ottawa, closed a deal in December to purchase the Kemptville ag campus, with the official transfer due to take […] Read more
Sustainable beef pilot passes first-quarter mark
The packer behind the pilot of a Canadian value chain for certified sustainable beef says its first three months are proof the model is scalable as well as functional. The pilot’s first quarter “proved that a significant volume of beef can be successfully traced through a certified supply chain for the participating customers,” Gurneesh Bhandal, […] Read more
BASF in talks to buy Bayer vegetable seeds arm
Bayer has entered “exclusive talks” toward a deal to sell its global Nunhems vegetable seeds business to German chemical firm BASF, to help clear the aisle for a Bayer/Monsanto marriage. Nunhems, which has a portfolio of about 1,200 seed varieties in over two dozen different vegetable crops worldwide, sells seeds in North America for tomatoes, […] Read more
Mushroom grower Highline expands westward reach
Canada’s biggest mushroom grower is set to further expand its market space in Western Canada with a deal for a West Coast competitor. Highline Mushrooms of Leamington, Ont. announced Wednesday it will buy Prairie Mushrooms of Langley, B.C. for an undisclosed sum. Highline, which has operated since 1961 and was taken over in 2016 by […] Read more
Missouri turkeys turn up with low-path bird flu
A commercial flock of about 20,000 turkeys in southwestern Missouri has turned up with low-pathogenicity (“low-path”) H7N1 avian flu, marking the first such case in the U.S. this year. The flock was on a turkey farm in Jasper County, about 140 km northwest of Branson. Missouri is on the Mississippi flyway for migratory birds, which […] Read more
Glacier FarmMedia launches Farmtario
Canada’s largest publisher of farm magazines and newspapers has cultivated a new source of news for farmers in Ontario. Launched Wednesday at the London Farm Show, Farmtario will be a biweekly print publication starting April 30. Its website, Farmtario.com, is available immediately. “We see a bright future for Ontario agriculture and we’re proud to announce […] Read more
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