Canada’s first chance to prosecute a breach of its laws against traffic in dangerous pathogens has ended in a guilty plea from a previously well-regarded researcher over stray vials of brucellosis-causing bacteria. Dr. Klaus Nielsen, who had worked at the Canadian Food Inspection Agency’s Fallowfield lab southwest of Ottawa, was first arrested in October 2012 on […] Read more
Ex-CFIA doc pleads guilty over stray brucellosis
Potato storage fungicide throws in three actives
A new post-harvest fungicide to preserve potato crops in storage gathers three active ingredients for use against fusarium dry rot and silver scurf. Syngenta Canada last week announced the rollout for Stadium, a combination of fludioxonil (Group 12), azoxystrobin (Group 11) and difenoconazole (Group 3) for control of fusarium and suppression of silver scurf in […] Read more
CFIA reinstates eastern Sask. beef plant
Four weeks after it was pulled, the federal operating license for a southeastern Saskatchewan cattle slaughter plant has been reinstated. The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) last week said it’s reinstated the license effective Thursday (Aug. 7) for the Qu’Appelle Beef plant at Neudorf, Sask., about 35 km southwest of Melville. The plant’s license had […] Read more
Olymel seeking other markets for Russia-bound pork
Canadian meat packer Olymel plans to seek other buyers for pork which, until Thursday, was destined for the now-closed Russian market. Olymel, the meat processing arm of Quebec’s Coop Federee, produced frozen pork for export to Russia at its plants at Red Deer, Alta. and Vallee-Jonction, Que. Russia had been the second-largest pork market for […] Read more
McCain to shut P.E.I. fries plant
Prince Edward Island’s potato industry can expect a substantial blow this fall as french-fry giant McCain Foods moves to close its processing plant on the island by the end of October. The New Brunswick company, which supplies fries to both the retail grocery and restaurant and foodservice sectors, announced Thursday it will “cease operations” at […] Read more
N.B. farm-plated trucks may haul for other farmers
Farmers in New Brunswick driving farm-plated trucks will soon be able to use those vehicles to haul for farmers other than themselves. Public Safety Minister Bruce Northrup last week announced the province will tweak its Motor Vehicle Act to allow farm-plated vehicles to transport other farmers’ products. Previously, a farmer could only haul his or […] Read more
Complete Canada/EU trade pact text finalized
Trade officials from Canada and the European Union have reached a complete text on their long-haggled free trade deal, the federal government confirmed Tuesday. The complete text allows for translation and final legal review to get underway, International Trade Minister Ed Fast said in a release. Canada’s provincial and territorial governments have now received the […] Read more
Aug. 1 brings grain grading and other changes
A number of grain grading and variety classification changes take effect Aug. 1, the first day of the new 2014-15 crop year, the Canadian Grain Commission (CGC) said in a news release. Producer cars also must now be ordered online, although farmers still have the option of ordering via fax. The new online ordering system […] Read more
Feds fund poultry code updates and hort programs
The federal government has announced funding of over $2 million to the Canadian Animal Health Coalition (CAHC) to develop and update poultry codes and further advance best practices for the care and handling of other farm animals. The government has also announced funding of over $1.4 million for the Vineland Research and Innovation Centre to […] Read more
Fungus in your forage? Try moose drool
York University researchers have found a surprisingly effective way to fight against a certain species of toxic grass fungus — moose saliva. Their paper published this month in Biology Letters shows that moose and reindeer saliva slows growth and reduces toxicity of a fungus in red fescue. “Plants have evolved defence mechanisms to protect themselves, […] Read more
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