CFIA: What makes ‘local’ food local?

Federal food inspectors will now allow a much broader geographic definition in food marketers’ use of the word “local” while the label claim undergoes regulatory review. The Canadian Food Inspection Agency said Friday it will include that particular label claim, among others, in its broader review of federal food labelling regulations, guidelines and policies. Until […] Read more

AAFC employees served layoff notices, union says

Employees with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada are the largest group on a list of federal civil servants slated for possible layoffs. The Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC), the Ottawa-based union for over 180,000 public-sector workers across the country, said 530 of its members were served notices Thursday that “they may lose their jobs.” Of […] Read more



Average farmland values up 10 per cent in six months

Average farmland values up 10 per cent in six months

Average values of farmland in Farm Credit Canada’s cross-country review climbed 10 per cent during the second half of 2012, led by double-digit increases in Quebec, Manitoba and Ontario. The federal ag lender’s spring 2013 Farmland Values report, based on a system that monitors 245 benchmark properties across the country, logged its biggest average national […] Read more


Roundup Ready alfalfa not on deck for spring

Forage Genetics International (FGI), the developer of Genuity Roundup Ready alfalfa, won’t be launching its product in Canada for planting this spring. The Idaho-based forage seed developer’s decision, announced Monday, comes after months of “interest and speculation” about its commercialization plans for the Canadian market, after RR alfalfa returned to the U.S. market last year […] Read more

Critics turn up heat on genetically-modified alfalfa

Members of the federal official opposition have lined up with organizers of over two dozen rallies scheduled across the country Tuesday to call for a halt on any move to commercialize genetically modified (GM) alfalfa in Canada. Roundup Ready alfalfa, which has been grown only on test plots in Canada but was authorized for sale […] Read more


Tariffs end as Panama trade pact takes effect

Over three-quarters of Panama’s tariffs on Canadian agricultural products end effective immediately as Canada’s free trade agreement with Panama takes effect Monday (April 1). Canada’s international trade minister Ed Fast said Monday the bilateral deal brings an immediate end to Panama’s tariffs on 78 per cent of agricultural imports and 95 per cent of non-agricultural […] Read more

Growing Forward sequel now in effect

Bilateral talks between the federal government and each of the provinces and territories are “well underway” on the latest incarnation of their jointly-funded ag policy funding framework, officially launched Monday (April 1). The framework, dubbed Growing Forward 2 (GF2), pledges $3 billion from the federal, provincial and territorial governments as the foundation for government agricultural […] Read more


Pearce: Level of on-farm investment favours large Canadian farms

The large keep getting larger, and they keep investing more, as well. That’s the one-sentence summary from a new study from the Ivey School of Business Agri-food Innovation Centre. The study, Investment and Growth on Canadian Farms 2001-2009, has determined that Canadian farms saw total investments increase by more than $3 billion during the height […] Read more

Corn growers, beekeepers await insecticide review

Ontario’s crop producer groups and beekeepers say they plan to “work together” this spring to protect crop pollinators as federal officials review and tighten label warnings on a group of corn insecticides for their potential risks to bees. Health Canada’s Pest Management Regulatory Agency (PMRA) last month announced a review of Canada’s approved neonicotinoid insecticides, […] Read more