(Photo courtesy Canola Council of Canada)

China, Canada in talks as tougher canola standard nears

Winnipeg | Reuters –– Canada and China are in talks about Beijing’s plans to toughen its standard on Canadian canola imports, an industry official said on Monday, just days before the change takes effect. China’s quarantine authority, AQSIQ, notified the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) last month that it would allow no more than one […] Read more


(Photo courtesy Canola Council of Canada)

Canada presses China on science in canola trade spat

Ottawa | Reuters — Canada is urging the Chinese government to stick to scientific facts in decisions on trade as Beijing plans to toughen its standard on Canadian canola shipments, federal Agriculture Minister Lawrence MacAulay said Thursday. China’s quarantine authority, AQSIQ, notified the Canadian Food Inspection Agency last month that it would allow no more […] Read more

(Photo courtesy Canola Council of Canada)

China’s canola meal supply may fall under tighter standards

Beijing | Reuters — China may suffer a shortage of canola meal, a protein-rich feed ingredient, after Beijing plans to toughen the import standards for the oilseed from major exporters, industry analysts said. China will allow no more than one per cent of foreign material in canola shipments starting April 1, the country’s quarantine agency […] Read more



(Dave Bedard photo)

Blackleg, big stocks seen behind China-Canada canola conflict

Reuters — A “scientific disagreement” between Canada and China over the risk of transmitting the blackleg fungus is behind China’s move to raise its standard for Canadian canola imports, an industry official involved in discussions said. But some traders say the real reason for a higher standard that may slow Chinese imports is the country’s […] Read more


A race against evolving blackleg

A race against evolving blackleg

The blackleg pathogen is evolving to challenge blackleg resistant canola varieties

Blackleg is not going away. In fact, AAFC researcher Dr. Garry Peng told Saskatchewan farmers at a November meeting, “we are seeing a creeping up of the disease over the last five, six years, in all provinces.” Researchers first began to recognize blackleg in canola in the mid-70s. Blackleg incidence reached a peak in the […] Read more

blackleg infection on a canola stem

‘Canola and snow’ is not profitable

New research says mixing cultivars does not mitigate the effects of continuous canola

Reconsider those plans to seed back-to-back to canola this spring, recommend Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) scientists. And they have new data to back that up. Dr. Neil Harker and other study researchers recently published the results of their five-year of the effects of continuous canola crops in The Canadian Journal of Plant Science. The […] Read more


holding canola seeds

Think of disease when choosing canola seed

Agronomy tips... from the field

We all know that top-end yield is ultimately what drives canola seed selections, because that’s what pays your bills. That’s why I’d encourage you to look at last year’s Canola Performance Trials, provincial seed guides and any public trials to get the fullest picture of how a hybrid has performed. Look at several years of […] Read more

Risk of tetanus in cattle increasing

Risk of tetanus in cattle increasing

Animal Health: Your best approach is to prevent it through vaccination

In the last several years tetanus has most definitely been increasing in incidence across Canada so it is important that producers know what to look for and understand measures to prevent this deadly disease. Tetanus is caused by the bacterium Clostridium Tetani that is the same family of organisms which causes blackleg. This spore-producing bacteria […] Read more