(Dave Bedard photo)

Bayer reporting progress in Roundup settlement talks

Frankfurt | Reuters — Bayer said on Monday it had made progress seeking a settlement over claims its glyphosate-based Roundup herbicide causes cancer, after Bloomberg reported the company reached a verbal agreement on about 50,000 to 85,000 cases. The drugs and pesticides group is keen to draw a line under the legal dispute, which it […] Read more

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Labour shortages persist, hort sector says

Horticultural Council warns sector output will drop for lack of workers, support

Ottawa — The Canadian Horticultural Council warns the federal government is using inaccurate numbers to describe how many temporary foreign workers are currently in the country. During a virtual meeting of the Commons standing committee on agriculture and agri-food, CHC president Brian Gilroy said food security continues to be threatened as a result of labour […] Read more


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Report links business management, mental health of farmers

Farm women, young farmers report higher levels of stress, difficulties coping

Ottawa — A new report from Farm Management Canada (FMC) calls for action after determining 75 per cent of Canadian farmers reported being moderately to highly stressed about unpredictable interference, workload pressure and financial pressures. But how a farmer plans his or her business — and associated risks — can help lower that statistic. The […] Read more

A flat of young vegetable plant seedlings outside of a greenhouse, waiting to be transplanted, at a farm in rural New Brunswick

New Brunswick to lift ban on temporary foreign workers

Damage 'already been done' for farmers, NFU-NB says

New Brunswick plans to end its ban on the entry of temporary foreign workers (TFWs) next week as the province moves to the “yellow” level in its COVID-19 pandemic recovery plan. The ban, announced April 28, will end effective May 29, Premier Blaine Higgs said Friday in an announcement some farmers say comes too late […] Read more


(Dave Bedard photo)

Union warns of fuel supply disruption in ‘Dear Farmers’ notice

Farmers 'should not be worried,' FCL says

The union representing locked-out workers at Regina’s Co-op Refinery Complex is warning Prairie farmers that a disruption of fuel supplies during seeding could be the “only option” it has in its labour dispute with Federated Co-operatives (FCL). Unifor 594, whose 730-odd members at the CRC were locked out Dec. 5 after serving 48 hours’ strike […] Read more

Soybeans in Ontario, June 2016. (Ralph Pearce photo)

Ontario stretches production insurance deadlines

Three already-passed deadlines bumped to June 1

Ontario farmers who missed their April 1, May 1 and/or May 10 deadlines for production insurance filings now have until June 1 to enroll or make coverage changes. Agricorp, the provincial farm program delivery agency, announced the extension Thursday. The extension gives farmers the “time and flexibility to make business decisions and to assess their […] Read more


Angela Bedard-Haughn, shown here delivering a TEDx Talk in Saskatoon in September 2019, becomes the University of Saskatchewan’s new dean of agriculture in August. (Video screengrab from Ted.com)

New dean of agriculture named for U of S

Soil science prof Angela Bedard-Haughn takes over Aug. 15

One of Western Canada’s major post-secondary ag institutions will get a new hand at the wheel this summer. The University of Saskatchewan announced Wednesday it has named soil science professor Angela Bedard-Haughn as the dean for its College of Agriculture and Bioresources for a five-year term starting Aug. 15. Raised on a family farm in […] Read more

File photo of a quality control check on fresh peppers in a Canadian vegetable packing plant. (Jeffbergen/E+Getty Images)

Laid-off foreign workers may get conditional clearance for other jobs

Workers allowed to start new jobs while permits are processed

Approved temporary foreign workers (TFWs) whose jobs disappeared before they could begin work in Canada this spring can now get much quicker approval to start at other workplaces, including farms, where the workers are needed. The federal government said Tuesday it will, effective “immediately,” temporarily waive its rule requiring a TFW to receive federal approval […] Read more


A worker leans on a rack of potted flowers at Sheridan Nurseries in Toronto on May 8, 2020, the first day that garden centres re-opened in Ontario from COVID-19 restrictions. (Photo: Reuters/Chris Helgren)

Canada’s growers look to reopening garden centres to salvage dire year

Ottawa | Reuters — Hard-hit Canadian flower and nursery growers hope a surge in demand from budding gardeners in Ontario, the country’s biggest market, can help the industry avert disaster caused by the coronavirus with retailers reopening on Friday in the populous province. Most non-essential businesses in Canada were shut in mid-March as officials urged […] Read more

Asian giant hornets have noticeably large orange heads and black eyes; worker hornets are about 3.5 cm in length; queens can be up to four to five cm in length, with a wingspan of four to seven cm. (B.C. Ministry of Agriculture)

‘Murder hornet’ findings worry agriculture officials

Invasive pest known to decapitate honeybees, take over hives

Reuters — The Asian giant hornet — an invasive, predatory insect dubbed the “murder hornet” — has been seen in the Vancouver area and may pose a threat to the beekeeping industry and potentially to people if it establishes there, a U.S. official said Monday. The stinging Vespa mandarinia can grow as large as 2-1/2 […] Read more