Reporter’s Notebook: Where’s our federal ag minister?

From taxation to transportation, there’s a lack of understanding of agriculture showing

Some days, you really have to wonder where our federal ag minister is at. Last year, the federal Liberals attempted to roll out tax reforms that raised the hackles of many in the ag sector. The proposed changes to capital gains exemptions seemed likely to threaten many producers’ abilities to pass the operation to their […] Read more

Agriculture and Agri-Food Minister, Lawrence MacAulay.  Photo: parl.gc.ca

MacAulay to visit China on trade mission to boost food exports

Agriculture and Agri-Food Minister, Lawrence MacAulay, will lead a trade mission next week to China as part of Canada’s efforts to double bilateral trade with that country and grow global agri-food exports to $75 billion by 2025. A news release distributed on Nov. 9, said, “with a population of 1.4 billion people, and a growing appetite for high-quality Canadian food products, […] Read more


Canada Beef Inc.

Feds announce tax support for farmers

In a news release distributed today linked to Budget 2017, Agriculture and Agri-Food Minister Lawrence MacAulay announced tax relief to help farmers who received compensation under the Health of Animals Act from livestock destroyed due to the bovine tuberculosis outbreak in 2016 and 2017 in Alberta and Saskatchewan. The federal government also released its 2017 list of designated regions for livestock […] Read more

Photo: Canada Beef Inc.

Livestock premises ID participation strengthens Canadian agriculture

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency is considering changes to the Health of Animals Regulations for livestock traceability, the agency announced during PremisesIDWeek July 26, a federal release says. The changes would require all Canadian operators of premises where livestock may be loaded or unloaded from a vehicle to have a valid premises identification number for […] Read more



U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue, Canadian Agriculture Minister Lawrence MacAulay and Mexico’s Secretary of Agriculture Jose Calzada (l-r) speak at the Port of Savannah, Ga. on June 20. (Stephen B. Morton photo courtesy Georgia Ports Authority)

NAFTA agriculture ministers see ‘few’ differences over trade

Garden City, Ga. | Reuters — The U.S., Canada and Mexico have “relatively few” differences on agricultural trade, agriculture ministers from the three countries said in a joint statement after meeting Tuesday to discuss the renegotiation of the North American Free Trade Agreement. However, some “irritants” are present for each country in the runup to […] Read more


(Staff photo)

Federal food policy consultations underway

The long-discussed-and-debated notion of a public pan-Canadian food policy has taken a move forward with a new online survey from the federal government. Agriculture Minister Lawrence MacAulay on Monday announced an initial round of consultations and called on the public to “share their input to help shape a food policy that will cover the entire […] Read more

Why not a closed-for-business wall?

The Canada-EU trade deal (nearly) crumbles, leaving seven years of negotiation in its wake

I think if Prime Minister Trudeau had any gumption at all he would build a wall to keep Americans and Belgians out of Canada. If they don’t like our trade deals we’ll just keep our scenery, oil and hockey players to ourselves. With this issue of Grainews being published on U.S. election day, I am […] Read more


(Photo courtesy Canola Council of Canada)

Canada, China canola talks end without deal

Winnipeg | Reuters — Talks between Canadian and Chinese officials ended in Beijing without China backing down from plans to toughen its inspection standard for canola, threatening $2 billion in Canadian exports of the oilseed ahead of a visit by Canada’s prime minister. Discussions will continue between the two governments, and resolving the issue is […] Read more

Photo: Thinkstock

Feds and province fund Maple Leaf bacon plant

The governments of Canada and Manitoba have announced funding of $500,000 toward an expansion of Maple Leaf Food’s bacon processing plant in Winnipeg. The announcement was made Monday at the plant by federal Agriculture Minister Lawrence MacAulay and Manitoba Agriculture Minister Ralph Eichler. A release said Maple Leaf Food’s investment in the bacon line expansion […] Read more