pandemic Archives - Page 13 of 20

Uruguayan sheep shearer Federico Ventura catches a sheep to shear it in Villafale, Spain on June 17, 2020. (Photo: Reuters/Juan Medina)

Livestock, Reuters, Sheep/Goats, Weather

Uruguayan shearers flown in to relieve sweltering Spanish sheep

Expert shearers authorized to enter country amid COVID-19 pandemic

By GFM Network News June 19, 2020

Villafale, Spain | Reuters — Brought to Spain on a special flight amid the coronavirus lockdown, some 250 Uruguayan sheep shearers race against time to shear millions of Spanish sheep as sweltering summer temperatures hit. The Uruguayan shearers come to Spain every year, where farmers value them for their skills, their speed and particular care […] Read more

(Stephen Ausmus photo courtesy ARS/USDA)

Livestock, Markets, Poultry/Eggs

Fall quota level based on ‘rebound’ in chicken demand

National allocation trimmed two per cent for September-October period

By Dave Bedard, GFM Network News June 19, 2020

A relatively small tweak to national chicken quota allocation has been set for much of this autumn, following a stretch of heavy pandemic-related cuts. At a Chicken Farmers of Canada meeting Tuesday, national allocation for quota period A-165 (Aug. 30 to Oct. 24, 2020) was set at minus two per cent from its adjusted base. […] Read more

(Video screengrab from Agribition.com via YouTube)

Livestock

COVID-19 knocks Agribition off 2020 calendar

Organizers look to 2021, plan 'new digital experiences' in meantime

By Dave Bedard, GFM Network News June 17, 2020

Another of the Prairies’ major agricultural exhibitions has removed itself from the 2020 schedule. The 50th edition of Canadian Western Agribition, which was scheduled for Nov. 30 to Dec. 5 this year at Regina’s Evraz Place exhibition park, has been postponed to Nov. 22-27, 2021. Organizers of the not-for-profit event said Wednesday they made the […] Read more

Crops, Pulses

Pulse weekly outlook: Pandemic may pose market opportunity

By GFM Network News June 17, 2020

MarketsFarm — Plant protein products were steadily rising in popularity before the COVID-19 pandemic set in — but that industry could also get a boost from consumers shifting away from meat in a post-pandemic world. “There’s an increased level of awareness of hygiene issues in the meat industry,” Vishal Vijay, head of business development at […] Read more

File photo of Smithfield Foods’ pork plant at Sioux Falls, S.D. on April 16, 2020. (Photo: Reuters/Shannon Stapleton)

Livestock, Markets, Reuters

U.S. meatpacking workers often absent after plants ordered to reopen

"There's still so many risks"

By Tom Polansek, GFM Network News June 16, 2020

Chicago/Washington | Reuters — Smithfield Foods is missing about a third of its employees at a South Dakota pork plant because they are quarantined or afraid to return to work after a severe coronavirus outbreak, according to the workers’ union. Tyson Foods was forced to briefly close its Storm Lake, Iowa plant — a month […] Read more

File photo of a bridge over the Yalu River boundary between China and North Korea. (Tarzan9280/iStock/Getty Images)

General, Reuters

U.N. expert says ‘some are starving’ in North Korea

Estimated 40 per cent of North Koreans need humanitarian aid, WFP says

By GFM Network News June 10, 2020

Geneva | Reuters — A United Nations human rights expert voiced alarm on Tuesday at “widespread food shortages and malnutrition” in North Korea, made worse by a nearly five-month border closure with China and strict quarantine measures against COVID-19. Tomas Ojea Quintana, U.N. special rapporteur on human rights in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, […] Read more

File photo of Canada’s chief public health officer Dr. Theresa Tam at a news conference in Ottawa on April 9, 2020. (Photo: Reuters/Blair Gable)

General, Markets, Reuters

Tam concerned over alcohol, junk food use during pandemic

By GFM Network News June 8, 2020

Ottawa | Reuters — Canada’s top health officer on Sunday expressed concern over higher consumption of alcohol and junk food during the coronavirus epidemic, suggesting this could be a sign of worsening mental health. The total number of Canadians killed by the coronavirus edged up by 0.9 per cent to 7,773 from 7,703 on Saturday, […] Read more

University of Guelph PhD student Abdul-Rahim Abdulai explained ways in which the pandemic has served as a disruptor in the dynamic of rural communities. (Arrell Food Institute video screengrab via YouTube)

General

Pandemic may strain rural community resources, panel warns

Enthusiasm for telecommuting could later benefit rural areas, if 'digital divide' can be bridged

By GFM Network News June 8, 2020

The COVID-19 pandemic, and Canada’s response to it, have highlighted how rural communities need different strategies than their urban counterparts to provide social services on which the public relies. The Arrell Food Institute at the University of Guelph hosted a virtual panel in May to discuss COVID-19’s social impacts, in which researchers from a variety […] Read more

Canadian Poultry and Egg Processors Council chair and Exceldor vice-president Joel Cormier addresses the Commons standing committee on agriculture on May 29. (Video screengrab from Parl.gc.ca)

Livestock, Markets, Poultry/Eggs

COVID concerns weigh on chicken farmers, processors

Sales crashed on lack of foodservice business

By GFM Network News June 6, 2020

Ottawa — Chicken Farmers of Canada say they’ve faced a “sharp decline” in sales as a result of a significant drop in food services, which represents roughly 40 per cent of their market. CFC chair Benoît Fontaine warned federal MPs as much during a virtual meeting of the Commons standing committee on agriculture and agri-food […] Read more

Crops, Markets

Grain exports continue strong out of Thunder Bay

COVID-19 leads to increased demand, reduced oil traffic by rail

By MarketsFarm Team, GFM Network News June 4, 2020

MarketsFarm — The Port of Thunder Bay reported another strong grain handling month in May, as more than 1.1 million tonnes of Canadian grain and oilseeds moved through the harbour on the northern shores of Lake Superior during the month. Increased demand from many countries stockpiling grain amidst the global COVID-19 pandemic was cited as […] Read more

Alberta Crop Report: Higher-than-average yields expected

U.S. livestock: Tight cattle supply helps CME futures rebound from collapse

U.S. grains: Soy futures post weekly loss on expectations for big U.S. crop

GFM Network News