File photo of wild birds on Pokeshaw Rock in northeastern New Brunswick. (Bouillante/iStock/Getty Images)

Avian flu pops back up in New Brunswick

B.C. only other province with cases so far this month

Highly pathogenic avian influenza in domestic birds in Canada appears to be in check so far this month in most regions of the country outside southwestern B.C. — but for one recent case in Atlantic Canada. The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) has confirmed an outbreak of high-path avian flu in what it describes as

(Dave Bedard photo)

Small U.S. meatpackers get boost from Biden administration

FUNDING Latest round of grants and loans aims to diversify meat processing after COVID disruptions

Reuters — The Biden administration is awarding an additional US$9.6 million in grants and loans to expand meat processing across the country, it announced Jan. 5, as the government tries to diversify the industry beyond four companies that have long dominated it. The effort to expand meat processing capacity comes after COVID-19 infections among workers


ukraine animals

In the ruins of east Ukraine, farmers won’t leave their animals

WAR | The fate of animals during combat often isn't a pretty one

Yampil, Ukraine | Reuters — As the sound of exploding artillery echoes in the distance, Senia, a big white bunny, twitches nervously in the arms of his owner. “He’s afraid,” explained the farmer, Yevhennia, stroking the rabbit. Here in Yampil, a crater-pocked frontline village in east Ukraine recaptured by Ukrainian forces at the end of

Brazil chicken production and exports seen rising in 2023

Reuters – Brazilian chicken processors including heavyweights JBS SA and BRF SA will collectively increase output and exports in the new year, projections from meat industry group ABPA showed. Brazilian companies will process up to 14.750 million tonnes of chicken meat in 2023, and are also poised to raise exports by up to 8.5 per


Canada thistles pop through on one of the fields 
still under recovery at Green Beach Farm & Food.

Selling the system

Managing with an eye to soil health makes fertile ground for direct marketing

The Koscielny family farm near Strathclair doesn’t have many acres to work with but it makes a big impression. The farm, Green Beach Farm & Food, covers five quarters, about 200 acres of which grow grain. Much of the land base is perennial forage, feeding the Koscielny’s herd of grass-fed beef. The family finishes animals

Winnipeg’s Natural Bakery is one of the many corporate donors to Harvest Manitoba.

Farmers help fight off hunger this holiday season

Food banks and aid charities are facing serious spikes in demand and Manitoba farmers are pitching in

Tis the season when feasts usually weigh down the tables, but this year a much greater number of cupboards in Manitoba are bare. Food bank use has never been higher in the province, according to Harvest Manitoba CEO Vince Barletta. The Winnipeg-based charity supports about 360 rural and urban food banks. Barletta said those food


Around four-fifths of the land used for human food production is allocated to meat and dairy...

Comment: Back to nature

In a century we may need 80 per cent fewer acres to feed the world – if the technology pans out

Here’s the basic problem for conservation at a global level: food production, biodiversity and carbon storage in ecosystems are competing for the same land. As humans demand more food, more forests and other natural ecosystems are cleared, and farms intensify and become less hospitable to many wild animals and plants. Therefore global conservation, currently focused



baby chicks in a barn

Manitoba layer chick provider sold

Clark’s Poultry has been jointly bought by International Layer Distribution and Trouw Nutrition Canada

One of Manitoba’s long-time layer operations is changing hands. Clark’s Poultry, out of Brandon, announced Dec. 5 that the company had been jointly acquired by International Layer Distribution and Trouw Nutrition Canada. Why it matters: Two companies with ownership roots in Europe have purchased the Manitoba chick provider. The company, which this year celebrates its

If you’re planning to have a turkey on your table this holiday season, it’s better to buy it now as prices are sure to increase in the days ahead.

Comment: Avian flu – let’s talk turkey

Canadian consumers are better off than their American counterparts

Avian flu deserves more media attention. The illness affecting our poultry sector has become a real problem. Unlike previous strains, this one has spread across Canada, raising fears that it could become endemic in wild birds, no less. A nightmare. This year alone, avian flu has infected approximately 200 farms with more than 3.6 million