(Stephen Ausmus photo courtesy ARS/USDA)

Bird flu pressure bears down on B.C. farms

High-path flu hits 13 commercial farms in Fraser Valley within past week

Commercial poultry farmers in British Columbia’s Fraser Valley have come out the worst so far this month in Canada’s year-long fight with highly pathogenic avian influenza. Since Wednesday last week, that region alone has seen outbreaks on 13 commercial poultry farms: nine at Abbotsford, three at Chillwack and one in the District of Kent. That’s

(Diane Kuhl/iStock/Getty Images)

CUSMA compensation set for supply-managed sectors

Feds pledge over $1.7 billion in payments, programs

A final round of payments and programs for Canada’s supply-managed dairy and feather sectors — this time in compensation for the sequel deal to NAFTA — is now on deck for 2023 and beyond. Compensation to those sectors for domestic market concessions granted under the Canada-U.S.-Mexico Agreement (CUSMA) was telegraphed in federal Finance Minister Chrystia


File photo of steam rising from the top of a grain dryer. (Diane Kuhl/iStock/Getty Images)

New farm fuel carbon tax rule to return to Commons

Further carbon pricing exemptions clear ag committee, with sunset clause added

A bill that would exempt more farm fuels from Canada’s federal carbon pricing scheme has cleared the Commons’ ag committee and returned to the House of Commons to seek a third and final vote. C-234, a private member’s bill sponsored by southwestern Ontario Conservative MP Ben Lobb, appeared before the Commons’ standing committee on agriculture

Andre Fortin, shown here at right in September at a community fair at Shawville, Que., about 75 km northwest of Ottawa, is the Quebec Liberals’ new critic for agriculture and health. (Andre Fortin via Facebook)

Quebec Liberals’ new ag critic to also handle health file

Fortin to also handle regional development, forestry

A quick re-shuffling of shadow cabinet responsibilities will see the agriculture critic for Quebec’s provincial opposition Liberals now also handle the health file. The Liberals’ interim leader Marc Tanguay — who took over after the Nov. 7 resignation of Dominique Anglade following the Oct. 3 general election — announced Tuesday that Andre Fortin, the party’s


(File photo by Dave Bedard)

Cybersecurity ‘incident’ hits Maple Leaf systems

Grocery firm Empire also dealing with IT grief

Some information technology (IT) systems at Canadian pork and poultry packer Maple Leaf Foods have been downed in what the company described Monday as a “cybersecurity incident.” The company said in a release Monday that it “took immediate action and engaged cybersecurity and recovery experts” when it learned of the problem, and its in-house and

“We and the other feather boards and, I think, the CFIA have become more efficient in triaging the permits.” – Cory Rybuck, Manitoba Egg Farmers.

Manitoba not twice lucky on bird flu

Manitoba dodged the bullet in spring, when migratory birds came north and brought avian influenza with them; the fall migration has not been so kind

Manitoba has seen seven times more bird flu cases in the space of a month than the rest of 2022 combined. From Sept. 14 to Oct. 12, 15 cases of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) were confirmed on Manitoba poultry farms, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) reported. Why it matters: Migratory birds are considered


File photo of the produce section at a Canadian grocery store. (FatCamera/E+/Getty Images)

Competition Bureau to probe soaring food prices

Retail food prices seen outpacing inflation

Reuters — Canada’s competition watchdog said on Monday it would examine factors impacting soaring food prices and whether more competition in the grocery stores sector could help lower costs for Canadians. Price rises for store-bought food have been outpacing the broader annual inflation rate for 10 consecutive months, and grew 11.4 per cent in September,

File photo of a CFIA vehicle. (Dave Bedard photo)

Avian flu circles back to Quebec

Saskatchewan's bird mingling ban held over

Outbreaks of highly pathogenic avian flu have returned to Quebec’s poultry sector after a lull of just over two months, while more Canadian cases continue to pile up at points west. Canada’s fall migratory season for wild birds appears to have led to the return of outbreaks in both commercial and backyard poultry flocks and


Cows that were stranded in a flooded barn at Abbotsford, B.C. are rescued on Nov. 16, 2021 by people in boats and on a jet-ski after rainstorms lashed the province, triggering landslides and floods and shutting highways. (File photo: Jennifer Gauthier/Reuters)

Drought-stricken B.C. bracing for floods when rains return

Reuters — British Columbia on Thursday warned residents to prepare for flooding when rains eventually return after a prolonged drought exacerbated by climate change that has raised concerns about long-term damage to ecosystems ranging from glaciers to salmon rivers. The usually rainy western province has experienced weeks of record-breaking warm fall temperatures and minimal precipitation

Conservative agriculture critic John Barlow speaks Nov. 24, 2021 in the House of Commons. (Screengrab from supplied video)

Barlow remains ag critic in Conservatives’ new shadow cabinet

Poilievre also names two associate critics for ag file

The federal Conservatives’ point person on agriculture will remain at that post under the party’s new leader. John Barlow, MP for the southwestern Alberta riding of Foothills, was named Wednesday as the Conservatives’ “shadow minister” for agriculture, agri-food and food security. Pierre Poilievre, who was named Sept. 10 as the official opposition party’s new leader,