Sonny Perdue with wife Mary during a rain prayer service in 2007. (SonnyPerdue.Georgia.gov)

Trump to name ex-Georgia governor as ag secretary

Washington | Reuters — U.S. President-elect Donald Trump will name former Georgia Governor Sonny Perdue as his nominee for secretary of agriculture on Thursday, a senior transition official saidn Wednesday. Perdue, 70, served on Trump’s agricultural advisory committee during his presidential campaign. His nomination, which must be confirmed by the Republican-led Senate, will complete Trump’s

A YourLink tower outside Weyburn, Sask. (YourLink.ca)

Xplornet buying YourLink

One of Canada’s biggest providers of rural broadband is set to expand its space in the Saskatchewan market by buying rural high-speed wireless provider YourLink. New Brunswick-based Xplornet Communications on Monday announced an all-cash $28.75 million deal with Victoria-based Vecima Networks for the “remaining assets” of Vecima’s YourLink business. YourLink, based in Saskatoon, is a



(EC.europa.eu)

EU-Canada trade deal clears further hurdles in Europe

Brussels | Reuters — A planned EU-Canada free trade deal received backing from a committee of the European Parliament and Germany’s top court on Thursday, increasing its chances of entering force later this year. The European Union and Canada signed the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) in October, but only after opposition from a


Cattle amble through fresh snow in northwestern Saskatchewan on Oct. 22, 2016. (Lisa Guenther photo)

Saskatchewan taking livestock premises ID mandatory

Saskatchewan livestock producers wanting to take part in provincial programs will soon have to have a valid premises identification (ID) number. The provincial and federal governments on Thursday announced the new requirement for Saskatchewan producers will take effect “over the coming months.” The province has had a voluntary premises ID (PID) program in place since

(DonaldJTrump.com)

Protectionism game comes with raised economic stakes: Frum

As U.S. president-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration day approaches, the business world is pondering how the new administration might affect the world economy. Trump’s pride in his unpredictability is troubling, given he’s the president-elect, said David Frum, political commentator, former speechwriter for President George W. Bush, and a senior editor for Washington-based magazine The Atlantic. However,


Francois-Philippe Champagne, shown here last month in a holiday video message to constituents, has been named federal minister for international trade. (FPChampagne.liberal.ca)

Trade lawyer named federal trade minister

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s latest mini-cabinet shuffle puts a Quebec lawyer specializing in international trade into the trade minister’s chair. Trudeau on Tuesday appointed Francois-Philippe Champagne, the rookie MP for the Shawinigan-area riding of Saint-Maurice-Champlain, as minister of international trade, replacing Chrystia Freeland. Freeland, as widely expected leading up to Tuesday’s announcement, becomes minister of

Boehringer Ingelheim, whose headquarters at Ingelheim, Germany is shown here, has formally brought animal health rival Merial into its own animal health business effective Jan. 1. (Boehringer-Ingelheim.com)

Animal pharma firm Merial formally joins Boehringer

Global pharma giants Sanofi and Boehringer Ingelheim have formally sealed their deal to merge Sanofi’s global animal health business, Merial, into Boehringer’s. The two companies last week announced their deal has “successfully closed in most markets” as of Jan. 1. Paris-based Sanofi will get Boehringer’s global consumer health care business plus 4.7 billion euros (C$6.6


(Photo courtesy Canada Beef Inc.)

CRTC makes broadband a basic service

Gatineau | Reuters — Broadband internet access will be considered a basic service in Canada, the country’s telecom regulator said Wednesday, setting a higher target for download speeds and creating a fund that could see providers paying more to help meet those goals. The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) said it was establishing a

(CBSA via YouTube)

Duration limit lifted from foreign worker program

Canadian farm groups are among the sectors hailing Ottawa’s decision to axe the cumulative duration rule, or “four-in, four-out” policy, which stood to sideline temporary foreign workers from the Canadian market. The federal government announced last Tuesday (Dec. 13) it would lift the restriction, effective immediately. The cumulative duration rule had been in place in