(Boortmalt.com)

European malting giant to buy Cargill Malt business

Cargill’s Prairie Malt plant in western Saskatchewan is destined for new European ownership under a deal publicly proposed Thursday. The Boortmalt Group, the malting arm of French agricultural co-operative Axereal, has announced its “intention to enter into an agreement” to buy Cargill Malt from the U.S. agrifood firm for an undisclosed sum. Boortmalt, which bills

(Noel Hendrickson/DigitalVision/Getty Images)

Richardson to buy Wesson cooking oil brand

A household name in U.S. cooking oils is set to become part of Canadian grain handler and oilseed processor Richardson International. Chicago-based Conagra Brands said Tuesday it will sell its Wesson oil brand and related assets — including a 280,000-square foot U.S. processing plant at Memphis — to Richardson for an undisclosed sum. Wesson-branded retail


(Kat72/iStock/Getty Images)

Saskatchewan farm truckers exempt on new training rule

Saskatchewan semi truck drivers driving only for farming operations will get a pass on the province’s planned new mandatory minimum trucker training requirements. The province announced Monday it will require a minimum of 121.5 hours of training before a driver can obtain a Class 1 commercial driver’s licence, starting March 15 next year. A Class

Tuberculosis bacteria under an electron microscope. (Janice Haney Carr photo courtesy Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (U.S.))

Bovine TB case turns up in southern B.C.

Federal food safety officials are now looking into the life story of a slaughtered British Columbia beef cow confirmed with bovine tuberculosis. The Canadian Food Inspection Agency on Monday announced it has launched an investigation after a mature beef cow was confirmed Nov. 9 with bovine TB. The case comes a few months after the



Parrish and Heimbecker’s current elevator at Dutton Siding, west of Gilbert Plains, Man. (ParrishAndHeimbecker.com)

P+H to double down on northwestern Manitoba grain

UPDATED/CORRECTED, Aug. 17 — Winnipeg grain company Parrish and Heimbecker has plans to double its grain handle out of northwestern Manitoba with a new elevator and crop input centre. The company announced Aug. 1 it will put up a new facility in the RM of Gilbert Plains, with 25,000 to 30,000 tonnes of storage capacity


A mayfly on water. (SBTheGreenMan/iStock/Getty Images)

Phase-outs planned for clothianidin, thiamethoxam

The remaining two of the big three neonicotinoid insecticides will be phased out of nearly all on-farm use in Canada in the next few years under a proposal from Health Canada’s Pest Management Regulatory Agency. PMRA officials on Wednesday announced 90-day consultation periods on its decisions for both clothianidin and thiamethoxam, following “special reviews” which

(Dave Bedard photo)

Extended-tolerance canola now on deck for 2019

Giving growers a wider window to spray in-crop weeds with glyphosate, the new platform for Monsanto’s future canola trait stacks is now booked to make its way into the Canadian market next year. The U.S. seed and chemical company’s Canadian arm announced last week it plans to commercialize TruFlex canola in 2019, following plot trials


Artist’s rendition of the planned Richardson Innovation Centre in Winnipeg. (Graphic courtesy Richardson International)

Richardson to take food innovation downtown

Canadian grain and agrifood firm Richardson International plans to marshal its food research and product development crews in a new downtown Winnipeg space. The privately-held, Winnipeg-based company announced Wednesday it will put up over $30 million to build what it calls the Richardson Innovation Centre, a four-story, 62,000-square foot facility to go up a block

Southern Ontario wine grapes on the vine. (Dave Bedard photo)

‘Cellared in Canada’ wine label on way out

An often-used euphemism for wines made in Canada from blends using imported product is set to disappear from wine labels. The Canadian Food Inspection Agency has announced the voluntary statement “Cellared in Canada” will no longer be used on labels for wines blended in Canada, as per revisions made in March to the agency’s wine