Canada invests in Canadian biomass and composites industries

Federal and provincial governments are investing up to $2.9 million to the Composites Innovation Centre Manitoba for two initiatives. The funds will go towards the development of quality standards and measurement techniques for Canadian biomass, and research into overcoming technology barriers to the adoption of natural fibres in the composites industry, a news release says.

Antibodies from cattle, combined with engineered antigens, can trigger an immune response. A similar technique could work in humans.

Cow antibodies show a path to fighting human disease

Novel vaccines combine natural antibodies and engineer antigens 
to trigger immune response

Old Bessie may have shown researchers a new way to fight human diseases. A recent paper from University of Guelph scientists says a novel vaccine that protects cattle from a viral-driven respiratory disease may hold the secret to creating similar treatments for human diseases, ranging from gut infections to HIV and cancer. Azud Kaushik, a


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Green jobs eligible for wage subsidy

A new Career Focus Green Jobs program is offering wage subsidies to help employers with an environmental focus hire new graduates, a federal release says. The program targets small- and medium-sized businesses to help reduce the cost barriers of hiring new graduates by subsidizing their salary by 50 per cent to a maximum of $13,500

Loading Harvested Wheat Into Truck, Alberta, Canada

Prairie harvest delays felt in CN’s revenues

The railway still booked higher overall grain/fertilizer revenue

Weather-related stalls in this fall’s Prairie grain harvest have chipped away at Canadian National Railway’s (CN) third-quarter financials, as the railway booked lower profits and revenues on “shifting traffic demands.” Montreal-based CN on Oct. 25 reported overall net income of $972 million on $3.014 billion in revenue for the quarter ending Sept. 30, down from



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Camelina meal approved as feed for egg-laying hens in Canada

The Saskatoon-based Smart Earth Seeds has received federal approval to offer the Omega-3 rich camelina meal as a feed ingredient for egg-laying hens. The Canadian Food Inspection Agency has approved the inclusion of 10 per cent camelina cake in feed for egg-laying hens. The federal agency had earlier approved cold-pressed, non-solvent extracted camelina meal for


(FIle photo by Allan Dawson)

Grains sector continues to welcome transport legislation

CNSC – Accolades from producer groups and others in the grain industry continue to roll in for the federal government’s upcoming transportation legislation. The planned measures were outlined this week by Marc Garneau, the federal transportation minister, in a speech in Montreal. The new legislation will allow reciprocal penalties in service level agreements between railway



Photo: File

Feds fund tomato and apple research

An Ontario research station is getting nearly a million dollars from the Federal government to develop new disease-resistant apple and greenhouse tomato varieties. The Vineland Research and Innovation Centre, located in Lincoln, Ont., will build on work done earlier by Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada scientists, who will continue to be heavily involved in the research.

Photo: File/Allan Dawson

Proposed transportation legislation gets thumbs up from grain industry

It might feel like Christmas came early for grain grower organizations, who have long been calling for reform of grain transportation regulations. The Federal government has promised to introduce legislation in early 2017 that is going to check some items off their wish list. Transport Minister Marc Garneau unveiled the federal government’s plans in a