Comment: Election winds blowing big change in U.S.

In the recent U.S. election, one of the most prominent Dem losers was longtime ag committee chairman Collin Peterson. The race to be the new chair is already underway. The three front-runners — Georgian David Scott, Californian Jim Costa, and Ohioan Marcia Fudge — each represent a different direction. Scott and Fudge are stronger advocates

Comment: A case for a code of practice

Comment: A case for a code of practice

When there are no rules the large grocers can bully their supply chain

Major Canadian grocers in Canada are at it again. After Walmart and Metro, it was Loblaw’s turn to make changes to its vendor policies, implementing new fees to support a $6-billion plan to improve its in-store and digital operations. Sobeys, the only one left, if you exclude Costco, opted not to follow suit. This has


dairy aisle

Editor’s Take: Keep the baby

For decades now, Canada’s supply management system has been under attack from both outside the country and within. Internationally it’s a perennial target in trade negotiations, and particularly the dairy industry. That sector, over the years, has endured the ‘death of a thousand cuts’ as every time Canada has inked a trade deal, it’s seen

File photo of U.S. President Donald Trump taking questions from reporters in March 2019. The U.S. election held on Nov. 3, 2020, has not given the 45th president a second term in office.

Editor’s Take: Electoral train wrecks

I was texting with a retired farmer acquaintance this week about the U.S. election while he was deer hunting in the sandhills of western Saskatchewan. Like a lot of Canadians, he wanted to follow the unfolding events, even though he wasn’t in a reliable cellphone service area. So I’d agreed to keep him filled in


Agricultural waste materials such as grain bags and plastic containers are being remade into things like drainage tiles and plastic bags.

Canada’s agricultural industry growing the future of recycling

Proper stewardship is key to maintaining access to the plastics needed on farms

Farmers earn their living from the land, and they work hard making sure their fields and farms remain healthy, well managed and free from litter and waste. This is an investment that benefits all of Canada, given the importance of our agricultural industry to feed our country and the world. While necessary to Canada’s agricultural

New tech in agriculture can make a farm more efficient and sustainable, but strong connectivity to the internet is essential to make it work.

Opinion: Universal internet helps make food more sustainable

Urban consumers could become great advocates for rural internet

Consumers wanting to reduce the carbon intensity of their food should advocate for better rural internet. Most agricultural towns have broadband, but in the country cell service fades. Telematics produced by farm equipment has to be stored, getting pushed to the cloud at the farmyards while IoT devices use networks, like LoRaWAn. Network-controlled automation is


COVID-19 has pushed governments to consider food autonomy as a priority and support local supply chains. But buying local produce is easier said than done.

Comment: The local food paradox

Governments are interested in food autonomy but price remains very important

Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic disrupting supply chains and impacting food purchasing habits, our relationship with food was different. Quite different. The pandemic has pushed governments to consider food autonomy as a priority and look more at local supply chains. Discussions are about producing food in Canada, all year round, while offering products to consumers



Comment: Glyphosate and livestock. It’s all in the dose

Studies have found no effect on digestive bacteria or nutrient uptake

As an animal nutritionist, I’m concerned about the health and welfare of farm animals. Animals that are stressed due to inadequate housing conditions or nutrition are less sustainable. That’s why I read the article “Herbicides and Horses” with great interest. In the article, the author speculates that glyphosate’s chelation and antimicrobial properties can have negative

Iowa, Wisconsin, North Carolina and Indiana are being considered swing states – each also ranks among the country’s top 10 agricultural-producing states.

Opinion: No winner for Canadian farmers

No matter the outcome of the U.S. election, subsidies are going to keep flowing

No matter who wins the upcoming election in the United States, Canadian farmers can expect to continue facing tough competition from their heavily subsidized peers south of the border. Fairly early in his 2016 election bid, it became clear producers saw Trump as the favoured candidate. His nationalist rhetoric helped win farmers over. A candidate