Editorial: Right questions, wrong answers

Reaction from farmers was swift to last week’s announcement by the Pest Management Regulatory Agency (PMRA) that it plans to phase out most uses of neonicotinoids in Canada over the next three to five years. Shock, confusion and anger pretty much sum it up. Some said that if this relatively new class of products is

Editorial: Fair fees

There’s an acronym long popular with right-of-centre thinkers from the late economist Milton Friedman to the science fiction author Robert Heinlein: TANSTAAFL. It’s an abbreviation of the concept, ‘there ain’t no such thing as a free lunch,’ and has been used to convey the impossibility of getting something for nothing. One wonders if that’s what


Editorial: Beggar-thy-neighbour

To steal a line from “Star Wars” filmmaker George Lucas, on the night of Nov. 8, 2016, I felt a ‘great disturbance in the force.’ The occasion, of course, was the election of Donald Trump as U.S. president, and the subsequent horror of many. At the time I was more sanguine. He may arguably be

Editorial: Bringing innovation to life

The annual Ag in Motion outdoor farm show hosted by the Manitoba Co-operator’s parent company, Glacier FarmMedia just west of Saskatoon every July has evolved into an event that attracts more than 30,000 farmers from all over the world. This year’s AIM featured 459 exhibitors on the 320-acre show site that included 32 acres of


Editorial: The Trump discount

Editorial: The Trump discount

If you follow markets, especially if you grow soybeans, you’ll know about the price debacle resulting from President Trump’s decision to start a trade war with China. In retaliation for his duty on manufactured goods, China slapped a 25 per cent tariff on U.S. soybeans. That’s caused U.S. futures to plummet to a 10-year low

Editorial: We had it in the ’70s

Editorial: We had it in the ’70s

Some readers may remember the Western Grain Stabilization Administration (WGSA), a Prairie grain support program that ran from 1976 to 1989. Farmers could contribute up two per cent of net grain sales, matched two to one by the federal government. It was a pretty good deal, so most farmers participated. The payout mechanism was simple


Editorial: Follow the dollars

Most financial professionals will tell you to keep one hand on your wallet when someone doesn’t want you to look at the books. From non-profit community groups to major corporations, the numbers don’t lie. If funds have been misallocated or things aren’t quite on the level, it can’t truly be hidden. No matter how hard

Editorial: CAPI report focuses on quality of export growth

There was heady excitement last year when the federal government’s Advisory Council on Economic Growth, led by Dominic Barton, identified agriculture as one of six sectors that could lead this country’s economy over the next decade. The prevailing response from within the sector was that ‘finally,’ agriculture is being acknowledged for the economic powerhouse it


A+W's Beyond Meat burger.

Editorial: Mystery meat

A paradigm shift appears to be coming quickly down at the fast-food drive-thru. Last week A&W Canada announced a new meat-free burger, touted as just as good as ground beef. It has partnered up with Beyond Meat, a company that’s attracted capital from sources such as Microsoft mogul Bill Gates and A-list actor Leonardo Dicaprio.

Editorial: Unknown origin

“Life, uh… finds a way.” Those words, uttered by actor Jeff Goldblum in the 1993 science fiction blockbuster “Jurassic Park,” leapt to mind last week with word that a genetically modified wheat had been found along a field access road in southern Alberta. Goldblum’s character was blue-skying about exactly how a cohort of all-female dinosaurs