Progress On Resuming Flax Exports

“No one should be under the impression that the acceptance of this protocol is suddenly going to open up the market in Europe again.” – BARRY HALL Flax industry officials are hopeful a new testing protocol presented to the European Union earlier this month will help restore export trade. A protocol for testing Canadian flax

White Flag Or Prudent Planning?

A former chair of the Canadian Wheat Board says work should begin now on a compensation package for farmers if a World Trade Organization (WTO) agreement kills the board. Ken Ritter says he is convinced there will be a WTO agreement given most nations’ desire to stimulate the world economy. The current WTO proposal singles


In Brief… – for Oct. 22, 2009

Mexico tries GM corn: Mexico, considered by many to be the cradle of corn, has issued permits to grow genetically modified corn for the first time in a bid to eventually boost production of the grain. Mexico’s Agriculture Ministry said the two permits will allow only experimental genetically modified (GM) corn crops, which will be

Debate Reflects Deep Divide Over Sow Stall Ban

“It’s about the pigs and the people, not just the pigpen.” – LAURIE CONNOR, U OF M Arecent speakers’ panel of animal welfare specialists generally agreed on phasing out sow gestation crates, but differed widely on how to get there. Sow stall opponents called for immediate action to eliminate sow crates, while others urged a


Looking Beyond The Bars

One of the perks of writing a column about agriculture in a major city daily is the feedback one gets from urban folks about farming issues. The level and intensity of interest is surprising at times. For instance, a column last summer outlining the gist and possible implications of the proposed federal support package for

Slow, Steady Progress For Manitoba Milk Producers

“What we’re experiencing are very stable prices.” – DAVID WI ENS, DFM Dairy Farmers of Manitoba recently amalgamated their nine regional districts into three. This tripled the size of local milk advisory committees. Some producers feel the committees are now too large and unwieldy. That was as close to complaining about their industry as milk


Blocking Biotech Feed Harms Farmers

The European Union’s farm chief urged governments to stop blocking imports of animal feed if it contains only traces of banned genetically modified organisms (GMOs), saying such policies harmed the meat sector. EU Agriculture Commissioner Mariann Fischer Boel said EU countries should look at scientific evidence rather than emotions when deciding on authorizations for new



Low-Level Tolerances Needed For GM Crops

“Once an event has been approved it’s not a question when that event will show up, it’s a question of what day on the calendar it will show up.” – DENNIS STEPHENS Governments must agree on tolerances for small amounts of genet i -cally modified plants (GM) in commodity shipments and Canada’s should take the

Briefs continued – for Oct. 1, 2009

No deal: Canadian fertilizer maker Agrium Inc. has again extended its hostile offer for U. S. rival CF Industries Holdings Inc., which again said it wasn’t interested. The offer of $40 in cash plus one Agrium share for each CF share was set to expire Sept. 22, but is now set to expire on Oct.