Closeup of the flags of the North American Free Trade Agreement NAFTA members on textile texture. NAFTA is the world's largest trade bloc and the member countries are Canada, United States and Mexico.

NAFTA: The art of the trade deal

The U.S. may be targeting Mexico, but Canada could be collateral damage in this fight

So the Trans-Pacific Partnership is officially dead, but the deal had already been on life support for quite some time. As America was embracing a new era of economic nationalism, even Hillary Clinton vowed during her campaign to kill the deal. No big loss for Canada, since there is no deal, but certainly a missed

Health Canada is recommending nutrition label changes.

New food nutritional label guidelines in the works

The changes are part of a Health Canada strategy to promote healthy eating

The federal government is serving up changes to its nutrition labelling rules to help consumers make healthier food choices. The changes are part of Health Minister Jane Philpott’s Healthy Eating Strategy, to encourage Canadians to reduce their consumption of salt, sugar and other unhealthy ingredients. The big changes for consumers will be in the nutrition


Setting the table for a radically different Food Guide

Setting the table for a radically different Food Guide

Canada’s Food Guide needs to be revamped to reflect the nation’s shifting eating habits, 
our varied cultural needs and our growing obesity

Canada’s Food Guide is a big deal – but it can be much more influential. On the whole, the guide is a symbol of Canada’s food-related values. Public institutions, schools, universities and community-based organizations look to it to reflect our fundamental nutritional principles. But past guides have failed us. Health Canada says that more than

Heather Hill explains the use of yellow pea flour at Cigi.

VIDEO: High-protein yellow peas pump up products

Adding yellow pea flour to recognized products like instant noodles can help improve nutritional value

The phrase “eat your peas” is about to take on a whole new meaning. Researchers in Winnipeg are finding ways to add yellow pea flour to food products consumers are starting to view as unhealthy — such as breads, instant noodles, pasta and breakfast cereal — to give them a healthy kick. With funding from


Agriculture labour crunch worsening

Over the last decade the number of unfilled jobs has nearly doubled

The agri-food industry has suffered a steadily worsening labour shortage during the last decade. Without remedial action, it will be far worse 10 years from now, says Portia MacDonald-Dewhirst, executive director of the Canadian Agricultural Human Resource Council (CAHRC). From a shortage of 30,000 workers 10 years ago to a current shortfall of 59,000, there

Farmer in wheat field

Do we really feed the world?

It’s a moral platitude that papers over a multitude of problems

The Environmental Working Group (EWG) is using this harvest season to solidify its reputation as the biggest not-for-profit policy organization American farmers love to hate. The hatred took root in 1995 when EWG published — on something called the Internet — a 10-year, searchable database of U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) payments to all American


Food deflation troubling

Food deflation troubling

Consumers may welcome cheaper food, but it spells challenges for the food industry 
right through to the primary producer

It is becoming cheaper to buy food in Canada. Canada experienced deflationary food prices in August for the first time in years. While consumers may be delighted to see food prices decline, August numbers are pointing to a significant challenge for the food industry. Making money in the food business is not what it used

Food industry wants input on manufacturing study

Food processing is a big export sector

Food processor associations — and likely other agri-food industry groups — will respond to a call for ideas on the future of Canada’s manufacturing sector. The Commons industry committee has requested written submissions on ways to boost Canada’s small, medium and large manufacturing companies. The committee opened its examination of the topic in June, with


packed frozen food in a freezer in a supermarket

Food manufacturing a bright spot in Canadian economy

Canada’s manufacturing sector has been faced with a number of challenges over the past 10 years: A super-cycle in commodity prices, which caused fluctuations in the value of the Canadian dollar and hurt our competitiveness. Slowing labour productivity and aging infrastructure has resulted in tough decisions on plant investment. All of this is occurring at

Hand going through the field

Developing a Canadian food advantage

Farmers and the industry need to actually demonstrate that their products are produced sustainably

What would you guess is the single most important ingredient in modern food production? Good seeds? Rainfall? Fertilizer? The surprising answer is that around the world, the scarcest and most precious resource for producing food is trust. Luckily, Canada has natural advantages that could allow the people of the world to view us as their