Fire destroys dairy barn

About 30 dairy cattle perished in an early-morning fire that destroyed a barn west of Elmira at the Floradale and Listowel Roads.

Damage is estimated at about $1 million.

Many of the 192 cattle escaped when the family opened doors so they could flee.

Although the cause of the fire is not definite, there are suspicions that it might have been a skid steer loader.

Trump said slow progess continues on NAFTA

United States President Donald Trump said on Tuesday progress was being made in slow-moving talks to update the North American Free Trade Agreement.

But he also repeated his desire to strike separate deals with Mexico and if a three-way deal that suits him can’t be reached.

“We’re trying to equalize it. It’s not easy but we’re getting there,” he told a group of U.S. small business executives. 

“We’ll see whether or not we can make a reasonable NAFTA deal.”

South Korea stops buying Canadian wheat

South Korea has stopped buying Canadian wheat and flour because some Roundup-Ready plants were discovered in Alberta.

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency says the plants were isolated and none got into commercial channels.

Japan has also temporarily stopped buying Canadian wheat pending an investigation of the situation.

However, the South Koreans implemented the ban and Italian politicians have cited the incident as a reason to ban Canadian wheat.

The wheat probably originated from field trials conducted by Monsanto, but neither the Canadian nor the United States governments have granted approval to plant the genetically-modified seeds.

Canada is South Korea’s third-largest wheat and flour supplier, after the U.S. and Australia.

Japan imported 1.4 million tonnes of wheat from Canada last year and 1.6 million tonnes the year before, said Cam Dahl, president of Cereals Canada.

"Japan is a very good customer," he said. "More than that, they are a premium customer. They are the highest grade buyer of Canadian wheat in the world."

Saputo Jr. disses Class 7 milk pricing

Lino Saputo Jr. says Canada should give up its Class 7 pricing for milk.

Class 7 was introduced by provincial marketing boards in an effort to displace imports. It has, however, also been used to produce milk proteins, such as skim milk powder, that have been exported.

Saputo is Canada’s largest dairy and the only one to openly criticize Class 7 pricing. If it were eliminated, Saputo and others would probably import diafiltered milk from the United States, displacing Canadian milk production.

 “They want their cake and they want to eat it too,” Saputo Jr. said in an interview, referring to farmers. “Which doesn’t make sense. You can’t hold onto your milk supply-managed system and have a class of milk that’s competing with world markets at the same time.”

Saputo Jr.’s remarks come after U.S. Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue, on a visit to Canada on Friday, said he did not see how the countries could go forward in trade talks without an end to Class 7.

No more carbon-credit sales for Ontario

Farmers are out of luck selling carbon credits because California and Quebec have closed the joint carbon market to Ontario.

Their move comes after Premier-elect Doug Ford said his first move in office will be to scrap the cap-and-trade policy.

He also plans to have Ontario join Saskatchewan in a court challenge of the federal government’s right to impose a carbon tax.

Ford played down the potential for lawsuits and said companies that are holding emission allowances will benefit from the removal of the regulatory burden going forward.

“They’re going to be quite happy that they won’t pay in the future; it’s putting money back into businesses’ pockets and families’ pockets, [and] I think people will be pleased,” he said.

Asked whether the province is facing lawsuits, he said: “I don’t believe so; we’ve looked into that and we don’t see a problem with that.”

Trade war rages between U.S. and China

A full-fledged trade war is breaking out between the United States and China.

U.S. President Donald Trump escalated matters late last week with a 25 per cent tariff on a long list of items which account for $50 billion a year of U.S. imports.

China promptly retaliated announcing a 25 per cent tariff on a list of 545 U.S. products and services which account for $50 billion a year of Chinese imports. China said its tariffs will take effect July 6.

“The United States will pursue additional tariffs if China engages in retaliatory measures, such as imposing new tariffs on United States goods, services, or agricultural products; raising nontariff barriers or taking punitive actions against American exporters or American companies operating in China,” Trump said in a statement.

China’s tariffs will be imposed on farm products, autos and seafood, the Wall Street Journal reported.

Canada is engaged in a similar trade war with the United States, starting with Trump’s 25 per cent tariff on steel and 10 per cent on aluminum and Canada announcing a list of tariffs to begin in July that have a value totalling the same as Canadian steel and aluminum exports to the U.S.

Politicians and economists around the world have been telling Trump that his tariff tactics will hurt everybody, including Americans.

All of the tariffs violate trade agreements the countries involved have signed.

Guelph company recalls sprouts

Sprouts are once again on recall because of the potential of salmonella food poisoning.

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency said Puresource Inc.of Guelph is recalling Now Real Food brand Zesty Sprouting Mix.

The mix has been marketed across Canada. It contains clover, Fenugreek and radish seeds

The CFIA said there have been no reports of Canadians falling ill. 

The CFIA says the recall began in another country, but does not name it.

Puresource Inc. is an import broker and distributor of natural foods.