CFIA suspends two more licences

 

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency has suspended two more licences, effectlively putting them out of business until they comply with regulations and meet standards.

Peter The Chef Fine Food Limited, located of Etobicoke lost its licence for failures related to traceability and recall and pest control.

Boulangerie Auger (1991) Inc., located in Saint-Jérôme, Quebec, lost its licence over sanitation issues, identification and analyses of hazards and development and implementation of a preventive control plan.

There are usually a number of warnings and opportunities to comply before a suspension.

Buhler buying Atlas Group

Canada’s only tractor manufacturer, Buhler Versatile Inc, of Winnipeg, is buying the Atlas Group of Germany, a manufacturer of industrial equipment and cranes.

 

The deal adds “significant” engineering, manufacturing and market expertise to Versatile’s operations that will benefit farmer customers, said Farrah Wilson, head of marketing for Versatile.

“For agricultural producers, a stronger Buhler Versatile means a stronger long-term commitment to our products, dealer network and customers,” she said.

“The acquisition expands our industrial capabilities and strengthens our position in international markets, particularly in Europe. 

“As we grow our global footprint, we create additional opportunities to invest in product development, manufacturing and customer support, which ultimately benefits producers who rely on Versatile equipment every day.”

Farm share of food dollars stagnates

Money spent on groceries is not being shared equally along the food supply chain with farmers persistently getting less, according to surveys by the Agricultural Producers Association of Saskatchewan.

“Our data continues to show a consistent story,” said president Bill Prybylski. “Food prices are rising, but the farmer’s share is actually shrinking.”

Prybylski said the supply chain needs to be more transparent so everyone understands how this is happening.

“There’s a lot of things that go on between the farm gate and grocery shelf,” he said. “There’s really no accountability, no transparency to where the increase in those prices comes from. 

“We would like to see the rest of the industry step up to say exactly where is that extra cost coming from” but doubts some middlemen are not likely to do that willingly.

The Competition Bureau said earlier this year it’s going to examine the industry and the federal government more recently announced it’s going to work to improve things in the food industry.

Frankly, it's no mystery, given the number of oligopolies in the food industry, both on the input side of farming and between farms and stores.

But breaking up those oligopolies would be risky unless other countries, especially the United States, did the same thing at the same time.

Lambton withdraws from hosting plowing match

Lambton County Plowmen’s Association has withdrawn its offer to host next year’s International Plowing Match.

This year’s match in Bruce County is still a go.

The organizers for Lambton spent a year planning before withdrawing.

Lambton Plowmen's Association Advisor Douglas Beatty said “unfortunately, we were unable to successfully negotiate and finalize a hosting agreement that was mutually beneficial for both the Ontario Plowmen's Association and the local association.

"We decided it is in everyone’s best interest to conclude the discussions and allow time for provincial event organizers to discuss alternative host sites outside of Lambton County."

In the past counties have vigorously vied to host the event, but competition from the annual Outdoor Farm Show has cut into attendance and interest from agribusinesses to feature their wares and services.

The Outdoor Farm Show has an advantage of using its same site every year, greatly reducing the costs of services such as electricity, water and sewage and parking.

CFIA eases meat trade restrictions

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency is proposing changes so small meat-packing plants in remote rural areas can market meat across provincial barriers.

The changes will be targeted, time-limited exemptions when there is unmet slaughter capacity., it said.

There is a 60-day public consultation period.

The proposed amendments  would allow the interprovincial movement and sale of low volumes of red meat under provincial oversight when there is unmet slaughter capacity, the CFIA 

To ensure food safety and no impact on international trade, the proposed exemption would include key safeguards. This includes limiting the exemption to low volumes of meat, ensuring traceability, and requiring the two provinces trading the meat to provide food safety oversight, and would be based on a CFIA risk assessment, it said.

The package also proposes amendments to reduce red tape by removing unintended work shift requirements for certain continuous activities, clarify inspection fees for certain meat activities at storages, and improve the clarity of regulatory requirements, it said.

Organic milk farmer fined for antibiotics

  The Agriculture, Food and Agribusiness Appeal Tribunal has accepted conflicting evidence from an organic dairy producer and the milk testing lab for dairy farmers of Ontario.

Organic producer Josh Biemond testified that he does not use antibiotics on the farm and that there is no way that the sample could have tested positive for amphenicols. 

Yet the milk board’s lab said it did.

“We accept that evidence” the tribunal wrote of both conflicting sets of testimony.

“That does not, however, mean that the positive test is not reliable.” it wrote and so it dismissed Biemond’s appeal.

Say what?

The Biemonds, own New Care Farms Inc. and Upper Canada Creamery in buildings about 250 feet apart.

Because regulations prohibit the farmer from moving the milk himself, when milk produced at the farm is to be used by the creamery, it must be transferred in an approved bulk milk tanker by a Bulk Milk Tank Grader.

Stupid!

October 1, 2025, was a transfer day when milk was picked up by the trucker Jeff Cauvier and delivered to the creamery. It was not tested by the creamery. It was processed on the same day and the product sold.

As the milk from which the positive sample was taken had been processed and sold by the creamery, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency located and tested two litres of pasteurized milk from the creamery presumably produced from the milk the creamery received on October 1, 2025. 

These tests, undertaken at a CFIA laboratory, were negative for amphenicols. 

However, these tests are not considered official under the scheme for the testing of raw milk prescribed in Ontario Regulation 761.

So the DFO lab results are official, but CFIA's are not. Go figure!

Milk tested in the farm’s bulk milk tank on Oc.t 3 was fine.

This, as I said at the beginning, is a most unusual case.

How to cope with heat

 

Research continues to show that proactive heat management can significantly reduce production losses during the hottest months of the year. 

For chickens, heat waves such as this one have killed thousands of broiler chickens and reduced the productivity of all livestock and poultry. All livestock and poultry suffer.

 

The first advice is to keep air moving.

 

Increasing air speed across animals, ensuring fans are operating efficiently, and using evaporative cooling systems where appropriate can dramatically reduce the effects of elevated temperatures.

Researchers emphasize that preventing heat buildup is far more effective than trying to cool animals after heat stress has already developed.

As temperatures rise, water consumption increases substantially. The advice is to regularly inspect drinkers, verify flow rates, and ensure unrestricted access throughout the barn.

 

They suggest offering more feed during cooler periods of the day since animals such as pigs will eat less when it’s hot.

 

Humidity, air movement, stocking density, and barn ventilation all influence how much heat animals actually experience. Monitoring conditions inside the barn provides a much more accurate picture of heat stress risk than relying solely on weather forecasts.