Wednesday, May 31, 2023

Grain merchants squeezed

High grain prices, higher borrowing costs and a futures market with prices lower than the spot market are making life difficult for grain co-operatives, reports CoBank.


They are also faced with higher labour, insurance, energy and transportation costs.


They may be forced to lower their bids for grain, said Tanner Ehmke, lead grains and oilseeds economist for CoBank.


Interest costs have risen by 21 per cent for buying and carrying corn, 42 per cent for soybeans and 50 per cent for wheat from a year ago, he said.


The only glimmer of good news is that interest rates may level off, he said.

Canadian beef out of step

Canadian and United States beef industries are out of step with the global market, reports Rabobank.


The world situation is steady, but production is declining in Canada and the U.S.


However, North American retailers have kept from passing on record-high beef prices to customers so far this year, reports Rabobank.


Global beef supplies are expected to remain balanced over the next 12 months, the bank said.


Increased beef production in Brazil and Australia will offset declines in North America because  both will increase their exports to keep the market steady.

PED in Waterloo Region

 


Porcine Epidemic Diarrhea virus has hit a farrow-to-wean operation in the Waterloo Region, reports Swine Health Ontario.


It is the fourth outbreak this year, the others being a farrow-to-wean April 14 in Oxford County, a finisher barn in Bruce County April 5 and another finisher barn there on March 31.

Tuesday, May 30, 2023

Mennonites raise $333,000


This year’s Mennonite Relief Sale raised $333,000, about 10 per cent more than the goal organizers were shooting for.


The money will go to needy people in the Ukraine which is suffering bombardments from Russian invaders.


A Massey Ferguson 65 tractor restored by the North Easthope Antique Tractor club brought $5,300 and a donated John Deere 2120 with front-end loader brought $10,000.


The feature quilt, one of about 200 donated to the sale, sold for $1,400.

Tories back off on lot severances

Steve Clark, Ontario Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing, has scrapped his proposal to allow lot severances on farms.

He wrote to the Ontario Federation of Agriculture announcing his change of plans.


“We have clearly heard the concerns that have been raised about the need to preserve Ontario’s farmland – and we share that goal…We want to continue working with the agricultural sector to look at alternatives that would assist farm families in succession planning, but do not involve additional severances,” Clark wrote.


Clark said he is now extending the public comment period for the other regulations, to give him more time to consider alternative ways to support multigenerational farm families.

Tories mulling rural lot severances


 

There are reports that the Tories are reconsidering their proposal to allow lot severances from rural properties after farmers registered objections.

 

Ontario Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing Steve Clark said he is still pondering the proposal he set out.


But Premier Doug Ford is also quoted recently saying that farmers ought to be able to build a retirement home on their property.


That’s opposed by the Canadian Federation of Agriculture, National Farmers Union and Christian Farmers Federation of Ontario who had a meeting recently with senior officials in the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing.


Other farm organizations, including Egg Farmers of Ontario and Beef Farmers of Ontario, have registered their opposition to the proposal.


Their main concern is that homes built in the rural area will give rise to complaints about manure odours, dust, spraying of fertilizer and farm equipment on rural roads.


The province has an avenue for those objections to be raised before the Normal Farm Practices Review Board.


In recent times, almost all of those appeals have come from semi-urban communities such as Caledon Hills.


Few rural municipalities allow lot severances.


The Tories hold majority power because of their strong support from rural ridings. One wonders whether that can hold in the face of closures of emergency services at rural hospitals and this proposal to allow lot severances.

Pension funds favour Bunge purchase of Viterra


The Canada and British Columbia pension funds have indicated they favour a deal, if and when emerges, for Bunge to purchase Viterra.


They are rumoured to be engaged in negotiations.


Viterra is the merger of the former Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba wheat pools.


A merger would make Bunge the largest grain trader in North America, surpassing Cargill and Archer Daniel Midlands. However, Cargill and ADM would still be larger on a global scale.


Bunge owns a grain terminal and oilseed crushing plant in the Hamilton Harbour and Bunge Loders Croklaan in Etobicoke. Its Canadian head office is in Oakville.

Monday, May 29, 2023

Russia bombs port at Odessa

A Russian drone attack overnight damaged some infrastructure in Ukraine's Black Sea port of Odesa, which is key for its grain exports, reported Reuters news agency.

"A fire broke out in the port infrastructure of Odesa as a result of the hit. It was quickly extinguished. Information on the extent of the damage is being updated," Ukraine’s military's southern command said on Facebook.

The military did not specify whether the damage at the port threatened grain exports. It is only through ports in the Odessa region that Ukraine can export grain and other food items as part of an initiative on grain.

There are only three ports cleared to export grain from the Ukraine under a deal brokered by the United Nations.The Russians have effectively shut down one of them by failing to provide inspectors to ensure incoming ships are not bearing arms.

Now Olymel cutting in the West


 

Olymel is closing five sow barns in Alberta and one in Saskatchewan as it continues to struggle with its finances.


Last month it announced closure of a large hog-slaughtering plant in Quebec where the hog industry is facing a brutal down-sizing.


The barn closures in the West will reduce its sow herd there from 57,000 to 40,000 and market hog production by about 200,000 head.


Olymel is laying off 994 workers, 911 of them union members and 83 managers.


The barn closures will be phased over several months, the company is looking to buy market hogs from others and said its sow barns will remain closed until market conditions improve.

Friday, May 26, 2023

Tribunal frustrations

I like to follow and sometimes listen in on public hearings hosted by the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs Appeal Tribunal.

But a week ago, when I tried to sign on to the ZOOM site for the appeal by Paul Tzellos, 1264354 Ontario Limited, Premier Kosher Inc., and 1264353 Ontario Inc. against the Chicken Farmers of Ontario marketing board, the link the tribunal provided would not work.

Then this week, without so much as a single day of advance notice on its website, the tribunal hosted a hearing on a complaint by the Association of Ontario Chicken Processors against Chicken Farmers of Ontario. No details on the nature of either appeal were provided, but I assume Tzellos is seeking access to more chickens and the processors are appealing over pricing.

The tribunal did not provide a ZOOM link for the processors' Appeal.

So, as far as I know, the public hearings were not public, but secret.

I e-mailed the tribunal for information. No response.
    

Viterra might merge with Bunge

Glencore, which owns Viterra, is in talks to sell it to Bunge.

It would vault Bunge into the biggest grain trader in the North America.


Viterra emerged from the former Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba wheat pools. The former Harper conservative government ended the Canadian Wheat Board’s monopoly on wheat exports from the Prairies, triggering the demise of the farmer-owned pools.


Glencore is trying to buy Teck, a large Canadian coal-mining company. Glencore, based in Switzerland, is mainly a mining company.


Last year Viterra bought Gavilon for $1.1 billion to extend its reach into the U.S. It was owned b Japan Marubeni.


Glencore owns 49.9 per cent of Viterra’s shares. Other major owners of Viterra stock are the British Columbia and Canada pension plans.

4-H gets $2.3 million


 

The federal and Ontario governments are giving $2.3 million to support 4-H Ontario.

Ontario Agriculture Minister Lisa Thompson said “4-H Ontario is a valuable youth development, community-based program focusing on leadership and life skills that young people will benefit from their entire careers.

 “This investment will ensure 4-H Ontario can continue building future community and business owners, foster greater appreciation and pride of our rural communities and agriculture and food sectors, while creating a learning environment outside of the classroom where 4-H members can learn by doing.” 

Thursday, May 25, 2023

Whiskey plant to boost grain demand

Whiskey plant to boost grain demand

Jan Westcott, president of Spirits Canada, said grain farmers in Essex County, Kent County, and Lambton County are well positioned to benefit from increased corn, wheat, and rye production and profits when Diageo opens its $245-million facility in St. Clair Township sometime in 2025.

Diageo announced plans for a 400 acre plant on Moore Line near Highway 40 about 15 months ago with the capacity to produce 10.5 million gallons annually for its Crown Royal Canadian Whisky brand.

Westcott said with all of that whisky on the horizon, local grain farmers will need to up their game to keep quenching the public’s thirst.

“We’re very proud of the fact that 100 per cent of the grain that we use to make whisky and our other spirits is grown by Ontario farmers. We’re lucky that we get the quality of grain that we need in the three counties,” said Westcott.

Westcott said the spirits industry in Ontario buys anywhere from 225,000 and 250,000 metric tonnes of grain a year.

The Diageo plant is the first commercial distillery built in Canada in more than 50 years.

Westcott said Crown has been distilled in Manitoba for the past 30-plus years after a plant in Waterloo burned down. That Manitoba demand will be returning to Ontario.

“That will drive up our grain purchases in Chatham-Kent and in Essex and hopefully will inspire more farmers to put corn and wheat and rye in the ground for us,” Westcott said.

 “The Grain Farmers of Ontario tells us that we’re already the fourth largest buyer of corn and I suspect that once the new Diageo distillery gets up and running we’ll be the third largest. We’re never going to be as big as the ethanol guys (Greenfield) or the feed lot guys.”

Westcott said he thinks the local grain farmers are up to the challenge.

        

Wednesday, May 24, 2023

Russia chokes grain exports from Ukraine

Despite a deal to allow grain exports from the Ukraine, Russia is choking off exports from one of the largest grain-exporting ports,  Pivdennyi.

The United States said this a clear violation of the deal brokered by the United Nations to allow grain exports from Odesa, Chornomorsk and Pivdennyi.

Ukrainian Deputy Renovation Minister Yuriy Vaskov said “They (Russia) have now found an effective way to significantly reduce (Ukrainian) grain exports by excluding the port of Pivdennyi, which handles large tonnage vessels, from the initiative.”

Under the agreement, all ships bound for Ukrainian ports must be inspected by a joint team including Russian inspectors. The Russian inspectors have since April 29 refused to inspect ships bound for Pivdennyi, Vaskov said.

Pivdennyi is the largest port included in the deal in terms of throughput. Restoration ministry data show it is storing about 1.5 million tonnes of food items for future export to 10 countries, with 26 ships due to come for them.

Chicken processors file appeal


The Association of Ontario Chicken Processors has filed an appeal against the Chicken Farmers of Ontario Marketing Board.

The Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs has set May 24 to hear the appeal.

Chicken donated to Huron Food Bank

Chicken Farmers of Ontario and Yorkshire Valley Farms combined to donate 1,400 kilograms of chicken to the Huron County Food Bank distribution center.

Yorkshire is an organic chicken company.

On hand were Ontario Agriculture Minister Lisa Thompson, whose home riding is Huron County, and federal Member of Parliament, Ben Lobb, who also represents the riding.

Andrea Veldhuisen, the local chicken board director, noted that the board has been making food bank donations since 2015.

 On behalf of the clients who receive the gifts of meat, thank you for your care and compassion, said Mary Ellen Zielman, executive director, Huron Country Food Bank Distribution.

“Your support will accomplish amazing things! Together we can eliminate hunger!”

FCC offers a life-line


Farm Credit Canada is offering farmers no-fees credit of up to $500,000 to help weather current economic conditions.

The offer comes with no security or fees required.

FCC said it’s making the offer to both new and existing customers who are “experiencing financial difficulties, including cash flow challenges, due to higher-than-average input costs and elevated interest rates.”

Cost pressures in the “current economic environment” are difficult to pass on, FCC said , and  “so there are “tough financial circumstances for some operations.”

“While the current experiences of individual operations within the different agriculture and food sectors are varied, we hope those who identify with these challenges will use this credit line as an opportunity to work through their current position and build back stronger than before,” said Sophie Perreault, FCC’s chief operating officer.

Tuesday, May 23, 2023

Two workers catch HPAI

Two poultry workers in the United Kingdom have been infected with the highly-pathogenic avian influenza that has wreaked havoc in the North American poultry industry.

Few workers take precautions because it has been believed that this virus does not infect people.

Neither infected worker had any symptoms of illness and they later both tested negative.

There is also no spread of the virus from those workers to other people, said the United Kingdom Health Authority.

                

ROMA seeks status in drainage dispute with CN

The Rural Ontario Municipalities Association (ROMA) is seeking legal intervener status in a dispute between the CN Rail and the City of Sarnia over the cost of critical drainage work on CN property.

ROMA chair Robin Jones said the railway has applied to the Canadian Transportation Agency [CTA] to settle the matter and determine what is paid to the city.

“We want to be able to come in and explain the big picture, explain what’s happening province-wide, because this is CN versus Sarnia in relation to CN’s relationships with other municipalities,” said Jones.

Jones said if their application to intervene is accepted, they’ll be able to make those additional comments.

“It gives you the opportunity to give a wider perspective of what’s happened. What we know has happened in the last couple of years, despite decades of CN working with municipalities under the Drainage Act of Ontario, they have decided that they are not prepared to pay their way,” she said.

Jones said ROMA believes it is a constitutional issue.

“A federal agency saying that they don’t need to comply with provincial or municipal bylaws is something that should not be settled by the CTA, but indeed in Ontario Superior Court,” Jones added.

In February, the Town of Plympton-Wyoming said it was owed $80,000 in payments from CN under the drainage act, while Warwick Township said it was owed $160,000.

“We’ve been communicating with the other municipalities who also have concerns,” Jones said. “I know that they will be watching. I’m sure that they will be quite satisfied that ROMA has asked for this, because although it’s Sarnia versus CN, it’s the principles that we are hoping to be able to present.”

Drainage dispute escalates

ROMA seeks status in drainage dispute with CN

The Rural Ontario Municipalities Association (ROMA) is seeking legal intervener status in a dispute between the CN Rail and the City of Sarnia over the cost of critical drainage work on CN property.

ROMA chair Robin Jones said the railway has applied to the Canadian Transportation Agency [CTA] to settle the matter and determine what is paid to the city.

“We want to be able to come in and explain the big picture, explain what’s happening province-wide, because this is CN versus Sarnia in relation to CN’s relationships with other municipalities,” said Jones.

Jones said if their application to intervene is accepted, they’ll be able to make those additional comments.

“It gives you the opportunity to give a wider perspective of what’s happened. What we know has happened in the last couple of years, despite decades of CN working with municipalities under the Drainage Act of Ontario, they have decided that they are not prepared to pay their way,” she said.

Jones said ROMA believes it is a constitutional issue.

“A federal agency saying that they don’t need to comply with provincial or municipal bylaws is something that should not be settled by the CTA, but indeed in Ontario Superior Court,” Jones added.

In February, the Town of Plympton-Wyoming said it was owed $80,000 in payments from CN under the drainage act, while Warwick Township said it was owed $160,000.

“We’ve been communicating with the other municipalities who also have concerns,” Jones said. “I know that they will be watching. I’m sure that they will be quite satisfied that ROMA has asked for this, because although it’s Sarnia versus CN, it’s the principles that we are hoping to be able to present.”

Few understand COOL


 


A survey of consumers indicates only 16 per cent understand the Product of USA labels the government is proposing for meats.

Canadians object on the basis that it violates the Canada-U.S.-Mexico (CUSMA) trade agreement and would depress prices for Canadian cattle and hogs.

Meat packers in the U.S. say it would increase costs to segregate slaughter and processing lines for domestic and imported meats, yet the United States Department of Agriculture estimates its proposals will cost only $3 million.

The survey also found that consumers are willing to pay more for products with the "Product of USA" claim and for products with more production steps in the U.S., the USDA report said.

“The results highlight the need for improved consumer understanding of the "Product of USA" claim and related USDA labeling to ensure informed purchasing decisions,” it said.

                        -30-

 

Friday, May 19, 2023

Farmers urged to lobby


 

The Ontario Federation of Agriculture, the Christian Farmers Federation of Ontario and the Ontario branch of the National Farmers Union are jointly encouraging their members to lobby provincial politicians against rules changes that would allow lot severances from farms.


Ed Scharringa, president of the Christian Farmers Federation of Ontario, said “as farm leaders and organizations, we have worked diligently to manage and mitigate conflict between farming and non-farming neighbours in all types of agriculture.


“The proposed changes will exacerbate conflict between farming and non-farming neighbours for all aspects of farming including application of crop nutrition and crop protection products, wildlife control and more.” 


“This legislation will have impact on all Ontario farmers now and in the future. It will fragment and permanently remove farmland from productive agricultural use, and limit farm business growth,” said Peggy Brekveld, president of the Ontario Federation of Agriculture. 


“Ontario’s productive farmland is a scarce resource, making up less than five per cent of all the land in the province. Agricultural production is the most valued and best use of this land.”


Max Hansgen, president of the National Farmers Union – Ontario said “directing growth to settlement areas, urban and rural is better for both agriculture and municipalities.” 


“Housing needs can be met in serviced settlement areas on a much smaller land base, reducing farmland loss and potential land use conflicts while ensuring efficient use of municipal infrastructure investments.” 



                           

 

Wine regulations amended for Zweigelt


 

The province has amended its wine-indusgry regulations to allow Zweigelt to also be called Zweigeltrebe abd Rotburger.


They are Austrian terms for wines made from the same grape variety.

Goderich port eyes expansion


 

Goderich Port Management Corporation has raised $13 million of the $23.5 million it needs to expand the port which is well used by the Ontario grains and feed-milling industries.


President Rowland Howe said it is the only deep water port on the east side of Lake Huron that has the potential to develop and grow. 


It added four acres of land to the port a few years ago as part of a 15-acre expansion hopes to continue that.


“Certainly shipping is about 10 times more efficient than trucking in terms of carbon footprint, so it’s good economics, it’s good business, and it’s good for the environment,” said Howe.


Howe hopes they can take advantage of the Federal National Trade Corridor Fund, which provides funding for exactly what they’re hoping to do. He said they’re hoping the federal government would put in about $23.5 million, and they would match that.


Howe said the provincial government has some programs that could help and Ontario has plans to move towards marine transportation, so he’s optimistic about port expansion.

Americans’ moods turn gloomy


Americans are fast losing their confidence in the economy, according to the most recent monthly poll conducted by the University of Michigan.


Their current poll erases more than half the gains since last June.


Survey director Joanne Hsu said the “proliferation of negative news about the economy,” including the impending debt crisis standoff, has taken a toll.”


Expectations for the year ahead declined by 23 per cent from April 2022. Long-run expectations fell by 16 per cent, indicating that consumers are worried that any economic downturn will not be brief, said Hsu.

California begins implementing Proposition 12


 

The California Department of Agriculture and Food has begun to register food-distribution companies that can demonstrate that the meat they offer comes from animals and birds that comply with its new animal welfare standards, including a ban on sow gestation crates, laying-hen cages and veal crates.


It means that Canadian farmers wishing to access markets those distributers serve, including more than California, must also comply.


The California officials said they “will continue to focus on implementation of distributor registration requirements, accreditation of third party certifiers and outreach and technical assistance to businesses throughout the supply chain.” 


The California Department of Agriculture and Food also said it “looks forward to engaging with industry representatives to further discuss what is needed to achieve a smooth transition to compliance.”


The United States Supreme Court recently ruled against meat packers who challenged the law.


It impacts far more than California because none of the large meat packers or egg-gradiong companies want to face the logistics and costs of segregating their products, some for California, others for the rest of the states.

Wednesday, May 17, 2023

Yet another lawyer added to Animal Care board


Meryn Steeves, a lawyer from Peterborough, has been appointed to a two-year term at the Animal Care Review Board which is already loaded with 16 lawyers.


The board deals with appeals arising from inspectors’ rulings on animal welfare.


Farmers have been critical of some past inspectors’ decisions that deemed what they consider normal practices as abuse, such as leaner cows when they near the end of their lactations.

Tim Prior appointed to species board


 

Tim Prior, owner of Brussels Agri-Services Ltd., has been appointed to a three-year term on the Species at Risk Program advisory committee.


The committee provides advice to the provincial Minister of Environment, Conservation and Parks on which species are deemed at risk, whether farmers are required to provide habitat protection and advice on the Stewardship Program that provides incentives to land owners.

JBS hires 350 foreign workers


JBS Food is bringing 300 temporary foreign workers to its beef processing facility agt Brooks, Alberta.


Housing them will be a challenge, so the company is considering mobile home parks, multiplexes, and apartment projects, said the Medicine Hat News.


Last year, JBS Food announced a one-year pilot program, called “Homebuyer Dream Fund,” to help Brooks employees overcome financial hurdles when buying or upgrading homes.


It has about 2,000 employees and is one of the largest employers in southern Alberta and among the three biggest beef-packing plants in Canada.


It is owned by JBS USA which is, in turn, owned by JBS SA of Brazil, the world’s largest meat packer.

Tuesday, May 16, 2023

Egg prices up and down


The Egg Farmers of Ontario has reduced egg prices by 14 cents a dozen reflecting lower production costs and a special quota increase, but Burnbrae Farms has hiked its price by 10 cents in mid-March and intends to add a four-cents increase June 11.


The Toronto Star reports it has seen Burnbrae’s notice of the upcoming price increase. 


In the past, Grayridge and Burnbrae have adjusted their prices at the same time by the same amount.


Together they handle about 90 per cent of Ontario’s eggs.


Egg Farmers of Canada, the national supply-management agency, has issued special quota in response to the loss of about 1.6 million layers to highly-pathogenic avian influenza.

So why doesn't the Competition Bureau or the House of Commons Agriculture Committee or the Ontario Farm Products Marketing 
Commission launch an inquiry into the egg-grading cartel?

Monday, May 15, 2023

Turnabout is fair play, meat packers tell Biden

The North American Meat Institute issued a statement mocking U.S. President Joe Biden for his criticism of the meat industry when prices were rising, but silence now that they are losing money.

“Remember when President Biden and progressives last year accused meat packers of colluding to fatten their profits. Are they now conspiring to lose money?,” the institute said in a news release.


It pointed to quarterly reports by Tyson Foods which lost money for the first quarter since 2009.


It did not include the recent report from JBS SA that it lost $390 million in its first quarter, mainly because U.S. cattle prices increased by 18 per cent while wholesale beef prices inched up by only two per cent. 


The institute said “as we explained in “Carving Up Biden’s Inflation Beef” (Jan. 7, 2022), the gusher of pandemic transfer payments swelled demand for more expensive meat products and contributed to a labor shortage that constrained production. 


“When supply exceeds demand, business margins increase as markets ration scarce goods via prices.


“Yet Democrats alleged a corporate conspiracy. Mr. Biden claimed that rising meat prices and profits reflect “the market being distorted by a lack of competition” and “capitalism without competition isn’t capitalism; it’s exploitation.” 


“Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren accused Tyson of abusing its ‘corporate market power and raking in record profits by jacking up meat prices’.”

                           


 

Jamaica lauds Canada’s foreign workers program

Jamaica launched a review of the temporary foreign workers program Canada uses to recruit Jamaicans for farm work and its report says it’s “highly valued by both Jamaicans and Canadians.”


The Ontario Fruit and Vegetable Growers’ Association (OFVGA) welcomed the report which found that a large proportion of Jamaican farm workers have a positive view of program and the vast majority of Ontario farm employers using the program are operating within its parameters.  


The inquiry found no evidence to support activist claims that the program’s working conditions were akin to systemic slavery. 


It was those allegations that triggered Jamaica’s independent investigation last year.


“We recognize there is always more that can be done to ensure all workers have the opportunity for a positive and safe working experience while they help our farms grow fruits and vegetables for the Canadian public,” said Bill George, grape grower and chair of the OFVGA’s labour committee. 


“However, the report clearly shows that this can be done with specific targeted measures rather than assigning hateful and broad labels to all the hardworking farmers and their employees in the program.”


The SAWP (Seasonal Agriculture Workers Program) began in 1966 with 264 Jamaican workers who came to Ontario to help with apple harvest. 

Now the program is open to workers from Mexico, Jamaica. 


They come to Canada to work for a defined period of time before going home for the winter.


Jamaican workers are able to support their families with health care and education, establish farms and businesses and create jobs in their communities back home, said the OFVGA.


Canadian employers rely on the skills and expertise Jamaicans  because there is a shortage of labour in the agricultural sector, the OFVGA said.


“Without these workers, many labour-intensive fruit and vegetable crops that Canadians love could no longer be grown here in Ontario,” it said.


“Most importantly, the report highlights the strong sense of pride and self-fulfillment that the Jamaican workers derive from their farm work in Canada,” said George. 


“In a world where many people struggle with mental health and with finding a sense of purpose, we need to acknowledge and encourage things capable of elevating people’s pride and self-fulfillment rather than trying to destroy it with harmful labels and negativity.”


In 2021, OFVGA launched the More than a Migrant Worker initiative to give international farm workers a chance to tell their stories, in their own words, of their lives in Canada and why they come here to work.

                           

 

 

 

Supply management ordered to be efficient


 The federal government’s mandate letter to the Farm Products Council of Canada puts the top priority “to promote the resilient, efficient and competitive production and marketing of regulated products . . .”


It’s not clear whether that means Canadian performance ought to be measured against the United States where producers operate with similar feed rations and genetics.


Canadian poultry farmers are protected by tariffs of more than 200 per cent and generally price their products close to the competition from imports.


The mandate letter said the challenge to the industry is “so the poultry and egg sectors can adapt to a changing market throughout the value chain.”


The mandate letter also calls for assurance “that Canadians, including those in remote locations, have consistent and reliable food supply chains during market disruptions caused by various issues, including labour shortages and disease outbreaks (e.g. avian influenza).


In that respect, the council newsletter for the first quarter this year said the Egg Farmers of Canada is to issue special temporary quota for 39.9 million dozen eggs.


The council also approved provincial levy increases for Ontario, British Columbia and Prince Edward Island.

Saturday, May 13, 2023

Niagara-area quarantine lifted


The Canadian Food Inspection Agency has lifted its quarantine zone in the Niagara area stretching from Wainfleet to St. Ann’s.


It was put under quarantine March 16 because highly-pathogenic avian influenza broke out in a commercial flock there.


There are 53 premises in Canada recently infected, seven of them in Ontario, 20 in Quebec, 11 in Alberta and eight in British Columbia. 


Since the first outbreaks there are 269 premises that have had outbreaks, 40 of them in Ontario. 96 in British Columbia, 50 in Alberta and 27 in Quebec.


A total of 7,665,000 birds have been impacted, reports the Canadian Food Inspection Agency.

Friday, May 12, 2023

JBS suffers huge loss


 

JBS SA lost $390 million Cdn (1.45 billion reais) in the first quarter, much more than the market analysts’ prediction of 297 million reals.


It cited difficulties in the United States market where cattle prices increased by 16 per cent from a year earlier, but wholesale meat prices by only two per cent.


JBS is the world’s largest meat packer and owns the second-largest beef-packing plant in Western Canada near Calgary.

                           

 

 

 

Hemp touted as plastic replacement


Hemp could be used to make packaging that would replace plastics which are facing increasing bans, according to a research team at the University of Western Ontario at London.


They say that hemp that’s left over from cannabis production could be used to make the packaging. Much of that hemp is either composted or dumped in landfill sites, they said.


The team led by chemistry professor Elizabeth Gillies and mechanical and materials engineering professor Aaron Price worked with CTK Bio Canada of British Columbia to develop the biodegradable, hemp-based material. 


“Depending on the form, hemp can have a fibrous structure, which acts perfectly as a reinforcement for materials,” said Gillies. “Basically, hemp is stronger and more malleable than many other biomaterials.”


The aim of the project was to find a proxy for widely used industrial plastics such as high-density polyethylene pellets, which could be fed into the same manufacturing process currently used to produce plastic packaging.


The study, which was published in the Journal of Polymer Science, validates the new hemp-based biomaterial’s potential as a plastic alternative and opens the door to future industry collaborations and partnerships, the researchers said.