The Canadian Food Inspection Agency has suspended the licence held by Deccan Enterprises of Scarborough.
It said the company failed to develop a preventive program and a recall for imported foods.
It said CFIA also cancelled the licence held by The Little Oak Nutrition Company (Canada) Ltd, It is based in New Zealand.
The United States Grade A milk standard allows for milk quality that would not be saleable from Canadian farms, said senior economist Al Mussell of the Canadian Agri-food Policy Institute website.
The U.S. also allows for a significant volume of milk used in processing that does not even meet US Grade A standard, he said.
The U.S. spending cuts to laboratory proficiency testing further undermine the integrity of the US Grade A milk standard, even as it presents a technical barrier to trade, he said.
His policy note describes both important gaps in U.S. milk quality and safety regulation, and the insistence that exporters of dairy products to the U.S. adopt its standards, rather than establish equivalence standards- thereby creating a technical barrier to trade.
“Canada has been prepared to accept dairy imports from the U.S. as like product. But the situation has changed- with the suspension of its proficiency testing of milk testing labs and the recent antagonistic approach that the U.S. has taken with Canada”, Mussell said.
“A reasonable and measured approach for Canada could be to require labeling of its dairy imports from the U.S. to indicate that they are not made from milk that does not satisfy U.S. Grade A, a renewal of U.S. funding for milk lab proficiency testing coupled with a serious review of its milk quality standards, and a review of the PMO as an instrument of disguised protectionism by the U.S.”.
Mussell said Canada has a national limit of a somatic cell count of no more than 400,000 per millilitre, but the U.S. allows up to 750,000.
Mussell notes that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has been in negotiations with Canada, the European Union and New Zealand to accept their quality standards as equivalent or better than U.S. domestic milk, but so far no agreement has been reached.
He said the U.S. stance is a technical trade barrier.
Mussell’s post on the institute’s website comes as Canadian and U.S. trade negotiators are in tense deadline meetings leading up to an Aug. 19 deadline.
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Because there are fewer cattle to slaughter, Tyson plans to close two plants and sell a third.
The company said it will shut down its Joslin, Ill., beef plant and Eagle Mountain, Utah, case-ready facility. Tyson also is pursuing the sale of its Pasco, Wash., beef facility.
Tyson will consolidate its beef business around three centrally located slaughter facilities in Dakota City, Neb., Holcomb, Kan., and Amarillo, Texas. Capacity from the closing facilities will be shifted to other Tyson locations with room for additional production.
CoBank says fertilizer prices are likely to remain high for another two years.
Although prices have declined from the historic highs seen at the start of the war against Iran, elevated fertilizer expenses remain a major headwind for farmers, it said in a new report led by Jacqui Fatka, CoBank’s farm supply and biofuels economist.
Instability in the Middle East, constrained feedstock supplies and tightening phosphate availability will keep fertilizer costs elevated for ag retailers into 2028, she said.
“Ultimately, market recovery will depend on stabilization in the Middle East, lower sulfur prices and shifts in global demand patterns,” she wrote.
The Middle East supplies more than 60 million tons of fertilizers and raw materials annually, with 45 million tons shipped through the Strait of Hormuz that Iran controls.
Half of globally traded sulfur and more than 30 per cent of global urea exports originate from the region, making these commodities particularly vulnerable to supply disruptions.
Conflict in the region has resulted in fertilizer plant shutdowns and damaged facilities that will require significant time and resources to repair, she wrote.
An estimated 31 ammonia plants in the Middle East have been directly impacted by the war or shut down completely. Across India, Pakistan and Bangladesh, operations at 49 plants have been curtailed or halted due to limited feedstock availability. Meanwhile, at least 20 plants in Russia have been damaged by Ukrainian drone attacks, further exacerbating global supply challenges.
The disruptions have reshaped global trade flows and increased fertilizer prices for North America’s agricultural retailers, particularly for Diammonium Phosphate and Monoammonium Phosphate.
While most domestic use is supplied by U.S. production, 17 per cent of those two those phosphate imports originate from the Persian Gulf — now one of the most unstable supply regions.
Phosphate markets are expected to remain especially tight. Even before the war, global phosphate supplies were constrained, and rising sulfur and ammonia costs have further limited production.
Ammonia and sulfur are the two biggest variable cost inputs for phosphate production, and three of the world’s 10 largest ammonia exporters are located behind the Strait of Hormuz.
China, the largest producer and exporter of phosphate fertilizer, has banned phosphate exports through August and high sulfur prices may lead to an extension of the ban.
Farmers have already responded by conducting more soil testing, adopting variable‑rate application technology and precision nutrient management to maintain yields.
Under-fertilization can be more costly than higher fertilizer prices, which is why many farmers have not reduced nitrogen applications but have lowered phosphate and potassium levels by as much as 10 to 15 per cent in recent years.
“Lower or no fertilizer use creates a two‑ to three‑year gap before yield begins to suffer,” said Fatka. “The question now becomes how much longer the mining of the soils can occur without sacrificing yield.”
If fertilizer prices remain high through fall as expected, more farmers may push applications into spring, creating logistical challenges for retailers who must manage tight planting windows and uncertain demand. Lower global application rates could modestly reduce yields and support commodity prices, easing some inventory concerns for retailers, she said.
Whole Food is recalling guacamoles, pico de gallos, salsas, and prepared foods because they may be contaminated with food-;poisoning bacteria.
The products were imported, but the Canadian Food Inspection Agency did not say where from.
Manure can spread antibiotic resistance, but a team from Oklahoma State University thinks it has a solution.
The concern is that antibiotic resistance can spread to other bacteria and pose a threat to animal and human health.
The solution is tiny bubbles of ozone thrust into manure.
Ozone bubbles have long been used to treat sewage, but not as small as the ones now being researched and tested.
Mark Krzmarzick from the School of Civil and Environmental Engineering and head of the research team said the nanobubbles destroy genetic material.
Even if the bacteria are killed, pieces remain and can spread antibiotic resistance he said.
The research team aims to find out whether nanobubbles of ozone can break that genetic material apart so antibiotic resistance can’t spread.
There has been a decline of 52,000 on-farm workers since 2020, reported Statistics Canada.
The total now is 225,000.
Jennifer Wright, executive director of the Canadian Agricultural Human Resource Council said the decline comes from an aging workforce, retirements, lack of young people taking agriculture jobs and competition from employers in other businesses.
She said the decline doesn’t mean there are fewer jobs, but that farmers are having more difficulty recruiting workers.
She said the numbers may also be missing temporary foreign workers, but Statistics Canada’s spokesman defended its survey numbers as consistently reliable and accurate.
The decline is not new. In 1993 the total was 400,000, but the decline has accelerated over the last few years.
Maple Leaf Foods Inc.reported a second-quarter profit of $40.8-million, down from $57.8-million a year ago, as its sales rose 1.6 per cent.
Sales totalled $1.02-billion, up from $1 billion.
Maple Leaf says poultry sales increased by 7.1 per cent, driven by higher volumes, improved channel mix and pricing.
Successive storms have flooded large areas of the Niagara Region leading to emergency declarations and significant farm losses.
Vineyards, orchards and floral farms have been flooded and waters have been slow to recede.
Farm organizations are thanking municipal and provincial governments for assistance, but have a few specific requests.
One is for regulatory approvals for aerial application of fungicides in fields too flooded or wet to support spraying equipment.
The federal government recently approved the use of drones to apply pesticides that have been approved for aerial application.
Another ask is for the extension of foreign workers stay in Canada so they can help with the recovery.
While Niagara Region has too much rain, British Columbia’s grape and wine industry is far too dry and under threat from wildfires.
Wine makers fear that wildfire smoke will taint their products.
Agri Stats has reached settlements with the remaining pork-industry companies that filed class-action lawsuit alleging price fixing.
They claimed Agri Stats gathered and share information with pork packers that enabled them to adjust production and pricing.
Agri Stats has denied wrongdoing but said it settled to contain legal costs.
Numerous pork processors have previously settled claims brought by various purchaser groups in the litigation, leaving Agri Stats as one of the final defendants facing continuing claims.
The private litigation is separate from the Justice Department’s antitrust case against Agri Stats. The company reached a settlement with the DOJ and six states in May requiring changes to how it collects and distributes competitively sensitive information about the meat industry.
No dollar amounts involved in the settlement have been reported.
The Canadian Food Inspection Agency has suspended licences held by Groupe 3CNT Inc. of Chateauguay, Que. and by a business in St. John’s, Newfoundland.
It has cancelled two licences held by companies in Contrecoeur, Que. They are licences 7V7LVWL and 8N6CKY86.
The non-helpful people at CFIA do not identify the company names by which they do business, nor do they allow the public to search its licence registry for the names.
There has been an outbreak of Porcine Epidemic Diarrhea in a finishing hog operation in Huron Count, reports Swine Health Ontario.
It is the first outbreak since May 21.
Gay Lea Foods Co-operative Ltd. is investing $200 million to expand and modernize cottage cheese production at its facility at Clayson Road in Toronto.
There has been a global surge in demand for protein since people began using GLP drugs to address diabetes and lose weight.
Extra protein is required when using the drugs.
Gay Lea said the expansion will introduce advanced processing technology and modern manufacturing capabilities designed to increase production capacity, strengthen productivity and enhance operational flexibility.
The expansion, to be complete in 2028, will create up to 75 new positions.
The investment is part of planned investments of $450 million over several years in Gay Lea’s facilities.
Canada Packers lost $28.4 milllon in its second fiscal quarter.
A year ago it made a profit of $23.4 million.
Sales declined by 8.8 per cent because pork prices came down.
The total was $421.7 million this year compared with $473.2 million last year.
There is more pork in the North American market this year – two per cent more market hogs in the United States despite a one per cent decline in the sow herd, and aggressive expansion in Mexico.
The financial report includes a $48.3 million non-cash decrease in fair value of biological assets.
Saputo’s sales declined by 1.5 per cent, but its profits increased by 10.4 per cent.
The surprising results come from increased demand and prices for whey.
Saputo’s global operations are tilted towards cheese production.
Valo has received national and Ontario egg supply management approval for 6,716,666 dozens of eggs, the equivalent of 492,000 laying hens.
Valo will be producing them for Sanofi’s new vaccine production plant at Mississauga.
The Farm Products Council of Canada recently granted its approval for the special annual production. It takes effect Jan. 1.
Valo and/or Sanofi will require annual approvals to continue egg production.
Many Canadian farmers lack education and communication around business risk management programs, according to a study by Farm Management Canada.
That hinders their ability to make use of the programs, it said, and it recommends a national strategy be developed to address these challenges.
“Many producers are unaware, misinformed about or skeptical of the risk management programs and tools available, and underutilize proactive risk management practices,” the report said.
The federal, provincial and territorial ministers of agriculture put business risk management programs at top priority when they recently met at Halifax.
Mark MacPhail is the new general manager for the Ontario Processing Vegetable Growers.
He takes over from Keith Robbins.
Eleven provincial Tories have issued a statement calling for meaningful consultation on ALTO, the federal government’s proposed high-speed rail line linking Toronto, Montreal and Ottawa.
The 11 MPPs who made the statement include Laurie Scott, Steve Clark, Dave Smith, Tyler Allsopp, Ric Bresee, John Jordan, George Darouze, Stéphane Sarrazin and Billy Denault plus two cabinet members: Minister of Colleges and Universities Nolan Quinn and Labour Minister David Piccini.
“If Alto is to proceed, local voices impacted by this project deserve to see their feedback reflected in the project’s planning, route selection and delivery.
"The federal government must ensure that any potential future rail project minimizes impacts on farmland and is supported by the people affected.” the statement said.
Canada’s dairy industry accounted for 90 per cent of the responses when the federal government invited public comment on trade talks with the United States and Mexico.
Matt Malone is a scholar at the Balsillie School of International Affairs and the author of Open Governments, Secret Canada: Hiding Information Other Countries Share, used Access to Information to learn that 4,572 of the total of 5,143 responses from stakeholders were dairy special interest groups or dairy farmers engaged in a letter-writing campaign.
All the public got was an opaque summary of the consultations, leaving it unclear where any specific input came from, Malone said.
“As with so much of the Carney government’s approach to trade with the United States, the attitude was tight-lipped and need-to-know,” he said.
Cargill’s Brian Sikes, the board chairman and chief executive officer, foresees a complex future.
He wrote a letter in the annual report saying slowing population growth, aging consumers, shifting dietary preferences, geopolitical tensions, artificial intelligence (AI) and climate disruption are reshaping the global food system, requiring companies to focus on “smarter movement, stronger connections and deeper trust” rather than simply increasing production.
Cargill said it has spent the past two years restructuring its operations, consolidating five enterprises into three and reducing its business groups from 23 to 14 while investing in digital technologies, AI capabilities and acquisitions, including Mig-Plus and Teys, to improve efficiency and better serve customers.
As an example of its use of technologies, he said an AI-powered hypothesis engine is helping researchers reduce work that once took months to just hours. Cargill has been using AI in supply chain management, product development, grain forecasting and research.
Class-action lawsuits alleging price-fixing by turkey processing companies in the United States are winding up with federal court approval of a settlement for four companies.
House of Raeford and Prestage Farms will be paying $18.7 million US to their customers; Purdue and Foster Farmers reached settlements earlier.
In total, $59 million has been paid in class-action lawsuits filed by various groups of customers of Butterball, Cargill, Cooper Farms, Farbest Foods, Foster Farms, Hormel, Jennie-O Turkey Store, House of Raeford, Perdue Farms, Prestage Farms and Tyson Foods.
Higher prices for corn and soybeans brought a turn-around in farmers’ moods in the United States, reported Purdue University.
The improvement in July ended three straight months of declines in Ag Economy Monitor it publishes every month based on a survey of about 700 farmers.
Yet only 13 per cent said their financial situation is better than a year ago. About a third of those surveyed said they expect to end the year better than last year.
Only about a half of farmers think the U.S. is headed in the right direction, a sharp decline from the 70 per cent average for the last six months.