Insights and Stories on Pandemic

Jun. 18, 2021 at 11:22 pm CDT

British Columbia farmers who’ve taken pandemic-induced losses in farm income will be able to keep their farm properties classified as such for another tax year. The province on Monday announced that for the second year running, it will waive the minimum farm income thresholds normally required for B.C. properties to […]

By Dave Bedard

Jun. 9, 2021 at 4:28 pm CDT

Ottawa | Reuters — Canada on Wednesday took a cautious first step toward easing COVID-19 border restrictions, saying it was prepared to relax quarantine protocols for fully vaccinated citizens returning home starting in early July. Canada’s air and land borders have allowed for only essential travel since March of last […]

By David Ljunggren, Steve Scherer

May. 6, 2021 at 7:36 pm CDT

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange lean hog and live cattle futures climbed on Thursday as U.S. wholesale prices increased. Pork and beef are in high demand in supermarkets and restaurants as the distribution of federal stimulus checks has prompted consumers to spend more on food, analysts said. COVID-19 […]

By Tom Polansek

Apr. 30, 2021 at 9:50 pm CDT

Talks toward a new contract for unionized employees at meat packer Olymel’s hog slaughter and processing plant in Quebec’s Beauce region have ended in a strike. The Syndicat des travailleurs d’Olymel Vallee-Jonction-CSN, which represents over 1,000 staff at Vallee-Jonction, about 60 km southeast of Quebec City, called an “indefinite” strike […]

By Dave Bedard

Apr. 15, 2021 at 8:27 pm CDT

Farmers tending feeder hogs, fed cattle and big game animals such as elk, red deer, bison and wild boar in Quebec can expect $21.8 million in AgriRecovery to compensate for COVID-19’s drag on the province’s slaughter capacity. Federal Agriculture Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau and her Quebec counterpart Andre Lamontagne on Thursday […]

By Dave Bedard