UPDATED, Sept. 29 — Canada’s incumbent agriculture minister and three of his federal critics are so far confirmed for a pre-election debate on farming issues later this month. The Canadian Federation of Agriculture, working with media partner (and operator of this website) Glacier FarmMedia, will host the national agriculture leaders’ debate on Sept. 30 in Ottawa. Western […] Read more
Federal farm politicians lining up for debate
YOUTH AG-SUMMIT:’Thought leaders’ consider farming’s future
Sustainability, leadership and innovation in agriculture guided four days of learning, debating and discussion among young “thought leaders” from 33 countries at this week’s Youth Ag-Summit. The event, held in Canberra, Australia from Aug. 24 to 27, and organized by Bayer CropScience and the Australian youth organization Future Farmers Network, was set up to build […] Read more
YOUTH AG-SUMMIT: Food challenges in focus
Feeding the nine billion-plus people expected to be living on our planet by 2050, from a land base that’s not expected to get any bigger, is the question posed to young “thought leaders” at this year’s Youth Ag-Summit. Grainews and Country Guide field editor Lisa Guenther is in Canberra this week for the event, hosted […] Read more
Severe ‘food shocks’ seen more likely due to extreme weather
London | Reuters — Extreme weather such as intense storms, droughts and heatwaves will cause more frequent and severe food shortages as the global climate and food supply systems change, British and U.S. experts warned Friday. The pressure on the world’s food supplies is so great, and the increase in extreme weather events so rapid, […] Read more
After food, now Russia burns Dutch flowers
Moscow | Reuters –– A week after angering many in Russia by burning illegally imported Western food, authorities have started feeding Dutch flowers to the flames. Officials say blooms from the Netherlands, which supplies much of Russia’s US$2.5 billion flower market, pose safety risks because they may be infected. Critics say the “flower war” marks […] Read more
Russia to add more countries to food import ban list
Moscow | Reuters — Russia said on Tuesday it planned to add new countries to the list of those from which it has banned food imports in retaliation for western sanctions imposed on Moscow over the Ukraine crisis. Deputy Prime Minister Arkady Dvorkovich did not name the countries to be added to the list. “I […] Read more
Study of bumblebee decline points to climate ‘vise’
A study of the shrinking range of bumblebee habitat suggests farmers relying on those species to pollinate crops may soon have to look elsewhere, barring a reversal of climate change — or, perhaps, an “assisted migration.” An international study of specimens from 31 species of bumblebees in North America and 36 such species in Europe, as […] Read more
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