Manitoba Conservative MP James Bezan (l) and ag and trade critics Luc Berthold and Randy Hoback (centre) meet with farm and canola sector representatives including Keystone Agricultural Producers president Bill Campbell (right) and canola grower Brian Chorney (second from left) on April 24, 2019. (Dave Bedard photo)

Canada promises farm aid amid China canola spat

Ottawa/Winnipeg | Reuters — Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Tuesday said Ottawa would soon announce help for canola farmers hurt by a China ban on imports of the oilseed but brushed off calls to pull funding for a Chinese-led investment bank. China and Canada are locked in a diplomatic and trade dispute that has […] Read more

(Aodaodaod/iStock/Getty Images)

Canadian farm exports hit new Chinese obstacles amid diplomatic dispute

Winnipeg/Beijing | Reuters — An expanding list of Canadian farm exports is hitting obstacles at Chinese ports, leaving sellers of soybeans, peas and pork scrambling amid a bitter diplomatic dispute. China has already blocked Canadian canola from Richardson International and Viterra, two of Canada’s biggest farm exporters, saying that shipments had pests. Other China-bound canola […] Read more



(Richardson Pioneer via YouTube)

China blocks some Richardson canola shipments

Beijing/Kabul | Reuters — China has canceled Canadian agribusiness Richardson International’s registration to ship canola to China, the company said on Tuesday, the latest sign of tensions between Ottawa and Beijing. It was not immediately clear why exports to China by Richardson, the world’s top importer of canola, had been halted. Canada and China are […] Read more

The arrest in Vancouver of Huawei chief financial officer Meng Wanzhou, shown here with Russian President Vladimir Putin at an investment forum in Moscow in October 2014, has further dampened hopes of revived commodity flows between the U.S. and China. (File photo: Reuters/Alexander Bibik)

Canadian canola runs into Chinese delays after Huawei arrest

Winnipeg/Beijing | Reuters — A political dispute between China and Canada over the arrest of a Huawei executive is slowing canola shipments through Chinese ports and causing some importers to hesitate to buy from their biggest supplier, according to interviews with a dozen traders. Since Canadian authorities arrested Huawei chief financial officer Meng Wanzhou in […] Read more


File photo of an oil pumpjack near Drumheller, Alta. (LaughingMango/E+/Getty Images)

Bankrupt oil firms must clean up inactive wells, Supreme Court rules

Ottawa/Winnipeg | Reuters — Canada’s Supreme Court ruled on Thursday that bankrupt oil companies must clean up inactive wells, overturning lower court decisions that prioritized paying creditors and potentially raising the risks of investment in the industry. The 5-2 ruling means that the Alberta Energy Regulator (AER), which had appealed the earlier court decisions, can […] Read more

(PortMetroVancouver.com)

Rail now moving fluidly through Vancouver, CN says

Winnipeg | Reuters — Congestion at Port Metro Vancouver, Canada’s busiest port, has been resolved and rail operations are now “fluid,” Canadian National Railway said Friday. Canadian National and rival Canadian Pacific Railway were rationing space on trains travelling in the Vancouver area and prioritized some commodities over others to deal with congestion, causing complaints […] Read more

(File photo by Dave Bedard)

Railways ration space as commodity congestion problems worsen

Winnipeg | Reuters — Canada’s two major railways are rationing space on trains traveling to the country’s biggest port and recently prioritized some commodities over others to deal with congestion, the latest indication of their struggle to meet demand from new trade deals. That move prompted Canada’s transport regulator last week to start an investigation […] Read more


Strip steak with mushrooms. (Photo courtesy Canada Beef Inc.)

Pacific pact spurs Canadian ag sales to Japan as U.S. watches

Winnipeg | Reuters — At the Canadian embassy in Tokyo last month, beef promoters flew in a chef from Canada to cook New York strip steaks for hungry Japanese importers and restaurant suppliers. The annual Canadian beef buffet reception attracted 126 people, up sharply from the usual 30 to 40. A trade deal among Pacific […] Read more

Nutrien eyeing expansion of nitrogen plants

CEO Chuck Magro says building up existing assets is the most cost-effective way to capitalize on rising prices

Reuters – Nutrien, the world’s biggest crop nutrient producer by capacity, is looking at expanding several nitrogen fertilizer plants in North America due to rising prices, chief executive officer Chuck Magro said last month. Nitrogen prices have climbed as China’s shutdown of coal-fired plants and rising European costs of natural gas, a key ingredient in […] Read more