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Climate change worries Canadian farmers: poll

Data shows east-west split over climate, cost and government concerns

A poll released Dec. 11 suggests that Canadian farmers worry more about the impacts of climate change than they do about input costs and market prices for canola, corn, wheat and cattle.




Cranberry beans grown in Grey County on 15-inch rows are fairing better at the flower-pin bean stage than many of their southwestern Ontario counterparts this season.  July 16, 2024.

Government funds soybean climate-change resistance research

Performance Plants Inc. (PPI) is getting a multi-year federal funding boost through the AgriScience Program – Projects Component. Over four years, the agricultural biotechnology developer will receive $2,325,361 to develop a high-yielding, climate change-resistant soybean and enable field testing. “Soybean farming is a cornerstone of agriculture here in Canada,” said Lawrence MacAulay, Minister of Agriculture […] Read more

Canada is getting warmer and wetter, mostly in the winter and in the North, says the research lead with Agri-Food Economic Systems.

Producers’ climate change strategy: mitigate or adapt?

An economist argues Canadian farmers should be adapting to climate change rather than focus strictly on mitigation

Glacier FarmMedia – Canadian farmers could benefit from climate change, says an Ontario agricultural economist. That’s not a popular perspective, since mitigating climate change and reducing emissions from food production have become the main priorities in Canadian agriculture. Why it matters: An economist believes farmers could benefit from changes related to climate change. However, Al […] Read more

Migrant workers clean fields in California’s Salinas Valley on March 30, 2020. (Photo: Reuters/Shannon Stapleton)

Farmworkers in the US cultivate their own heat safety standards

Fair Food Program seeks to circumvent slow regulatory process

While regulations to protect agricultural workers from the heat have been held up by political wrangling, Gonzalo and her colleagues have spearheaded an alternate strategy. They seek to sidestep the slow and increasingly politicized government machinery and instead appeal directly to consumers and large brands.


Panelists talk about agricultural sustainability at the 2024 Canadian Crops Conference in Winnipeg in early March.

Agriculture needs better frame for carbon value, says panel

Farmers and industry need to join forces to guide the conversation on carbon and climate change

Glacier FarmMedia – The agriculture industry can still get a hand on the reins of climate change discussions, said members of a panel at the 2024 Canadian Crops Convention in Winnipeg. Why it matters: Farmers are being pushed to be more sustainable and to have evidence to support sustainability claims. Kristjan Hebert was the farmer […] Read more

Ted Zettel says recent research showing grain-fed beef has less of a carbon impact failed to account for the long-term capacity of pasture to sequester carbon.

Conference panelist questions research favouring grain-finished beef

Ted Zettel says carbon sequestration from pasture should give grass-fed the nod

Comparing the climate impact of grass-fed versus grain-fed beef isn’t straightforward, according to panelists at the Guelph Organic Conference. A recent study claimed grain-fed beef has less of a carbon impact, but Chepstow-based farmer Ted Zettel believes it failed to account for the long-term capacity of pasture-based farming to sequester carbon from the atmosphere. Why […] Read more