File photo of a hog cooling off in a pond in the Philippines. (Stewart Hall/iStock/Getty Images)

Philippines checks for swine fever as pig deaths rise

Manila | Reuters — The Philippines has set up a crisis management team to determine if the deadly African swine fever virus has reached the country after officials detected a rise in pig deaths in some areas. The Bureau of Animal Industry had reported an increased mortality of pigs “raised by farmers in their backyards” […] Read more

(Merschman Seeds video screengrab via YouTube)

Corteva wins final OK for global launch of Enlist E3 soy

Chicago | Reuters — DowDuPont has won the final international regulatory approval needed, from the Philippines, for a global launch of a new line of genetically engineered soybeans, the company said on Thursday. The approval means seed companies can sell the soybeans, named Enlist E3, to farmers for planting as early as this spring without […] Read more

Cattle on pasture in the Philippines. (LeoLee/iStock/Getty Images)

Canadian cattle’s access to Philippines restored

The regulatory path has been cleared to resume exports of live Canadian cattle to the Philippines, reopening a market worth an estimated $8 million per year. The federal government on Monday announced the resumed export clearance, along with new market access for Canadian sheep and goat genetics exports to both Indonesia and the Philippines. The […] Read more

Expansion-minded Jollibee opened its first-ever Canadian outlet in Winnipeg at the end of 2016. (Dave Bedard photo)

Philippines’ Jollibee eyes deals to grow

Manila/Singapore | Reuters — Filipino billionaire Tony Tan Caktiong, who has built Jollibee Foods Corp. into a near-4,000 store purveyor of sweet-style spaghetti, burgers and fried chicken, is looking to buy existing brands in mature markets to help fuel future growth. Dominant at home, where Jollibee has 1,000 eponymous stores welcoming diners with its smiling […] Read more

(Peggy Greb photo courtesy ARS/USDA)

Troops to help cull fowl in Philippines’ bird flu battle

Manila | Reuters — The Philippines will deploy hundreds of troops to hasten a cull of about 600,000 fowl, the farm minister said on Wednesday, as part of efforts to rein in the Southeast Asian nation’s first outbreak of bird flu. There has been no case of human transmission after the flu was detected on […] Read more






Prime Minister Stephen Harper and Benigno Aquino, president of the Philippines, leave Parliament Hill at the end of Aquino’s visit to Ottawa. (Deb Ransom photo courtesy PMO)

Canada, Philippines to talk about free trade talks

Canada and the Philippines have launched “exploratory discussions” toward a possible free trade agreement, from which Canadian livestock and grain producers could expect to gain. Prime Minister Stephen Harper and the Philippines’ President Benigno Aquino announced the discussions Friday in Ottawa during Aquino’s state visit, which ends Saturday. A Canada-Philippines free trade agreement “would strengthen […] Read more