Category: Observer

Raising and marketing livestock in America is not going to get any easier.

In the US, a battle is being waged by animal activists against confined pork production. The main battlefield is California, but it’s going to affect the entire nation, and probably Canada, because of the anticipated ripple effect.

Photo credit: Getty Images

If the King of England himself still approved Canadian laws, he’d surely delight at giving the royal nod to Bill S-227, An Act to Establish Food Day in Canada.

The bill, led by Senator Rob Black of Fergus, was passed in Parliament on Monday. It designates the Monday of the Civic Holiday (the first weekend in August) Food Day in Canada, an initiative created two decades ago by the late Canadian food activist Anita Stewart of Elora.

When Canadian farm income forecasts dropped 300 per cent in 2000 and a benefit concert was planned in Toronto to raise money for beleaguered farmers, who was one of the first to lend their name to the cause – and one of the biggest draws?

Gordon Lightfoot.

Japan is an excellent market for Canadian food exports – sophisticated, well-heeled and discerning. It’s Canada’s third-largest market for agriculture and food overall, and the second largest for beef. Photo credit: Canada Beef Inc.

We’re witnessing some challenging times in world politics, and it’s likely that agriculture is going to get brought into the fray sooner than later. Photo credit: CNN

The next time you plunk down $60,000 or so for a new pickup truck, ask the dealer: why can’t I get a $50 AM radio in it?

Photo credit: Sarah Grillo/Axios

A few years ago, researchers set out to find out how Americans, caught up in a frenzy of real or pending animal welfare litigation, felt about a dairy housing system called tie stalls.

Photo credit: Getty Images

Good for Ontario for committing more resources to increased veterinary education and addressing what many call a veterinary crisis in the province.
Photo credit: Ontario Veterinary College

Uh oh.
News has come out of the US that a Buffalo Wild Wings franchise restaurant in Chicago has been fingered for marketing white chicken meat nuggets as boneless chicken wings. Photo credit: Inspire Brands Inc.

I like Ontario Pork’s commitment to social responsibility, and the way it’s expressed in a new consumer-facing initiative – a magnificent cookbook called The Whole Hog.

Over the past decade, Ontario Pork and its 1,000-ish producer members have donated nearly 300,000 pounds of pork to Feed Ontario, the umbrella organization for Ontario food banks. That’s close to two million servings. Photo credit: Ontario Pork

Inflation is likely to keep consumers home this spring.

A new poll of 50,000 panelists conducted for the Ontario Produce Marketing Association says over the next three months, rising costs will force people to cut back on spending money at restaurants and bars. About half of the respondents said they’ll make fewer trips out. Photo Credit: David Malan/Photographer’s Choice/Getty Images

If desperate times really do call for desperate measures, then we should all be keeping an eye on what’s being called a food crisis in North Korea. Photo credit: KCNA/Reuters

Governments are experimenting with assorted ways to help keep the people who elected them fed.

In many cases, that means financial assistance for food. This kind of help is vital, borne out by the historically high cost of food. Photo credit: lovefood.com

In a recent interview with the culinary publication Eater, American cultural icon Dolly Parton likened her love of traditional cooking to country music. Photo credit: Getty Images