Ontario Agriculture

The network for agriculture in Ontario, Canada

Day 3: Visit to the Canadian Embassy and more

Our morning began with a great breakfast at the hotel followed by a speaker from ASOEX which is the Chilean Association of Fruit Exports. As a not for profit organization, they facilitate the export process, stimulate research and innovation and encourage industry training by defending the sectors interests, managing agreements, administration of inspection sites and opening new markets for producers. 

The Canadian Embassy then welcomed our class and provided a great overview of our strong relationship. Both Chile and Canada are like-minded and Chile’s first free trade agreement was with Canada. In 2014, Canada exported $1.1 billion in goods and imported $1.7 billion worth of goods from Chile. We learned that despite Chile's access to fresh fish and delicious wine, they prefer beef and beer!

We visited Fundacion, Chile which is a half public and half private entity where funds are split between the two sectors. They fuel the Chilean economy by supporting innovative up and coming businesses through marketing plans and access to angel investors. They provide value through creation of new businesses, facilitation initiatives (connecting people from different industries) and professional services. Success stories include the salmon and blueberry markets that export around the world.

At our last stop El Mercurio hosted us. El Mercurio is the oldest newspaper in Chile operating for over 40 years through many significant government and agronomic changes. They print a specialized magazine specifically relating to agriculture targeting investment, public and farmer awareness of global issues. Production technical issues are handled through a website.

We are excited for what tomorrow will bring. Thanks for following along.

-Class 15

Views: 301

Comment

You need to be a member of Ontario Agriculture to add comments!

Join Ontario Agriculture

Agriculture Headlines from Farms.com Canada East News - click on title for full story

Bull Rider TJ Gray Wins PRCA Top Gun Award at 2025 National Finals Rodeo

Oregon bull rider TJ Gray captured the PRCA Top Gun Award at the 2025 Wrangler NFR, winning big and making history.

B.C. mink farmers drop legal challenge of ban, citing costs after four-year fight

Mink farmers in British Columbia and elsewhere in Canada are dropping their legal challenge over a pandemic-era ban in the province due to legal fees they say are “far beyond their means.” The British Columbia Mink Producers Association and the Canada Mink Breeders Association had been petitioning for a judicial review of the province’s ban on mink farming and had been challenging the policy decision, which dates back to November 2021. In a statement, the mink farmers say they remain angry at the move by the province, which they describe as driven by “an aggressive anti-fur lobby.” The farmers say they have fought the province unsuccessfully in several separate court attempts while no financial compensation has been offered to operators who had to tear down their farms. The B.C. Court of Appeal ruled in August that the farmers’ lawsuits have “no reasonable prospect of success” and dismissed a bid for damages against the province, provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry, and othe

Oilseed crushing and major grain deliveries statistics, November 2025

Oilseed crushing statistics Data on oilseed crushing are now available for November 2025. Deliveries of major grains Deliveries of major grains across Canada rose by 14.2% in November from the same month the previous year, totalling 5.6 million tonnes. Increases in total wheat (+21.0% to 3.4 million tonnes), canola (+11.1% to 1.6 million tonnes), and rye (+11.2% to 11.9 thousand tonnes) contributed to higher deliveries. Major grains include wheat (excluding durum), durum wheat, oats, barley, rye, flaxseed and canola. Focus on Canada and the United States Producer deliveries capture grain that is destined for a primary elevator, feed mill, crushing plant or flour mill. This includes grain elevators that hold grain before it is exported, as well as shipments to US markets that are not licensed by the Canadian Grain Commission. The imposition of tariffs by the United States may have an impact on producer deliveries of major grains in the coming months. In 2024, Canada exported a tot

Parrish & Heimbecker to buy GrainsConnect Canada

Further consolidation of Western Canada’s grain sector is just around the corner. Parrish & Heimbecker (P&H) is purchasing GrainsConnect Canada (GCC), a joint venture currently owned by Australia’s GrainCorp and Japan’s Zen-Noh Grain Corp. GCC was formed by the two international firms in 2015. P&H is getting four high-capacity grain elevators as well as GCC’s 50 per cent stake in Fraser Grain Terminal at the Port of Vancouver. The elevators are in Reford, Sask., Maymont, Sask., Huxley, Alta., and Vegreville, Alta. The 35,000-tonne facilities are each equipped with 134-car rail loops. P&H has a longstanding partnership with GCC through its shared ownership of Fraser Grain Terminal. The port terminal exports up to four million tonnes of cereals, oilseeds, pulses and other commodities per year. It can handle and discharge 120 railcars and has 70,000 tonnes of storage. It can load grain into vessels at a rate of 2,000 tonnes per hour. The purchase is expected to close in early 2026

Farmers face new challenge as group 14-resistant kochia spreads across western Canada

A new study shows that Group 14-resistant kochia has developed and spread rapidly across Western Canada. Group 14 is an important herbicide group for controlling the prolific weed because it already has widespread resistance to glyphosate, a Group 9 product, and has long had resistance to Group 2 chemistries. Back in 2021, the first known case of Group 14-resistant kochia was discovered in West Central Saskatchewan. In 2022, it was discovered in North Dakota. Charles Geddes, a research scientist in weed ecology and cropping systems at Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada in Lethbridge is a leading expert on herbicide resistant weeds. His team designed genetic tests to identify Group 14 resistance using leaf tissue samples. This increased the speed and efficiency of identification. In a post recently published on Linked-in, Geddes has published a map showing instances of Group14 resistance across all three Prairie provinces. The greatest concentration is in the brown and dark brown so

© 2025   Created by Darren Marsland.   Powered by

Badges  |  Report an Issue  |  Terms of Service