Ontario Agriculture

The network for agriculture in Ontario, Canada

National Agriculture Leaders Debate: It Can Be Watched online. What Should They Discuss? What Did You Think of the Debate?

Agricultural issues such as trade, business risk management, environmental sustainability, food safety, and a National Food Strategy will be key topics of discussion for the Minister of Agriculture and opposition party critics during the Canadian Federation of Agriculture's national debate, scheduled for Mon. April 11, 2011. 
 
WHAT: 
CFA National Agriculture Leaders Debate
 
WHO: 
  • Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food, Gerry Ritz
  • André Bellavance, Bloq Québécois agriculture critic
  • Wayne Easter, Liberal agriculture critic 
  • Pat Martin, NDP representative
  • Kate Storey, Green Party agriculture representative
WHEN: 
Monday, April 11, 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. 
 
Here is the link to the CFA website where it will be streamed.

Views: 108

▶ Reply to This

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Joe Dales on April 12, 2011 at 1:15am

It took a couple of hours to watch the Agriculture Leaders debate.

I did find it to be entertaining but with out much substance.

The party ag leaders did make some points and presented some their party's agri platforms.

 

The NDP Ag Policy can be found in “Food for Thought.” Report.

Here is the link:   http://xfer.ndp.ca/FoodForThought/EN.pdf

 

The Green Party was particularly interesting - No to GMOs...they want small farms, local processing and more organic production.  I don't think their ag platform is very modern farm friendly.

 

All the parties were supportive of Supply Management.

 

Joe

Permalink Reply by OntAG Admin on April 12, 2011 at 2:00am

Here is the link to the online taped video of the Ag Leaders Debate.

 

http://www.cfa-fca.ca/national-agriculture-leaders-debate-live

Permalink Reply by John Schwartzentruber on April 12, 2011 at 2:04am

So how do you think the multinational processors would view the Green's position? As a bit of a threat to their dominance perhaps?

 

What might we learn from that?

 

Whatever one's view of the Green Party might be, if they propose something that would actually contribute to fair returns for work and goods produced rather than being paid subsistence value for generic, bulk commodities that enrich the remote multinationals, then they have at least that redemptive feature to their credit.

 

How well has the mainstream served the interests of  even the modern farm? And a fair answer would include the views of hog and cattle farmers.

 

Ritz was less than honest.

 

▶ Reply to Discussion

RSS

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

July Heat Wave Puts Midwest Corn and Soybeans Under Pressure

A major heat wave is building across the central and eastern United States, raising concerns for corn and soybean crops as July begins.

- Derecho climatology (Gaustini/Bosart): a corridor through the northern Plains/upper Midwest carries a >65% annual chance of a derecho-strength MCS, driven by northwest flow on the ridge's periphery. We must watch this region over the next 60 days. More on this below... - Cold North Atlantic: Years with the current North Atlantic cold-tongue pattern favor western troughs + heat pushing into the Midwest. Caveat: rapid warming on the south side of the cold plume means the simple composite likely understates the evolving pattern. Plus the Gulf of Alaska has been warming which could negate these impacts. See this part of the video for a deeper dive. - Modeling caution: During Summer, global models like the ECMWF and GFS are at their weakest due to coarse resolution and their inability to resolve convection. So we lean on the hi-res models like the HRRR and then ensembles for large scale anomalies. Be very careful with model forecasts to total precipitation... - National yield projection

A major heat wave is building across the central and eastern United States, raising concerns for corn and soybean crops as July begins. Nutrien’s Eric Snodgrass says producers should closely monitor high heat, overnight temperatures, derecho risk and dry pockets in key growing regions.

Swine Health Advisory Committee Sets Five Focus Areas

The Swine Health advisory committee is focused on turning strategy into action. To help advance the National Swine Health Strategy, the committee identified five focus areas that will drive action and measurable progress for U.S. pork producers. A Producer-Led Push for Swine Health Pork producers need a swine health strategy that actually works on the farm. The Swine Health advisory committee was created to make sure that happens. For the inaugural meeting in May, the advisory committee’s twenty-seven producers, veterinarians, USDA staff and packers/processors met in Des Moines and left with a clear direction: build on what’s working and accelerate action. The National Swine Health Strategy (NSHS) only succeeds if it reflects producers’ needs, and the advisory committee is responsible for ensuring it delivers. The advisory committee identified five focus areas to drive measurable progress in swine health. The Top 5 Focus Areas Driving Progress Build Industry Buy-In for the NSHS Fi

Closing the Gaps: New Research Investments Support Swine Disease Elimination

The Swine Disease Research task force recently funded new PRRSV and PEDV research projects that support National Swine Health Strategy priorities. These projects aim to close critical knowledge gaps and provide producers with practical information to support disease elimination efforts. Disease elimination doesn’t happen with a single breakthrough. It happens when the industry asks and answers the hard questions that still stand in the way. New research projects recently selected by the Swine Disease Research task force will address those hard questions. Each project aligns with the National Swine Health Strategy (NSHS) priority of eliminating endemic diseases, addresses key knowledge gaps and aims to deliver information to help producers make better herd health decisions. The latest research investments concentrate on two diseases that continue to challenge U.S. pork production: porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (PRRSV) and porcine epidemic diarrhea virus (PEDV).

Cereals Canada 2025 Annual Report Highlights $12.8B Exports and Global Market Strength

Cereals Canada’s 2025 Annual Report underscores strong export performance, expanding global demand, and continued investment in quality, innovation, and customer relationships.

© 2026   Created by Darren Marsland.   Powered by

Badges  |  Report an Issue  |  Terms of Service