

Hemp poised for year of gains
Nationwide increase in acres expected
MarketsFarm — The hemp industry in Canada is set for a good year in 2021, according to Canadian Hemp Trade Association (CHTA) CEO Ted Haney. “It looks like we are looking at another 15 to 20 per cent increase in seeded acres nationally, which should take us over the 100,000-acre level for sure,” he said. […] Read more

Rural, remote crime targeted in Tory MP’s bill
Bill would consider crimes' settings during sentencing
An Alberta Conservative MP is trying to tackle rural crime by introducing a law that would punish more severely those accused of targeting remote, and vulnerable, people or property. Red Deer-Lacombe MP Blaine Calkins introduced his private member’s bill for first reading in the House of Commons on Tuesday. “Rural Canadians too often don’t feel […] Read more

Canada weighs tighter rules for grow-your-own pot producers
Spending on illicit pot still ahead of legal purchases
Reuters — Canada on Monday launched a public consultation seeking to tighten rules for individuals who are allowed to grow their own medical cannabis, in an effort to clamp down on pot seeping into black markets. In a draft guidance issued for the consultation, Health Canada highlighted recent police raids and arrests at production sites […] Read more

Wet or dry spring ahead? Depends on where in Canada
MarketsFarm — There will be increased in risk of flooding this spring in British Columbia, western Alberta and parts of Eastern Canada, according to a report Friday from AccuWeather. Meanwhile, dry conditions are expected to continue across the Prairies. AccuWeather’s report forecasts below-normal temperatures for B.C. and western Alberta going into spring. That could delay […] Read more

Cash-strapped pot producers raise billions in market rally
Cannabis firms seen as down in the weeds until recent surge
Reuters — A political shift in the United States has unlocked an estimated US$1.38 billion jackpot for struggling pot producers who have cashed in on a surge in their shares since President Joe Biden’s election in November. Cannabis producers have issued stock worth this amount in the first five weeks of 2021, investment firm Viridian […] Read more

Pot producer Canopy Growth sees profit in 2022
Costs cut, revenue increasing
Reuters — Canopy Growth Corp., the world’s largest pot producer, said on Tuesday it expects to turn a profit in the second half of 2022 after aggressive cost-cutting and higher demand for cannabis products helped narrow third-quarter losses. Canadian pot producers have been under pressure from investors seeking returns as profits remain elusive due to […] Read more

Provinces’ feet held to fire on AgriStability
Ministers' meeting co-chairs push for progress to allow changes to be made retroactive for 2020
The co-chairs of Canada’s agriculture ministers’ meeting are pushing to get proposed improvements to AgriStability in place sooner than later. Federal Agriculture Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau and her Ontario counterpart, Ernie Hardeman, “urge all provincial and territorial ministers to support the proposed changes to the AgriStability program,” they said in a joint statement Tuesday. At a […] Read more

People growing too much pot at home, Health Canada warns
Pressure on to prevent abuse of home-grow program
Reuters — Health Canada on Thursday raised concerns about the large quantity of medical marijuana people were growing at home, after its data showed a significant jump in daily average production permitted by health care practitioners. While the practitioners can allow registered patients to grow a limited amount at home for personal use, the regulator’s […] Read more

AgriStability proposal could have hidden cost, Pedersen warns
Manitoba's ag minister warns Bibeau's plan may hurt crop insurance, AgriInvest funding
Ottawa’s proposal for an improved AgriStability program could give farmers short-term gain for long-term pain, Manitoba’s agriculture minister Blaine Pedersen warns. At the online federal-provincial-territorial agriculture ministers’ meeting on Friday, federal Agriculture Minister Marie Claude Bibeau proposed dropping AgriStability’s maximum reference margin, and increasing the compensation rate from 70 to 80 per cent retroactively this […] Read more

No BRM breakthrough reached at ministers’ meeting
AgMins fail to find solution to business risk management program woes
No consensus on changes to business risk managements (BRM) programming was reached during the latest round of federal-provincial-territorial agriculture ministers’ meetings. After the meetings ended Friday, federal Agriculture Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau explained Ottawa was willing to maintain the current cost sharing of the programs at a 60-40 split between her government and the provinces. Bibeau’s […] Read more