Washington | Reuters — A law firm representing small U.S. refineries has urged the Environmental Protection Agency to keep refiners’ applications for waivers from the nation’s biofuel policy secret from the Department of Agriculture, arguing that the petitions include confidential business information. The request, made by Perkins Coie in a letter to the EPA dated […] Read more
U.S. refiners urge EPA to keep biofuel waiver requests secret from USDA
FAO, OECD see swine fever in China among risks to food markets
Paris | Reuters — The spread of a deadly pig disease in China that has disrupted the world’s biggest pork market is one of the major risks to a well-supplied global agricultural sector, the FAO and OECD said on Monday. African swine fever was highlighted in the annual agricultural outlook for 2019-2028 from the Food […] Read more
Chinese envoy says Syngenta takeover was a bad deal
Zurich | Reuters — Beijing’s ambassador to Switzerland said ChemChina’s US$43 billion takeover of seed and agrochemicals firm Syngenta was a mistake, adding he would have tried to stop the 2017 deal had he been in Bern at the time, a newspaper reported in an interview on Saturday. “If I had been the ambassador a […] Read more
Trudeau, China’s Xi had ‘positive’ discussions as dispute rages
Ottawa | Reuters — Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Chinese President Xi Jinping had “positive, constructive interactions” on the sidelines of the G20 summit on Friday as a dispute between the two countries rages, Trudeau’s office said. Trudeau spoke “more than once” to Xi during a meeting of the Group of 20 leading economies […] Read more
Bayer seeks glyphosate litigation advice as Elliott reveals stake
Frankfurt | Reuters — Chemicals giant Bayer , under pressure from activist shareholders, said on Wednesday it has hired an external lawyer to advise its supervisory board and has set up a committee to help resolve a multi-billion dollar glyphosate litigation issue. Bayer has seen its share price tumble in the wake of its US$63 […] Read more
U.S. CFTC awards nearly US$2.5 million to Cargill whistleblower
Chicago | Reuters — The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission has awarded about US$2.5 million to a whistleblower in a 2017 case against global grain trader Cargill over alleged violations in how it handled trades, the agency said Tuesday. The award, while significant in size, was reduced “because of the whistleblower’s delay in reporting” the […] Read more
Farm labour shortage seen costing billions, expected to rise
Ottawa | Reuters — Canada’s farm labour deficit is expected to double by 2029 to 123,000 workers, or one in three jobs, as shortages continue to hit the sector’s bottom line, the Canadian Agriculture Human Resource Council said on Tuesday. Farmers in Canada have long reported challenges in recruiting farm workers because the rural-based work […] Read more
U.S. launches criminal probe into alleged chicken price fixing by Tyson, rivals
Reuters — The U.S. Department of Justice has begun a criminal probe into allegations that Tyson Foods and other poultry processors including Pilgrim’s Pride and Sanderson Farms colluded to fix poultry prices, court documents show. The DOJ filed a motion to intervene and stay discovery of evidence in an antitrust lawsuit involving the companies and […] Read more
Canopy Growth Q4 revenue beats as cannabis sales soar
Reuters — Pot producer Canopy Growth reported better-than-expected quarterly revenue on Thursday, as efforts to strengthen its retail operations paid off and increased production capacity resulted in higher sales following Canada’s legalization of recreational cannabis. Marijuana companies in Canada have been pouring cash into their businesses to open stores and expand operations as the list […] Read more
Canada opens probe into GM pickups, SUVs over brake performance
Reuters — Transport Canada, the auto safety regulator, has opened a probe into braking issues in nearly 250,000 General Motors full-size pickups and SUVs after U.S. officials launched a similar probe last year, the agency said on its website. The U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) in November into 2.73 million U.S. 2014-2016 model […] Read more
Canadian Cattlemen Presents: Depth of Field
