(Dave Bedard photo)

France says will not ban glyphosate when no alternative

Saint-Genes-Champanelle, France | Reuters — France will not force farmers to stop using glyphosate after a ban planned within three years, in cases where an alternative has not been found, President Emmanuel Macron said on Thursday. He added that this would likely concern 10 per cent of farms while solutions could be found for the […] Read more


(PortMetroVancouver.com)

Officials aim to forge ahead with TPP as Canada wavers

Tokyo | Reuters — As trade officials gather in Tokyo this week to try and forge ahead with a trade pact that U.S. President Donald Trump abandoned last year, the new 11-member club risks getting bogged down by resistance from Canada. The member countries of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), also […] Read more

Using blockchain technology, the Easy Trading Connect platform is meant to help digitalize and standardize commodity transactions for paperless trading. (Video screengrab from INGwb.com)

U.S. soy cargo to China traded using blockchain

London | Reuters — A cargo of U.S. soybeans shipped to China has become the first fully-fledged agricultural trade conducted using blockchain, participants said Monday. Louis Dreyfus, Shandong Bohi Industry Co., ING, Societe Generale and ABN Amro took part in the trade where the sales contract, letter of credit and certificates were digitalized on the […] Read more


(Ville.montreal.qc.ca)

Montreal round of NAFTA talks extended to Jan. 29

Mexico City | Reuters — The upcoming round of talks in Montreal to update the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) will be extended by one day and will now conclude Jan. 29, Canadian and Mexican sources told Reuters on Thursday. Trade negotiators from the U.S., Canada and Mexico were originally scheduled to meet from […] Read more

(Limagrain.com)

Limagrain says GMO protests could force R+D relocation

Paris | Reuters — Limagrain, the world’s fourth-largest seed maker, will consider moving its research activities out of France if field trials in its home market continue to be sabotaged by opponents of genetically modified crops. The French co-operative group was targeted last month by protestors who invaded test fields southeast of Paris and scattered […] Read more


(USDA.gov via Flickr)

USDA raises corn harvest view

Washington | Reuters — The U.S. Agriculture Department on Friday boosted its estimate of domestic corn production due to a record yield that stemmed from bumper harvests in major growing states such as Illinois as well as some of the smaller production areas. USDA also trimmed its view of soybean production, although the 2017 crop […] Read more



[VIDEO] Chicken poo power as an alternative to coal?

Israeli researchers have developed a way to mimic coal formation by heating wet chicken waste, potentially providing an alternative energy source to that fossil fuel and find a use for growing amounts of waste from poultry. – Amy Pollock reports for Reuters.