Panama City | Reuters — The Panama Canal will next month impose new draft restrictions on ships due to falling water levels at nearby lakes that form part of the waterway, the authority that administers the canal said in a statement Monday. Ships seeking to cross the waterway must comply with a maximum depth limit […] Read more
Panama Canal sets depth limit on ships due to drought
France moves toward all-out ban on neonics
Paris | Reuters — French lawmakers approved plans for a total ban on some widely used pesticides blamed for harming bees, going beyond European Union restrictions in a fierce debate that has pitched farmers and chemical firms against beekeepers and green groups. The EU limited the use of neonicotinoid chemicals, produced by companies including Bayer […] Read more
Cuban export opportunities eyed for U.S. farmers
Lima | Reuters –– U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack said Tuesday that farm officials want to lay the groundwork so U.S. agricultural exporters can seize new opportunities in Cuba if the trade embargo on the country is lifted. The normalization of trade relations would allow U.S. farmers to use lower transportation costs to edge […] Read more
EU promises protesting farmers more help, no new money
Brussels | Reuters — The European Commission announced more help for the agriculture sector on Monday, following protests by farmers who say they have been hit hard by a Russian ban on Western food imports. The focus of the support package is on the dairy, pigmeat, fruit and vegetable sectors. It includes measures such as […] Read more
Peru lifts trade barriers to U.S. beef
Washington, D.C. | Reuters — Peru has agreed to lift its remaining safety barriers to U.S. beef exports, further opening one of the fastest-growing markets in Latin America to U.S. ranchers, Obama administration officials said Monday. U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman and Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said the agreement with Lima will remove certification requirements […] Read more
La Nina seen maybe succeeding El Nino
Reuters — A U.S. government weather forecaster said Thursday it sees a near 50 per cent chance La Nina could develop by the Northern Hemisphere fall on the heels of the El Nino conditions likely to dissipate in the coming months. The Climate Prediction Center (CPC), an agency of the U.S. National Weather Service, in […] Read more
Cargill moves to cut antibiotic use in cattle by 20 per cent
Reuters — Cargill, a top U.S. meat processor, is trimming the use of antibiotics in its cattle supply amid concerns among some doctors and consumers about risks to humans from antibiotic-resistant bacteria. The company on Feb. 26 started eliminating 20 per cent of antibiotics deemed important for human medicine and farm animals from its four […] Read more
Egypt quarantine authority to ban ergot until new laws passed
Cairo | Reuters — Egypt’s agriculture quarantine authority will continue to apply a zero ergot policy on wheat shipments until new legislation is issued, the new head of the authority told Reuters on Tuesday. Former quarantine chief Saad Moussa’s zero-tolerance policy on common grains fungus ergot resulted in shipments to the world’s biggest importer of […] Read more
Egypt to allow trace ergot in wheat
Cairo | Reuters –– Egypt will allow wheat imports with trace levels of the ergot fungus of up to 0.05 per cent, the agriculture ministry said Monday, a day after the head of its agriculture quarantine authority was changed. Former quarantine head Saad Moussa’s zero tolerance policy on ergot had led to shipments to the […] Read more
World food prices stable in February near seven-year low
Rome | Reuters –– World food prices stabilized in February, as rising vegetable oil and meat prices offset declining cereal, sugar and dairy prices, the United Nations food agency said Thursday. The Food and Agriculture Organization’s (FAO) food price index, which measures monthly changes for a basket of cereals, oilseeds, dairy products, meat and sugar, […] Read more
Canadian Cattlemen Presents: Depth of Field
