Photo: yalcinsonat1/iStock/Getty Images

Food and beverage sales to fall in 2024; processor margins to improve

Stabilizing or declining input prices working their way through the supply chain, FCC says

Farm Credit Canada is predicting Canadian food and beverage sales will fall slightly this year as consumers manage tight budgets. Gross margins, however, should increase as the effects of falling commodity prices work their way through the supply chain, the farm lender said in an April 9 news release.

(Subjug/iStock/Getty Images)

New Zealand, Canada each claim wins in CPTPP dairy dispute

Dispute panel knocks Canada's dairy access rules

A dispute settlement panel called by New Zealand under the Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) trade pact has ruled Canada’s limits on dairy market access cramp its agreed-upon obligations. But despite the panel’s findings in New Zealand’s favour, Canada is also framing the panel’s ruling as a win — as it also generally upholds Canada’s ability to […] Read more


David Wiens. (Photo: CNW Group/Dairy Farmers of Canada)

Manitoba dairyman named to lead national body

David Wiens elected president of Dairy Farmers of Canada

The vice-president of Dairy Farmers of Canada has levelled up to lead the organization following elections at its annual meeting Wednesday in Winnipeg. David Wiens, who farms with his brother at Grunthal, Man., about 50 km southeast of Winnipeg, replaces Pierre Lampron, an organic dairy farmer in Quebec’s Mauricie region and DFC president since 2017. […] Read more

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland walk with copies of the 2023-24 budget on Parliament Hill in Ottawa on March 28, 2023. (Photo: Reuters/Patrick Doyle)

Interest-free cash advances get extra lift in federal budget

Fertilizer diversification, solids non-fat processing also up for funding

Federal Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland’s latest budget envelope for Canadian farmers up against rising costs of production includes a temporary boost to the interest-free portion of cash advances. Freeland’s 2023 federal budget, released Tuesday, includes $13 million in 2023-24 for Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada to temporarily increase the interest-free limit for loans under its Advance […] Read more