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Produce packing innovation extends shelf-life, replaces ice, and creates transport efficiencies

Verdant Technologies is expanding the adoption of its HarvestHold Fresh product in Canada to improve the sustainability and efficiency of the North American broccoli supply chain. HarvestHold Fresh is an in-box sheet that uses an industry-standard ingredient, widely used in commodities like apples and flowers for more than two decades to extend freshness and shelf-life. HarvestHold Fresh is placed in produce boxes immediately after harvest to slow ripening and maturation so that produce can maintain its vitality and taste for longer. This innovation eliminates the need for ice when transporting broccoli, significantly reducing water use and optimizing space, which creates a more sustainable method of shelf-life preservation and makes transportation more efficient.

Empire Company Limited, parent company of Sobeys Inc. was the first major grocery retailer in North America to adopt the technology. Since 2022, Empire’s growing partners have been using the ice-less HarvestHold technology in bunch broccoli packing in Quebec and Ontario at its Sobeys, IGA, Foodland, and FreschCo banner stores. The collaboration is a major development in building a more sustainable and efficient broccoli supply chain. In 2024, the partners plan to expand nationally as part of a new supply chain innovation and sustainability initiative.

Produce packing innovation extends shelf-life, replaces ice,

Groundwork BioAg expands Global commercialisation of mycorrhizal inoculants

Groundwork BioAg announced that its flagship mycorrhizal inoculant – Rootella – has been approved for commercialisation in China, Argentina, and South Africa, expanding farmers’ access to a climate-smart solution to optimise plant and soil health, adding approximately 677 million acres (274 million hectares) of harvested cropland to the company’s potential customer base.  

Over the last few years, Groundwork BioAg expanded commercialisation in the United States, Brazil, India, Canada, Ukraine, and other countries in Europe. With the addition of China, Argentina, and South Africa, the company and its local partners can offer farmers – including those in four of the top agricultural markets – access to the most highly concentrated mycorrhizal inoculant products available.

“Growers face mounting environmental and financial pressures to produce the food, fuel and fibre the world demands,” said Hanan Dor, Chief Commercial Officer at Groundwork BioAg. “As the leading mycorrhizal inoculant supplier, Groundwork BioAg is committed to partnering with local distributors to provide nature-based solutions that fit into modern farming practices and align with the world’s sustainability goals.”

Groundwork BioAg expands Global commercialisation of mycorrhizal

The new treatment for cereal grains provides powerful protection against early-season seed and seedling diseases.

Corteva, Inc. has announced the commercial launch of Straxan™ fungicide seed treatment in Canada, bringing farmers a new, ready-to-use and easy-to-apply formulation that targets prominent seed and soil-borne cereal diseases.

The latest offering from Corteva Agriscience’s leading cereal protection portfolio, Straxan fungicide seed treatment provides advanced protection against early season diseases – such as Fusarium species, Rhizoctonia, true loose smut and more – to help maximize crop stand establishment and yield potential. This level of protection is a result of Straxan fungicide seed treatment’s high-quality formulation of proven active ingredients.

“Protecting yield potential from persistent diseases will always be a priority for cereal farmers, which is why it was important for us to bring a complete and versatile option like Straxan fungicide seed treatment to the Western Canadian market,” said Kirsten Ratzlaff, Portfolio Manager, Seed Applied Technologies & Biologicals, Corteva Agriscience. “In addition to its strong disease protection, Straxan offers an easy-to-apply formulation that provides flexibility – both through commercial seed treaters and on-farm equipment – and stable application under varying conditions and temperatures.”

Straxan fungicide seed treatment is a highly compatible formulation and can be used with multiple seed treatment products. This includes Lumivia™ CPL insecticide seed treatment, which delivers the broadest cereal seedling insect protection on the market for long-lasting control of wireworms, cutworms and more. When mixed with Straxan fungicide seed treatment, farmers get a complete cereal seed treatment package.

“Seed treatments help crops get off to their best possible start, and Corteva continues to invest in R&D to deliver robust seed treatment offerings to Canadian farmers,” said Ratzlaff. “Straxan fungicide seed treatment fortifies Corteva’s industry-leading cereal protection portfolio, equipping farmers with a tool that will help each seed reach its genetic potential.”

The new treatment for cereal grains provides

Centre issues advisory for mandatory stock disclosure of Masur (lentil) with immediate effect

The Department of Consumer Affairs, Government of India has issued an advisory for mandatory stock disclosure of Masur (lentil) with immediate effect. All the stakeholders should mandatorily disclose their Masur stock on the stock disclosure portal (https://fcainfoweb.nic.in/psp) managed by the department every Friday. Any undisclosed stock if found, will be considered as hoarding and suitable action under the EC Act would be initiated.

Rohit Kumar Singh, Secretary of, the Department of Consumer Affairs, during the weekly price review meeting, instructed the department to broad-based the lentil buffer procurement. The objective is to procure available stocks at prices around the MSP. This came at a time when NAFED and NCCF had to suspend their tenders to purchase imported lentils due to exorbitantly high bids received from few suppliers amid hints of cartelisation.

Secretary, of Consumer Affairs, stated that at a time when lentil import flow increases from Canada and Tur imports from African countries, few players are trying to manipulate the market against the interest of the consumers and the Nation. The government is watching the developments very closely and will initiate stringent measures to get the stock released into the market so that the availability of all pulses at reasonable prices during the festival season is ensured.

He further added that judiciously balancing the interest of the farmers vis-à-vis the consumers is paramount and that the Department will not hesitate to initiate stern action against those trying to hurt the interest of Indian consumers and farmers in an unscrupulous manner.

Centre issues advisory for mandatory stock disclosure

Prairie Pulse’s operations in Vanscoy – which include origination, 12,000 MT of bulk storage, cleaning, milling, sorting, sizing and bagging – will double ADM’s pulse footprint in the region

ADM announced the acquisition of Prairie Pulse Inc., owners of a pulse crop cleaning, milling and packaging facility in Vanscoy, Saskatchewan, Canada.

“Everything at ADM starts with the farmer,” said Aaron Brown ADM commercial manager. “Their success is our success, and we’re excited to strengthen our relationships with Canadian pulse growers through the acquisition of Prairie Pulse. We’ll be reaching out to producers about ADM’s unique array of tools and resources to help them manage and grow their businesses – including our access to global markets, our work to create value for sustainable farming practices, and our technology partnerships.”

“This addition also expands our capabilities to meet the needs of our downstream customers, who are increasingly looking at pulses as protein sources for both human and animal nutrition products,” Brown added. “The enduring global trends of sustainability and food security are powering growth in alternative proteins, and ADM is continuing to invest to ensure we’re at the forefront of meeting those needs. We look forward to working with farmers and the great team at Prairie Pulse to expand employment opportunities in Vanscoy and enhance our capability to supply the growing demand for pulse products.“

Prairie Pulse’s operations in Vanscoy – which include origination, 12,000 MT of bulk storage, cleaning, milling, sorting, sizing and bagging – will double ADM’s pulse footprint in the region. The pulse dehulling and splitting facility transforms lentils, chickpeas and peas into shelf- and food-ready products for domestic and international consumption. 

”This is an exciting opportunity for Prairie Pulse, our staff, and customers,“ said Allan Wagner Prairie Pulse President and CEO. ”ADM is a global leader in agribusiness, transportation and processing, as well as the fast-growing alternative protein sector that our products serve.

Prairie Pulse’s operations in Vanscoy – which

Sierra is based on ADAMA’s unique formulation technology platform for improved consumer traits and robust efficacy on key broadleaf weeds

ADAMA Ltd. announces the registration of Sierra, its self-produced Saflufenacil-based herbicide formulation, the first off-patent product based on this active ingredient, in Australia.

Sierra, powered by ADAMA’s unique formulation technology platform, provides farmers with a critical resistance management tool for improved knockdown of annual grass and broadleaf weeds in various crop and non-crop situations while maximising efficiency and minimising loss of valuable soil moisture. Sierra’s superior and consistent performance in comparison to existing solutions has been confirmed by more than 100 trials conducted across different conditions.

“This significant milestone is the first global registration of saflufenacil, one of the active ingredients in our ‘Core Leap’ strategy,” said Walter Costa, VP of Marketing and Product Strategy at ADAMA. “The registration in Australia of this important molecule demonstrates our dedication to delivering innovative solutions that meet farmers’ needs and ADAMA’s agility to bring that strategy to life. We are excited to bring this patented, high-performance product to the market. It is part of our commitment to offer a complete range of crop protection solutions to cereals and pulse growers around the globe.”

ADAMA expects further registration approvals for this product to be obtained in the upcoming years in Brazil, Canada, Argentina, South Africa and others.

Sierra is based on ADAMA's unique formulation

The two sides discussed the potential bilateral cooperation to strengthen livestock health management system, genetic upgradation of livestock, biosecurity measures, capacity building

Parshottam Rupala, Minister of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying, held a bilateral meeting with Marie-Claude Bibeau, Canada’s Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food.

The two sides discussed the potential bilateral cooperation to strengthen livestock health management system, genetic upgradation of livestock, biosecurity measures, capacity building etc. Both sides felt that there is much to learn from each other in the related fields.

Exchanging information and expertise will help build the knowledge and capability of each other’s animal husbandry sector, which will have mutual benefits for both countries.

Both the dignitaries have discussed various ideas to further strengthen the close and special unique India- Canadian friendship.

In 2022, India was the ninth-largest trading partner of Canada. It was a noteworthy year for trade relations between the two countries, with bilateral trade in goods reaching an impressive value of approximately $8.2 billion. This represents a remarkable growth rate of around 25 per cent compared to the trade volume of 2021.

In FY 2022-23, bilateral trade in goods reached US$6.9 billion, with Indian exports amounting to $3.48 billion. Canadian exports to India amounted to $3.42 billion, during the period.

The two sides discussed the potential bilateral

 Ramping up potash production capability to 18 million tonnes by 2025 and planning for approximately $2 billion in additional share repurchases in 2022

 Saskatchewan based Nutrien Ltd announced it plans to increase fertilizer production capability in response to structural changes in global energy, agriculture and fertilizer markets. The company is hosting a virtual investor update meeting today at 10:30 am EDT and will provide details on its strategic growth and capital allocation plans at this event.

“The challenge of feeding a growing world has never been clearer as global supply constraints have contributed to higher commodity prices and escalated concerns for global food security. There is no simple or fast solution to overcome this challenge and we see potential for multi-year strength in agriculture and crop input market fundamentals,” said Ken Seitz, Nutrien’s Interim President and CEO.

“Nutrien’s integrated business is best positioned to respond to these supply challenges and help sustainably feed a growing world. We are safely bringing on additional low-cost potash and nitrogen production from our existing facilities, while delivering the products, services and solutions growers need through our leading global Retail network,” added Seitz.

Accelerating Potash Production Ramp-Up

Nutrien is accelerating the ramp-up of its annual potash production capability to 18 million tonnes by 2025 in response to the uncertainty of supply from Eastern Europe. This represents an increase of more than 5 million tonnes, or 40 percent, compared to our production in 2020. The acceleration pathway is through existing low-cost capacity that is unmatched in the industry and supported by world-class global logistics infrastructure. The incremental production capability is expected to be added at a similar annual pace to the additions over the past two years.

To boost production, the company will hire and train approximately 350 people and invest in underground mining equipment, mine development, storage and loadout capacity. Nutrien continues to evaluate additional low-cost brownfield expansion opportunities beyond 18 million tonnes at its Saskatchewan mines that would supply longer-term market demand growth.

 “The strength of our expected cash flow provides an opportunity to accelerate our strategic growth initiatives and return significant cash to shareholders. The additional planned share repurchases announced today reflect our confidence in Nutrien’s near-term earnings and the potential for a more robust long-term outlook,” said Pedro Farah, Nutrien’s Executive Vice President and CFO.

 Ramping up potash production capability to 18

A meeting was recently held between Manoj Ahuja, Secretary (DA&FW) and Cameron MacKay Canadian High Commissioner Canada

The negotiations between National Plant Protection Organisations of India and Canada on market access for Indian Banana and Baby corn resulted in Canadian market access for these commodities. A meeting was recently held between Manoj Ahuja, Secretary (DA&FW) and Cameron MacKay Canadian High Commissioner Canada. It was informed that the export of fresh baby corn from India to Canada may begin from this month after the updation of directive D-95-28: Plant Protection Import and Domestic Movement Requirements for Corn and the Automated Import Reference System (AIRS).

Further, based on the technical information provided for fresh bananas by India, Canada has approved, bananas for entry into Canada with immediate effect. The decision of the Government of Canada would immensely benefit the Indian farmers growing these crops and would also enhance India’s export earnings.

A meeting was recently held between Manoj