Harper Government Delivering Results for Canada's Grain Sector

Apr 15, 2014

This investment from the AgriMarketing Program will help the CGC participate in various international roundtable discussions about barriers to trade and ensure that Canada's exporting interests are put forward. This will enable the CGC to forge strong international partnerships with industry and encourage other countries to adopt commercially viable trading policies that will benefit Canadian grain growers.

Quick Facts

The Canada Grains Council (CGC), established in 1969, was formed to coordinate efforts to increase the sale and use of Canadian grain in domestic and world markets. Today it carries out international grain trade advocacy on behalf of its members.
In 2012, the Canadian grain industry generated $18.6 billion in export sales.
The Government continues to pursue the most aggressive trade agenda in Canadian history, and recently signed the Canada-Korea Free Trade Agreement. This agreement will expand market access opportunities for Canadian grains.
On March 26, 2014, the Government of Canada introduced the Fair Rail for Grain Farmers Act to help Canadian grain get to market quickly and efficiently while maintaining a world-class system for transporting goods by rail.
This investment is made through AAFC's AgriMarketing Program, a five-year, $341-million initiative under Growing Forward 2.

Source: Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada

Video: Evolution of Beef Cattle Farming

The Clear Conversations podcast took to the road for a special episode recorded in Nashville during CattleCon, bringing listeners straight into the heart of the cattle industry. Host Tracy Sellers welcomed rancher Steve Wooten of Beatty Canyon Ranch in Colorado for a wide-ranging discussion that blended family history and sustainability, particularly as it relates to the future of beef production.

Sustainability emerged as a central theme of the conversation, a word that Wooten acknowledges can mean very different things depending on who you ask. For him, sustainability starts with the soil. Healthy soil produces healthy grass, which supports efficient cattle capable of producing year after year with minimal external inputs. It’s an approach that equally considers vegetation, animal efficiency, and long-term profitability.

That philosophy aligned naturally with Wooten’s involvement in the U.S. Roundtable for Sustainable Beef, where he served as a representative for the Colorado Cattlemen’s Association. The roundtable brings together the entire beef supply chain—from producers to retailers—along with universities, NGOs, and allied industries. Its goal is not regulation, Wooten emphasized, but collaboration, shared learning, and continuous improvement.