Accessing free market intelligence

Agriculture and Forestry’s export development team provides agriculture and agri-food companies customized market intelligence information.

 

‘Market intelligence is imperative to the success of any organization because it allows you to understand your position in the market, evaluate your product, know your target audience, and conduct competitor analysis all without having to leave the comfort of your own office,’ explains Evan Buie, international initiatives officer with Alberta Agriculture and Forestry.

 

The information gathered helps companies make confident decisions in determining their market opportunity, market entry strategies and market development.

 

‘We subscribe to Global Trade Tracker, which allows us to generate trade statistics from the world’s main trading countries and gives a clear picture of the trade flows industry needs to know about. Using data from Statistics Canada, we have also developed our own database called Trade Online where we can easily access information on Alberta and Canada agri-food imports and exports.’

 

New this year to the ministry is Euromonitor’s Passport. Euromonitor’s research database Passport provides clients with an insight on new opportunities for companies. With expertise in over 30 industries, Passport helps connect an organization’s goals with global opportunities. From sizing market sales to understanding future product demand, research can help with a range of business-to-business (B2B) and business-to-consumer (B2C) industries.

 

Alberta companies who have taken advantage of these services have given glowing reviews, says Buie.

 

‘Establishing an accurate product-market fit is vital for the success of any company looking to export beyond Canadian borders,’ says Zachary Champoux, chief executive officer at Passionoat Inc.

 

‘Alberta Agriculture and Forestry's market intelligence reports provide the necessary foundation to make well informed decisions. I have found tremendous value in this free service, and highly recommend it to other aspiring exporters.’

 

Buie encourages other companies to take advantage of this service offered by the ministry’s export development team adding, ‘I would be more than happy to dive into your market intelligence inquiry for you.’

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.