A California congressman, Jim Costa, is one of two candidates who have declared interest in chairing the U.S. House Agriculture Committee. He represents an agricultural district surrounding Fresno.

If the new administration doesn’t move forward with trade negotiations in Europe and Japan, this could present Canadian agriculture with an opportunity to better leverage its first-mover advantage secured in agreements, including CPTPP and CETA. That’s the insight provided by the Canadian Agri-Food Policy Institute. 

Okanagan Specialty Fruits says that harvest of its Arctic non-browning apple is the largest to date with 1,350 acres. The apple is grown specifically for fresh-cut applications. 

A controlled environment at Plenty Unlimited’s Wyoming facility has lured Driscoll’s to expand beyond field-grown strawberries. There’s a lot to learn about day length, light intensity and spectrum, air temperature and how they influence expression of genes. 

The international show in Berlin is rescheduling its February event to May 18-20, 2021 under the headline: “Meet onsite. Connect online.” 

Rapidly rising imports of blueberries from Chile, Peru and Mexico have raised the ire of American growers. On September 29, the United States Trade Representative triggered an investigation that will target all source countries for cultivated and wild blueberries. Canada is on the list. 

Orchardists in New York state and across the U.S. will have access to three new apple varieties:  Cordera, Pink Luster and Firecracker.   

The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development reports a fall of 9.8% in GDP in Q2 of 2020. This is the largest drop ever recorded for the major seven economies. GDP fell most dramatically in the United Kingdom and the least in the United States. Canada’s GDP fell 12%.  

More than 50 recommendations have been approved by the California Leafy Greens Marketing Agreement to revise practices in farm water use and field/equipment sanitation. The action comes after 2019 outbreaks of E. coli-contaminated romaine lettuce.