Union Farmer Quarterly

To save a mere $27 million per year, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) plans to close 7 public agriculture research facilities, including the Indian Head Research Farm in Saskatchewan, which has served Canadian farmers for 140 years. This research farm is ideally situated for plant breeding and seed production of many crops due its soils, climate, plant disease and pest population levels, and flat topography.

Farmers need a food sovereignty policy that supports new farmers, a diversity of farm products and practices, and fair prices for the food they produce for both domestic and export markets. The National Farmers Union (NFU) is proud to submit its feedback to the federal, provincial, and territorial (FPT) governments to advance a food sovereignty policy in their negotiations of the Next Agricultural Policy Framework (NPF).

Amendments buried in Bill C-30 weaken environmental protections OTTAWA | TRADITIONAL AND UNCEDED TERRITORY OF THE ALGONQUIN ANISHINAABE NATION — Public interest organizations denounce amendments to Canada’s Pest Control Products Act included in the government’s omnibus financial bill, as Bill C-30 moves to the final vote in the House of Commons. The bill is being expedited through Parliament, after motions passed earlier this week curtailing debate and amendments.

Canadians have an appetite for safe, healthy, affordable food produced by Canadian farmers and workers. To advance domestic food production, the Government of Canada’s National Food Security Strategy (NFSS) promises to curb corporate concentration and reduce the country’s reliance on global markets with a $3.2 billion 10-year investment.

On June 9 and 10th 2026, Agriculture and Agri-food Canada at the Swift Current Research and Development Centre proceeded with destruction of the Organic and Regenerative Research Program’s research plots by seeding across the land with wheat, making it impossible to salvage data required to complete studies that were in progress prior the announcement of cuts and closures in January 2026.

Bill C-30, the Spring Economic Update Implementation Act, is an omnibus bill that contains legislative amendments that have nothing to do with the budget, but everything to do with a Cabinet power grab. The bill contains a section that would permit Cabinet to override all of the laws under the Canadian Food Inspection Agency’s (CFIA) authority – except for the Plant Breeders Rights Act.

The NFU has signed on to the following letter to urge the government to remove dangerous provisions from Bill C-30 and Bill C-31. For the past two decades, the mandate of the PCPA has been to prioritize the health of Canadians and their environment. The proposed changes would gut these science-based protections. These measures amount to the largest overhaul of pesticide regulations in a generation, and they open the door to unacceptable risks.

Organizations from across Canada, including the National Farmers Union, have sent a joint letter to Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada expressing urgent concern regarding the planned closure of the Organic and Regenerative Research Program at the Swift Current Research and Development Centre.

The NFU supports attempts to break Israel’s siege of Palestine, food cannot be used as a weapon of war Food continues to be used as a weapon against the people of Palestine, as farms and seed banks are destroyed and food aid is denied. As part of the National Farmers Union’s ongoing Palestine Solidarity work, the NFU signed on to support the Global Sumud Flotilla – a civil-society effort to deliver aid to Palestinians under siege from Israeli occupation forces.

Lapland, Nova Scotia (Mi’kma’ki) – Members of the National Farmers Union (NFU) and farmers and farmworkers from across Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and Ontario are excited to host partners from Puerto Rico’s Organización Boricuá de Agricultura Ecológica, a sister member of the international La Via Campesina, for an Agroecology Brigade. The week-long event kicks off at Spring Tide Farm in Lapland on May 25th.