Tennessee backs down on ag-gag law Monday, August 5, 2013 In June's Better Pork, we reported that lawmakers voted to make Tennessee the latest state to approve a so-called "ag-gag" law, a bill to make it illegal to record animal cruelty incidents on livestock farms without reporting them to the police right away.Just after we went to press, Tennessee Republican governor Bill Haslam vetoed the bill, following the opinion of his Democratic attorney general that it wouldn't pass a constitutional challenge, freedom of speech being nearly as important in that country as freedom to own a gun.According to Meatingplace.com, Haslam also cited concerns that the new law might take away reporters' rights to gather information for stories, and that it might be harder to prosecute legitimate animal cruelty cases "as an unintended consequence."As well, a number of Tennessee celebrities jumped on the bandwagon, among them songwriter Emmylou Harris, country music singer Carrie Underwood and even Priscilla Presley. The Humane Society of the United States sees it as a victory; the Animal Agriculture Alliance, which writes and speaks out against animal rights legislation, is not pleased. BP A Chinese takeover of Smithfields? The battle of the polls over gestation stalls
Stephen Heckbert Takes FVGC Leadership Tuesday, September 8, 2026 The Fruit and Vegetable Growers of Canada (FVGC)hasnamedStephen Heckbertas its new Executive Director. He officially assumed the role on September 8 andbringsmore than 25 years of leadership experience in communications, advocacy, and organizational management. Heckbert is well known... Read this article online
Canada’s Retaliatory Trade Tariffs: Will They Impact Canadian Hog Producers? Tuesday, September 8, 2026 With the retaliatory tariffs on U.S. products coming into effect on September 8, 2026; industry anticipates building costs and feed ingredients will be impacted. Please note, as official analysis is not yet ready, the following information is an AI generated list and should be considered... Read this article online
Canada-U.S. Trade Dispute Raises Concerns for Agri-Businesses Tuesday, September 8, 2026 Like many of their small business counterparts, Canadian agri-businesses operating across the border are warning that prolonged trade tensions could threaten their financial stability, according to a by the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) that was released last... Read this article online
Responsible Data Centre Development Principles Leaves Questions About Farmland Protection Tuesday, September 8, 2026 As Canada races to build the digital infrastructure needed to support artificial intelligence and cloud computing, last week the federal government released a new set of principles intended to guide future data centre development. Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada... Read this article online
Black Sea Peace Prospects Influence Global Grain Prices Monday, September 7, 2026 Grain and oilseed markets remained closely tied to geopolitical developments, weather conditions and export expectations during the week ending September 4, 2026. Corn futures were largely unchanged, while soybeans posted a new contract closing high and soybean meal also strengthened.... Read this article online