New Measures for Neonicotinoid Treated Corn and Soybean Seed for 2014
The Pest Management Regulatory Agency (PMRA) has published a notice of its intention to impose further controls on the use of neonicotinoid treated corn and soybean seeds for the 2014 planting season. Neonicotinoids are a widely used class of insecticide...
Organic Seed Growers and Trade Association v. Monsanto Co.
A recent decision by the U.S. Federal Circuit court refusing to issue a declaratory judgment in Organic Seed Growers and Trade Associate v. Monsanto Co. is interesting to consider in light of Canadian law. Read the decision and an American...
Protecting Your Right to Farm
“Right to farm” legislation has been enacted by every province in Canada. Although the various provincial acts have different names, the legislation is geared towards promoting agricultural use of land by restricting interference from neighbouring individuals who would otherwise be...
Trans-Pacific Partnership and Supply Management
Written by: Andrew Hentz, Summer Law Student While the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) talks have not recently been a prominent feature in the news, discussions continue to unfold with the latest round of negotiations completed August 22 to 30, 2013 in...
Who is a “Farmer” under the Farm Debt Medication Act?
The Farm Debt Mediation Act affords important rights to farmers whose property is being seized, or whose farms are being foreclosed. The Act required lenders to serve farmers with a 15 day Farm Debt Mediation Notice informing them of their...
US Labelling Laws – Update on Canada’s Response
Author: Collin May On the heels of litigation commenced in American courts by producer groups against the most recent version of the United States’ country-of-origin-labelling (COOL), Canada has announced its lastest salvo. On August 19, 2013, in a joint press...
US Labelling Laws Go to Court
Author: Collin May The country-of-origin labelling (COOL) dispute discussed in my earlier posts from May 9 and May 28 on this site has now moved into a new phase. After the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) introduced new labelling...
Ontario and Quebec Consider Legal Rights of Temporary Foreign Agricultural Workers and the Constitutional Right of Farm Workers to Organize
In two recent cases, Canadian Courts have considered the legal position of temporary foreign agricultural workers working on farms pursuant to the Federal Government’s Seasonal Agricultural Worker Program. In Espinoza v. Canada, an Ontario Court held that Mexican workers whose...
Working for the Weekend on the Farm? Farm Employees and Exemptions under The Labour Standards Act (Saskatchewan)
Authors: David Gerecke and Fraiba Jalal With farming being an integral part of Saskatchewan’s economy, it is no wonder that farmers and farming operations receive special protections under various pieces of provincial legislation. The Labour Standards Act (the “Act”) is...
Miller Thomson at the Agri Investment Forum in Toronto
Lawyers from the firm participate at Agri Investment Forum in Toronto Practitioners from the firm’s CleanTech, MTech and Information Technology groups were on hand to support the annual Agri Investment Forum, on June 26, 2013, at the Delta Chelsea Hotel in...
