Local Agriculture

ERIKSDALE, Man. — The Manitoba government is increasing a temporary rent reduction for Crown land used by agricultural producers for things like grazing, haying and annual cropping.

ABBOTSFORD, B.C. — It's the first thing poultry farmers in British Columbia's Fraser Valley think about in the morning, and the last thing they worry about at night, according to industry spokeswoman Amanda Brittain.

SMITHS FALLS, Ont. — Canopy Growth Corp. says an Ontario court has approved the sale of its BioSteel sports drink business in a pair of deals. Financial terms of the agreements were not immediately available.

VICTORIA — Avian flu is spreading rapidly through British Columbia poultry farms, including half a dozen diagnosed in commercial flocks this week alone. The fall migration of wild birds is considered the primary cause of infection for B.C.

MONTREAL — Business leaders continue to grapple with the economic uncertainty fostered by the rift between the Canadian and Indian governments, saying the suspension of free trade talks hurts both sides.

VANCOUVER — Mushrooms large and small, tasty and toxic, are popping up across British Columbia this year in what experts say is a bumper season for fungi. B.C.

TORONTO — The head of Maple Leaf Foods Inc. said he's confident the company has "all the building blocks in place" for success as markets normalize.

The unprecedented volatility in fertilizer markets that’s contributed to Nutrien Ltd.'s lower earnings so far this year is stabilizing, said chief executive Ken Seitz. "Much of that is behind us," said Seitz in an interview Thursday.

MONTREAL — Saputo Inc. says it is closing its facility in Lancaster, Wis., and plans to move production to another location in the state. The Montreal-based company says about 100 employees will be affected by the decision.

SASKATOON — Nutrien Ltd. says it earned US$82 million in the third quarter, down from US$1.6 billion a year earlier. The Saskatoon-based company, which is the world's largest fertilizer producer, says sales were US$5.