Canada’s Indo-Pacific Strategy to support growth and prosperity for agriculture and agri-food sector

Dec 05, 2022

The Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food, the Honourable Marie-Claude Bibeau, met with agriculture stakeholders at the Canadian Western Agribition in Regina, Saskatchewan, to discuss the Government of Canada’s new Indo-Pacific Strategy (IPS).

Minister Bibeau toured the Canadian Western Agribition in Regina, Saskatchewan on Saturday and held two roundtable discussions: one with the Canadian Cattle Association, and a second with several Canadian agriculture associations. They discussed the IPS, and the landmark announcement that comes with it: Canada’s first ever Indo-Pacific Agriculture and Agri-Food Office (IPAAO).

With $31.8 million earmarked in dedicated funding, this new office will enable Canada to engage with stakeholders, regulatory counterparts, and policy decision-makers to deepen partnerships with Indo-Pacific economies that value sustained, meaningful relationships, collaboration and the sharing of expertise.

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Video: Root Exudates, Soil Biology, and How Plants Recruit Microbes | Field Talk Friday

Field Talk Friday | Dr. John Murphy | Root Exudates, Soil Biology, and How Plants Recruit Microbes

Most of us spend our time managing what we can see above ground—plant height, leaf color, stand counts, and yield potential. But the deeper you dig into agronomy, the more you realize that some of the most important processes driving crop performance are happening just millimeters below the surface.

In this episode of Field Talk Friday, Dr. John Murphy continues the soil biology series by diving into one of the most fascinating topics in modern agronomy: root exudates and the role they play in shaping the microbial world around plant roots.

Roots are not passive structures simply pulling nutrients out of the soil. They are active participants in the underground ecosystem. Plants constantly release compounds into the soil—sugars, amino acids, organic acids, and other molecules—that act as both energy sources and signals for soil microbes.