Okotoks

A U.S based company is hoping to see more flax grown in the prairies.

Grain Millers, a Minnesota based company, is expanding its operations in Western Canada. 

The company operates an oat processing facility at Yorkton, Saskatchewan, and has been leasing a small flax processing facility in Saskatoon.

President and CEO Todd Stohlmeyer says with the lease wrapping up and the interest they've seen in flax they decided to build their own facility at Delisle, Saskatchewan
about 43 kilometres southwest of Saskatoon.

The Town of High River is advising drivers of traffic light maintenance today (Aug. 14). 

Crews will be working on the traffic lights at the intersection of Macleod Trail SW and Centre Street S between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m.  

Drivers are asked to use caution and follow signage while in the area. 

Officials say the largest wildfire burning in Newfoundland and Labrador may have destroyed up to 100 homes and structures.

However, Premier John Hogan says it is still too dangerous for crews to get into the area to complete an accurate tally.

The fire burning along the northwestern shore of Conception Bay began on Aug. 3 near Kingston, N.L.,  and Hogan says it now measures more than eight square kilometres.

All of the rain the area has received this summer has caused the Town of High River to play catch-up.

While the rainfall has caused the parks and green spaces in town to become brightly coloured and vibrant, it has caused the grass and weeds to grow faster and more aggressively than usual.

Due to that rapidly aggressive growth, Town of High River maintenance crews have a heavier-than-normal workload, which is resulting in delays.

"Our staff is committed to keeping these spaces safe, tidy, and welcoming for everyone," the Town stated in a media release.

A judge is expected to decide today whether a special court review of a proposed Alberta referendum question on separation should go ahead.

Alberta's chief electoral officer, Gordon McClure, referred the question to court last month for a judge to determine whether it violates the Constitution, including treaty rights.

The group that submitted the question applied to have the referral quashed, and Court of King's Bench Justice Colin Feasby heard arguments last week.

The Battle of the Foothills was going full tilt last night under drizzly conditions in Rocky Mountain House.

The drivers are not just racing for the Battle of the Foothills Championship; they're also battling it out to be declared the overall World Professional Chuckwagon Association champion.

High River's Jason Glass is sitting in first place overall in the World Standings, but he's now only 2.5 points ahead of Calgary's Chanse Vigen after last night's heats.

Glass is coming off a big win at the Strathmore Stampede last week.

Starting today China is implementing a 75.8 per cent duty on Canadian canola seed imports.

China's Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) announced the preliminary ruling regarding their anti-dumping investigation earlier this week. 

The latest tariff on canola seed is in addition to the 100 per cent tariff implemented on Canadian oil and meal back in March 2025.

President and CEO of the Canola Council of Canada, Chris Davison, says China is a highly valued and important market for us, noting they were disappointed with the preliminary ruling.

Five-year survival rates for people with lung cancer have doubled since the 1990s, but the disease still kills more patients than any other type of cancer, a Statistics Canada report said on Wednesday.

The report said the number of people living five years after they were diagnosed jumped from 13 per cent to 27 per cent between 1992 and 2021.

Lung cancer is still responsible for almost a quarter of all cancer deaths in Canada, it said.

Farmer Bill Prybylski says China’s planned tariff on canola seed wasn’t factored into his business equations this year.

The president of the Agricultural Producers Association of Saskatchewan says the 75.8 per cent preliminary duty, announced Tuesday, has already caused canola prices to fall by $1 per bushel.

That translates to a loss of about $200,000 for his farm. 

“That’s a pretty significant financial hit,” said Prybylski, who farms northeast of Regina near Yorkton.

Highwood MLA Minister of Agriculture and Irrigation, RJ Sigurdson, is warning of serious consequences for Alberta’s agriculture industry after China announced new tariffs on Canadian canola imports.

The 75.8 per cent preliminary tariff, announced Tuesday (Aug. 12), comes on top of existing 100 per cent tariffs on canola oil, canola oil cake, and peas.

In a statement earlier this week, Sigurdson took aim at the federal government's 100 per cent tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles and 25 per cent tariffs on steel and aluminum.