In this edition:
- Welland finalizes sale of Northern Reach lands to developer for $35 million
- Funding for Niagara College’s Food & Beverage Innovation Centre will support businesses to develop and market new beverages
- Ontario Land Tribunal supports Fort Erie opposition to proposed housing development
- 2024 National Greenhouse Gas Inventory reveals emissions increased in 2022, petrochem and transportation still account for majority
- Canada posts largest trade deficit since June 2023 as exports fall 5.3%
- Open bidding, more apprenticeship spots are key to labour shortage, says Cardus
- Loblaw CEO expresses optimism about grocery code of conduct
- New RESCON guide gives construction employers a blueprint to build positive workplace culture
- Focus on Equity, Diversity & Inclusion
Welland finalizes sale of Northern Reach lands to developer for $35 million
The City of Welland has sold 62 hectares of prime real estate land fronting the Welland Recreational Canal in north Welland for $35 million.
The City and Liv Communities closed the sale last week on the property known as the Northern Reach — 52.53 hectares in Welland and 8.95 hectares owned by the city in Thorold — that stretches nearly two kilometres along the canal and backs onto Towpath Road to the south and west and Merritt Road to the north.
Funding for Niagara College’s Food & Beverage Innovation Centre will support businesses to develop and market new beverages
Niagara College is excited to share that the Food & Beverage Innovation Centre (FBIC) will receive funding of up to $200,000 from the National Research Council of Canada Industrial Research Assistance Program (NRC IRAP). This support will help FBIC deliver services to small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to de-risk innovation in new beverage product development, which includes prototyping, food safety guidance, testing, and producing marketable products at FBIC’s new Beverage Research & Development Pilot Processing Facility.
This NRC IRAP funding allows FBIC to connect SMEs with its highly qualified and experienced FBIC staff, faculty, recent graduates, and students, with the right expertise and equipment to meet their needs and provide solutions for industry innovation challenges.
Ontario Land Tribunal supports Fort Erie opposition to proposed housing development
The Town of Fort Erie’s decision to oppose a development proposal along its historic waterfront properties on Erie Road was upheld by the Ontario Land Tribunal (OLT) in a decision made Monday, April 29, 2024. The OLT dismissed an appeal to amend the Town of Fort Erie’s Zoning By-law (No. 129-90) sought by Crystal Bay Cottages Inc. to permit the redevelopment of their property at 4409 Erie Road in the community of Crystal Beach. The proposal requested a rezoning of the property from its current Waterfront Residential (WR) zoning to allow eight new housing units to be built.
2024 National Greenhouse Gas Inventory reveals emissions increased in 2022, petrochem and transportation still account for majority
The National Inventory Report—a yearly report required by the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and the Paris Agreement—tracks emissions from all sectors of the Canadian economy. Environment and Climate Change Canada published Canada’s 2024 National Inventory Report on May 2, 2024.
Although total emissions are up slightly in 2022, this year’s report also shows Canada has continued to keep emissions below 2019 levels, the last year of economic activity before pandemic-related slowdowns. This is noteworthy, with strong economic and population growth in 2021 and 2022.
Canada posts largest trade deficit since June 2023 as exports fall 5.3%
In March, Canada’s merchandise exports declined 5.3%, while imports were down 1.2%. As a result, Canada’s merchandise trade balance with the world went from a surplus of $476 million in February to a deficit of $2.3 billion in March. This represents the largest trade deficit since June 2023.
Following an increase of 5.3% in February, total exports fell back 5.3% in March, erasing the gains made in the previous month. Overall, decreases were observed in 9 of the 11 product sections.
Open bidding, more apprenticeship spots are key to labour shortage, says Cardus
Moving toward open bidding and creating more apprenticeship spots for skilled trades regardless of union affiliation is critical to resolving the issues of labour supply to meet the housing shortage, says think-tank Cardus.
Renze Nauta, the program director for work and economics at Cardus, a longtime advocate of open bidding, says to meet the demand for skilled labour and the building boom driven by government investment, a rethink of how we recruit, train and deploy those workers is needed.
“I think there are two pillars here,” he says. “One is the future and the other is right now.”
Loblaw CEO expresses optimism about grocery code of conduct
Loblaw CEO Per Bank says he’s “cautiously optimistic” the company will come to an agreement on the grocery code of conduct, according to a report from the Canadian Press.
“Where it’s going to land, I’m of course not sure, but I’m more optimistic now than before that we can land an agreement on the code,” Per Bank told a conference call discussing Loblaw’s first-quarter earnings Wednesday.
The code, which intends to promote fair practices in the industry, has been delayed due to concerns that it would raise prices for consumers.
New RESCON guide gives construction employers a blueprint to build positive workplace culture
he Residential Construction Council of Ontario (RESCON) has released a best practice guide with tips and strategies to help build a more positive workplace culture on construction sites, improve satisfaction of employees and boost productivity.
“Construction employers and other industry stakeholders have a moral obligation to cultivate a positive and collaborative workplace culture as well as a legal responsibility to safeguard workers from acts of racism, harassment and violence in the workplace,” explains RESCON president Richard Lyall. “This best practice guide will help them understand why it is critical to have a corporate environment where teamwork, safety and efficiency are paramount, and how it can benefit them both from a safety perspective and financially.”
Did you know?
Peanut butter is a Canadian invention, first patented by Montreal’s Marcellus Gilmore Edson in 1884.
Focus on Equity, Diversity & Inclusion
Women-owned businesses have benefited more from exporting from innovation activities, education and management experience, compared with men-owned businesses
In 2017, 15.6% of all small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and 14.8% of all SME exporters were owned by women, compared with 84.4% of all SMEs and 85.2% of all SME exporters that were owned by men, suggesting that women-owned SMEs are as likely to export as men-owned ones, although women-owned SMEs were smaller and concentrated in sectors that are less likely to export.
The article “Women-owned small and medium-sized enterprises in Canada: Exporting story,” co-authored with Global Affairs Canada, found that women-owned SMEs benefit more from the adoption of online payment systems, organizational innovation, and selling strategies for entering export markets than men-owned SMEs. For instance, the predicted probability of exporting for women-owned SMEs that had adopted an online payment system was 18 to 20 percentage points higher than for male-owned SMEs. When it comes to increasing export intensity, women-owned SMEs also benefit more than their peers from more education and years of management experience of primary decision makers.
Through the Daily Updates, the GNCC aims to deliver important business news in a timely manner. We disseminate all news and information we feel will be important to businesses. Inclusion in the Daily Update is not an endorsement by the GNCC.
