The Honourable Nathalie Provost, Secretary of State (Nature) and Member of Parliament for Châteauguay—Les Jardins-de-Napierville, will be present at the Saint-Gabriel Lock (Lock No. 3) of the Lachine Canal National Historic Site to participate in the annual Lock and Paddle event. This unique activity offers the public a chance to navigate the historic lock in non-motorized watercraft at no cost.
This year, Parks Canada celebrates the 200th anniversary of the Lachine Canal — a major milestone for this iconic waterway. A photo opportunity will be available.
Please note that this advisory is subject to change without notice.
The details are as follows:
Date: Saturday, July 19, 2025
Time: 1 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. (EDT) (photo taken at 3 p.m. (EDT))
Source: People’s Republic of China in Russian – People’s Republic of China in Russian –
An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.
Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News
BEIJING, July 18 (Xinhua) — China expresses strong dissatisfaction and resolute opposition to the Canadian government’s recent decision to tighten restrictions on steel imports, a spokesman for China’s Ministry of Commerce said Friday.
The official representative made a corresponding statement in response to a media inquiry on this issue.
Finance Canada recently announced that, effective August 1, in response to U.S. steel tariffs and given the global steel glut, it will expand steel import quotas, tighten existing quota restrictions, and impose additional duties on above-quota imports. In addition, Canada will impose an additional 25 percent duty on imports of steel products smelted and cast in China from all countries except the United States.
Commenting on the measures, a spokesman for China’s Ministry of Commerce said they violate World Trade Organization rules, destabilize the international trade order and harm China’s interests, representing a typical manifestation of unilateralism and protectionism.
The official noted that the real reason for the difficulties in Canada’s steel industry is the unilateral tariff measures of the United States. However, Canadian authorities ignore the main contradiction and try to shift the damage to the industry to other trading partners, including China, he added.
According to the official representative, the Canadian side’s actions are logically unfounded, legally illegal and practically useless. They will seriously damage normal trade and economic cooperation between China and Canada, he warned.
The Chinese side calls on Canada, in the spirit of safeguarding the multilateral trading system and maintaining the overall context of China-Canada economic and trade relations, to promptly correct its wrong actions and lift the restrictive measures. China will take all necessary measures to resolutely protect the legitimate rights and interests of its enterprises, the spokesperson added. –0–
Please note: This information is raw content obtained directly from the source of the information. It is an accurate report of what the source claims and does not necessarily reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.
Alberta’s government is providing one final opportunity to explore proposals that would either maintain or repurpose the site and keep it as a significant feature in the City of Edmonton.
Originally built in 1965 to house Alberta’s Provincial Museum and Archive, the former Royal Alberta Museum (RAM) building has stood as a cultural landmark for almost six decades. It first opened its doors in 1967 as part of Canada’s Centennial celebrations, and in 2005, it was renamed the Royal Alberta Museum following a visit from Queen Elizabeth II to mark Alberta’s 100th anniversary of joining Confederation. Recognizing the building’s historical importance and long-standing presence in the community, Alberta’s government initiated a public engagement process to explore potential future uses of the site before proceeding with deconstruction.
Alberta Infrastructure analyzed numerous options for the site by gathering input from Albertans through an online survey and engaging with First Nations, community members and other organizations.
“Albertans have a very strong connection to the former Royal Alberta Museum in Glenora. We have heard your suggestions, your feedback and your ideas. We’re creating this opportunity to ensure that we explore all avenues for repurposing the site.”
This request for proposal aims to preserve the site as a significant landmark within the capital city, reflecting the rich heritage of the province. Interested parties are encouraged to submit their proposals through the Alberta Purchasing Connection. Submissions are open until September 26.
Quick facts
The proposal opportunity is available on the Alberta Purchasing Connection.
The former Royal Alberta Museum was purpose-built as a museum in 1965 and ceased operations in December 2015.
All assets were removed, and the building has been vacant ever since.
The annual operating costs to maintain this facility are about $700,000 including utilities.
Related news
New future for old Royal Alberta Museum site (Aug. 1, 2024)
New Royal Alberta Museum officially open | Ouverture officielle du nouveau Musée royal de l’Alberta (RAM) | alberta.ca (Oct. 3, 2018)
Nearly 36,000 bid farewell to Royal Alberta Museum | alberta.ca (Dec. 7, 2015)
At the moment, everyone needs to fill in an individual voter registration application at least 12 days before an election. Automatic registration would enable electoral officials to update the electoral rolls without people having to make an application to register to vote. They could use other reliable data to make the electoral register as accurate and complete as possible.
Electoral officials would then write to the potential voter to inform them that they had been added to the register. They would have the opportunity to make any corrections needed.
The details are still to be worked out and the change would not come overnight. The process may be semi-automated to begin with – with the individual process sitting alongside some automation.
Why is automatic registration needed?
Many people don’t register in time for elections. Some don’t intend to vote, but others assume that they’re already registered. Some are also just busy.
The result is that there are around 7-8 million people who are not correctly registered when the polling stations open on election day. A significant number are then turned away. The problem is getting worse as the number of people who are not registered is also rising at an alarming rate.
Estimated number of people missing from the electoral register at UK general elections, 1945-2024.
What is especially troubling is that there are large gaps in registrations by age, gender, ethnicity and socioeconomic status. Nearly all over-65-year-olds are on the register, but younger people are increasingly missing. Only 60% of 18-to-19-year-olds are on the electoral rolls – and 16% of the soon-to-be-enfranchised 16- to 17-year-olds (you can currently register to vote at 16).
Automatic registration will therefore be crucial to making votes at 16 a success. Asking and reminding young people to register would inevitably involve an enormous administrative effort. But if data could be transferred from schools and government departments to election officials to put them straight onto the roll, it would save both time and money – and bring about a higher participation rate.
Does automatic voter registration work?
Roughly half of countries around the around the world use automatic voter registration – including Germany, the Netherlands, Iceland and Finland. Countries which have historically not had automatic registration, such as the US, Malta, Canada and Australia, have all moved to at least partially implement it over recent years.
In a recent report with colleagues, I set out how this can be implemented and suggested a range of datasets that could be securely used.
Electoral rolls could be updated when people apply for a passport, register to pay council tax, update their driving licence details, register at university or claim benefits. Electoral officials could also be authorised to update the electoral rolls with data such as council tax data and information held by the Department for Work and Pensions.
One option would be to register people to vote when they apply for a passport. Shutterstock/ClimbWhenReady
Data sharing is already used in electoral registration. Every time a voter registration application is made, it is checked against another government dataset. There is therefore already the data infrastructure to enable automatic registration to work.
Electoral officials already use such data to register, remove or re-register people. This has enabled a lot of savings and less administrative hassle for many people.
Voter identification changes
The government’s election bill proposals will also extend the forms of identification that voters can present at polling stations to include bank cards. It clears the path for future digital forms of ID to be accepted.
The last government introduced a requirement for everyone to provide photographic identification at polling stations at UK general elections and some local elections. Accepted forms of identification include passports and driving licences but also a range of other options. If citizens don’t have identification, then they can apply for a free voter authority certificate, provided that they do so before the deadline.
However, our research found that many people were turned away in polling stations as they did not have required identification. Poll workers reported that the impact particularly affected some groups, such as students and women.
They may not, however, go far enough. The previous government restricted the independence of the Electoral Commission and these changes have not been reversed by the Labour government. The Electoral Commission will play an important role in automatic registration, so the government could renew its independence to help build confidence and trust in elections.
Nonetheless, the move to automatic registration would be a major step forward for a changing democracy – as long as the government now puts on the afterburners to power the effort needed to make these changes work effectively in time for the next election.
Toby James has previously received funding from the AHRC, ESRC, Joseph Rowntree Reform Trust, British Academy, Leverhulme Trust, Electoral Commission, Nuffield Foundation, the McDougall Trust, Unlock Democracy, International IDEA and the Canadian SSHRC.
Initial indications were that the fraud was more than $200,000 and had occurred over many years.
No additional information will be released at this stage of the ASIRT investigation.
ASIRT’s mandate is to effectively, independently and objectively investigate incidents involving Alberta’s police that have resulted in serious injury or death to any person, as well as serious or sensitive allegations of police misconduct.
This release is distributed by the Government of Alberta on behalf of the Alberta Serious Incident Response Team.
CALGARY — Corey Hogan, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Energy and Natural Resources, will announce investments to help regenerate Alberta’s forests. Media availability will follow.
Date: July 21, 2025
Time: 10 a.m. MT
All accredited media are asked to pre-register by emailing media@nrcan-rncan.gc.ca. Details on how to participate will be provided upon registration.
oday, we celebrate the life and legacy of Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela.
Madiba’s extraordinary life was a triumph of the human spirit.
He endured the brutal weight of oppression, and emerged not with a vision of vengeance and division — but of reconciliation, peace and unity.
Today, Madiba’s legacy is now our responsibility.
We must carry forward his commitment to peace, justice and human dignity.
One of the central lessons of Mandela’s life was that power is not a personal possession, to be hoarded.
Power is about lifting others up.
It is about what we can achieve with one another, and for one another.
Power is about people.
In every facet of his life, Nelson Mandela demonstrated the power of collective, grassroots action to drive change and progress, and deliver power to the powerless.
This same spirit can be found in today’s winners of the Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela Prize.
Ms. Brenda Reynolds is a Saulteaux member from Fishing Lake First Nation in Canada.
She is a social worker, who turned her struggle against the most hideous of crimes against children into a national force for change, supporting and developing trauma responses for survivors and families of the residential schools system.
Mr. Kennedy Odede grew up in the Kibera slum in Kenya.
A long-time community activist, the organization he founded unites community groups from across the country and now reaches more than 2.4 million people each year with essential services — everything from education to water.
Both prize winners embody Nelson Mandela’s words, which are engraved on their Prizes:
“What counts in life is not the mere fact that we have lived. It is what difference we have made to the lives of others.”
On behalf of the United Nations, I congratulate Ms. Reynolds and Mr. Odede on this well-deserved recognition.
Excellences,
Alors que l’Organisation des Nations Unies célèbre ses 80 ans, l’héritage de réconciliation et de transformation transmis par Nelson Mandela continue de nous inspirer et de nous motiver.
Partout dans le monde, les droits humains et la dignité sont menacés – non seulement par les conflits et l’instabilité, mais aussi par les inégalités systématiques, l’exclusion, les catastrophes climatiques et le recul de libertés chèrement acquises.
Le moment est venu de renouveler notre engagement collectif envers les principes qu’incarne notre Organisation – et qui ont défini la vie exceptionnelle de Nelson Mandela.
La liberté. La justice. L’égalité des droits. La solidarité. La réconciliation. La paix.
Aujourd’hui, et chaque jour, poursuivons le chemin tracé par la vie de Nelson Mandela — une vie au service des autres et du progrès.
Je vous remercie.
******* [All-English]
Today, we celebrate the life and legacy of Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela.
Madiba’s extraordinary life was a triumph of the human spirit.
He endured the brutal weight of oppression, and emerged not with a vision of vengeance and division — but of reconciliation, peace and unity.
Today, Madiba’s legacy is now our responsibility.
We must carry forward his commitment to peace, justice and human dignity.
One of the central lessons of Mandela’s life was that power is not a personal possession, to be hoarded.
Power is about lifting others up.
It is about what we can achieve with one another, and for one another.
Power is about people.
In every facet of his life, Nelson Mandela demonstrated the power of collective, grassroots action to drive change and progress, and deliver power to the powerless.
This same spirit can be found in today’s winners of the Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela Prize.
Ms. Brenda Reynolds is a Saulteaux member from Fishing Lake First Nation in Canada.
She is a social worker, who turned her struggle against the most hideous of crimes against children into a national force for change, supporting and developing trauma responses for survivors and families of the residential schools system.
Mr. Kennedy Odede grew up in the Kibera slum in Kenya.
A long-time community activist, the organization he founded unites community groups from across the country and now reaches more than 2.4 million people each year with essential services — everything from education to water.
Both prize winners embody Nelson Mandela’s words, which are engraved on their Prizes:
“What counts in life is not the mere fact that we have lived. It is what difference we have made to the lives of others.”
On behalf of the United Nations, I congratulate Ms. Reynolds and Mr. Odede on this well-deserved recognition.
Excellencies,
As the United Nations celebrates its 80th anniversary, Nelson Mandela’s legacy of reconciliation and transformation continues to inspire and drive us.
Around the world, human rights and dignity are under threat — not only from conflict and instability, but from systematic inequalities, exclusion, climate disasters, and the rollback of hard-won freedoms.
Now is the time to renew our global commitment to the principles that define our organization — and indeed, the extraordinary life of Nelson Mandela.
Today, and every day, let’s continue following the path and principles set by Nelson Mandela’s life of service and progress.
Thank you.
********* [All-French]
Nous célébrons aujourd’hui la vie et l’héritage de Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela.
La vie extraordinaire de Madiba a été un triomphe de l’esprit humain.
Accablé du poids brutal de l’oppression, il en est ressorti avec une vision, non pas de vengeance et de division, mais de réconciliation, de paix et d’unité.
Aujourd’hui, l’héritage de Madiba est entre nos mains.
Nous devons perpétuer son engagement en faveur de la paix, de la justice et de la dignité humaine.
La vie de Mandela nous apprend notamment que le pouvoir n’est pas un bien personnel que l’on peut monopoliser.
Le pouvoir consiste à tirer les autres vers le haut. Il faut se poser la question en ces termes : que pouvons-nous accomplir les uns avec les autres, et les uns pour les autres ?
Le pouvoir concerne le peuple.
Dans tous les aspects de sa vie, Nelson Mandela a prouvé que l’action collective et locale pouvait être porteuse de changement et de progrès, et donner du pouvoir à ceux qui n’en avaient pas.
C’est ce même esprit qui anime aujourd’hui les lauréats du prix Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela.
Madame Brenda Reynolds est une Saulteaux de la Première Nation de Fishing Lake, au Canada.
Assistante sociale de profession, elle a fait de sa lutte contre le plus ignoble des crimes contre les enfants une force nationale de changement : elle a établi et porté des protocoles de prise en charge du traumatisme pour les survivants du système de pensionnats et leurs familles.
Monsieur Kennedy Odede a grandi dans le bidonville de Kibera, au Kenya.
Militant local de longue date, il a fondé une organisation qui rassemble des groupes communautaires de tout le pays et apporte aujourd’hui à plus de 2,4 millions de personnes chaque année des services essentiels, allant de l’éducation à l’accès à l’eau.
Les deux lauréats incarnent les mots de Nelson Mandela, qui sont gravés sur leurs prix :
« Ce qui compte dans la vie, ce n’est pas le simple fait d’avoir vécu. C’est la différence que nous avons apportée à la vie des autres qui déterminera l’importance de la vie que nous menons. »
Au nom de l’ONU, je félicite Madame Reynolds et Monsieur Odede pour cette reconnaissance amplement méritée.
Excellences,
Alors que l’Organisation des Nations Unies célèbre ses 80 ans, l’héritage de réconciliation et de transformation transmis par Nelson Mandela continue de nous inspirer et de nous motiver.
Partout dans le monde, les droits humains et la dignité sont menacés – non seulement par les conflits et l’instabilité, mais aussi par les inégalités systématiques, l’exclusion, les catastrophes climatiques et le recul de libertés chèrement acquises.
Le moment est venu de renouveler notre engagement collectif envers les principes qu’incarne notre Organisation – et qui ont défini la vie exceptionnelle de Nelson Mandela.
La liberté. La justice. L’égalité des droits. La solidarité. La réconciliation. La paix.
Aujourd’hui, et chaque jour, poursuivons le chemin tracé par la vie de Nelson Mandela — une vie au service des autres et du progrès.
July 18, 2025 – Ottawa, Ontario – Global Affairs Canada
The Honourable Anita Anand, Minister of Foreign Affairs; the Honourable David J. McGuinty, Minister of National Defence; and the Honourable Gary Anandasangaree, Minister of Public Safety, today issued the following statement:
“Canada strongly condemns Russia’s malicious cyber activities targeting the United Kingdom, other allies and Ukraine. Canada joins its partners and allies in calling out this activity by Russia’s military intelligence service (the GRU). Russia’s malicious cyber activity and the subsequent harmful real-world impacts it caused such as the bombing of the Mariupol Theatre, the targeting of Yulia Skripal and cyber operations in support of Putin’s illegal war in Ukraine.
“Russia’s pattern of disruptive cyber activity demonstrates a repeated disregard for the rules-based international system. It also demonstrates Russia’s willingness to use its cyber capabilities irresponsibly as part of a wider campaign to interfere with and destabilize other countries.
“Canada, in conjunction with our partners and allies, including the United Kingdom, the United States and the European Union, will continue to defend a stable cyberspace, built on the applicability of and respect for international law, as well as responsible state behaviour, in cyberspace.
“We remind Canadian organizations, especially critical infrastructure network defenders, to bolster their awareness of and protection against Russian cyber threats. We encourage all Canadians to follow updated advice and guidance at cyber.gc.ca.”
Quick facts
Previous malicious Russian cyber activities include the following:
Electoral and political interference via cyber means targeting the United Kingdom, made public in 2023
The targeting of Viasat’s KA-SAT satellite Internet service in Ukraine and other parts of Europe in February 2022
The targeting of the Ukrainian banking sector in February 2022
The exploitation of the SolarWinds Platform by Russia’s Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) in 2021
The SVR’s targeting of Canadian COVID-19 vaccine research and development in 2020
Interference by Russia’s GRU in Georgia’s 2020 parliamentary elections
July 18, 2025 Peterborough, Ontario Employment and Social Development Canada
As families raising children across the country receive the Canada Child Benefit (CCB) today, the Honourable Anna Gainey, Secretary of State (Children and Youth), announced that the benefit amounts have increased for 2025–26. Families can now receive up to $7,997 per child under the age of 6 and $6,748 per child aged 6 through 17. This represents approximately a $200 increase from the previous year and will help parents manage everyday expenses like groceries, clothing or child care, providing added support as they raise their children.
Beyond the CCB, the Government of Canada is advancing other initiatives to make life more affordable and support families’ well-being:
the National School Food Program, backed by a $1 billion investment over five years, is expanding and enhancing access to nutritious food for children across Canada; and
the Canadian Dental Care Plan is transforming access to oral health care by helping make the cost of dental care more affordable for eligible Canadians.
These efforts, combined with investments in affordable child care, housing and health care, reflect the Government of Canada’s commitment to bringing down costs for Canadians and helping them to get ahead.
Today, the Prime Minister, Mark Carney, announced the appointment of Pierre Moreau as Government Representative in the Senate.
Senator Moreau holds four decades of legal and political experience, including as a senator, lawyer, and member of the Québec National Assembly. In the Québec Cabinet, he held critical roles such as Minister responsible for Canadian Intergovernmental Affairs and the Canadian Francophonie, Minister of Transport, Minister of Municipal Affairs, President of the Treasury Board, and Minister of Energy and Natural Resources.
Senator Moreau’s expertise and experience will advance the government’s legislative agenda to bring down costs, keep communities safe, and build one strong Canadian economy.
The Prime Minister thanks Senator Marc Gold for his many years of service as the Government Representative in the Senate and wishes him well on his retirement.
Saskatoon, SK., July 18, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Draganfly Inc. (NASDAQ: DPRO) (CSE: DPRO) (FSE: 3U8A) (“Draganfly” or the “Company”), an award-winning developer of drone solutions, software, and robotics, today announced that it has entered into a securities purchase agreement with several institutional investors to purchase 4,672,895 units of the Company (the “Units”), at a price of US$5.35 per Unit, for gross proceeds of approximately US$25.0 million, before deducting placement agent discounts and offering expenses (the “Offering”).
Each Unit will consist of one common share in the capital of the Company (each, a “Common Share”) and one common share purchase warrant (each, a “Warrant”). The Warrants will entitle the holder thereof to purchase one Common Share at an exercise price of CA$7.3579 (the Canadian dollar equivalent of US$5.35) per Common Share, are exercisable immediately and will expire five years following the date of issuance.
Maxim Group LLC is acting as sole placement agent for the Offering.
Draganfly currently intends to use the net proceeds from the Offering for general corporate purposes, including to fund its capabilities to meet demand for its new products including growth initiatives and/or for working capital requirements including the continuing development and marketing of the Company’s core products, potential acquisitions and research and development. The Offering is expected to close on or about July 21, 2025, subject to the satisfaction of customary closing conditions.
The Offering is subject to customary closing conditions including receipt of all necessary regulatory approvals, including approval of the Canadian Securities Exchange and notification to the Nasdaq Stock Market.
The Offering is being made pursuant to an effective shelf registration statement on Form F-10, as amended, (File No. 333-271498) previously filed with and subsequently declared effective by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) on July 5, 2023 and the Company’s Canadian short form base shelf prospectus dated June 30, 2023 (the “Base Shelf Prospectus”). Draganfly will offer and sell the securities in the United States only. No securities will be offered or sold to Canadian purchasers.
A prospectus supplement and accompanying Base Shelf Prospectus relating to the Offering and describing the terms thereof will be filed with the applicable securities commissions in Canada and with the SEC in the United States and will be available for free by visiting the Company’s profiles on the SEDAR+ website maintained by the Canadian Securities Administrators at www.sedarplus.ca or the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov, as applicable. Copies of the prospectus supplement and accompanying Base Shelf Prospectus relating to the Offering may be obtained, when available, by contacting Maxim Group LLC, at 300 Park Avenue, 16th Floor, New York, NY 10022, Attention: Syndicate Department, or by telephone at (212) 895-3745 or by email at syndicate@maximgrp.com.
This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy these securities, nor shall there be any sale of these securities in any state or other jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to the registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such state or other jurisdiction.
About Draganfly
Draganfly Inc. (NASDAQ: DPRO; CSE: DPRO; FSE: 3U8A) is a pioneer in drone solutions, AI-driven software, and robotics. With over 25 years of innovation, Draganfly has been at the forefront of drone technology, providing solutions for public safety, agriculture, industrial inspections, security, mapping, and surveying. The Company is committed to delivering efficient, reliable, and industry-leading technology that helps organizations save time, money, and lives.
Certain statements contained in this news release may constitute “forward-looking statements” or “forward-looking information” within the meaning of applicable securities laws. Such statements, based as they are on the current expectations of management, inherently involve numerous important risks, uncertainties and assumptions, known and unknown. In this news release, such forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements regarding the timing, size and expected gross proceeds of the Offering, the satisfaction of customary closing conditions related to the Offering and sale of securities, the intended use of proceeds, and Draganfly’s ability to complete the Offering. Closing of the Offering is subject to numerous factors, many of which are beyond Draganfly’s control, including but not limited to, the failure of the parties to satisfy certain closing conditions, and other important factors disclosed previously and from time to time in Draganfly’s filings with the securities regulatory authorities in the Canadian provinces of British Columbia, Ontario and Saskatchewan and with the SEC. Actual future events may differ from the anticipated events expressed in such forward-looking statements. Draganfly believes that expectations represented by forward-looking statements are reasonable, yet there can be no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct. The reader should not place undue reliance, if any, on any forward-looking statements included in this news release. These forward-looking statements speak only as of the date made, and Draganfly is under no obligation and disavows any intention to update publicly or revise such statements as a result of any new information, future event, circumstances or otherwise, unless required by applicable securities laws. Investors are cautioned not to unduly rely on these forward-looking statements and are encouraged to read the Offering documents, as well as Draganfly’s continuous disclosure documents, including its current annual information form, as well as its audited annual consolidated financial statements which are available on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca and on EDGAR at www.sec.gov/edgar.
Louisville, Colorado, July 18, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — CEA Industries Inc. (NASDAQ: VAPE) (“CEA Industries” or the “Company”), owner of Central Canada’s largest independent vape retailer and vertically integrated manufacturer, Fat Panda Ltd., today issued a statement applauding the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) decision to authorize JUUL e-cigarette products for sale in the United States.
The announcement follows the FDA’s reversal of its 2022 federal ban, marking a significant milestone in the evolution of the U.S. nicotine market and underscoring the agency’s recognition of e-cigarettes as a less-harmful alternative for adult cigarette smokers.
“We applaud the FDA’s decision to authorize JUUL products for U.S. sale,” said Tony McDonald, Chairman and CEO of CEA Industries. “This milestone represents a critical step toward establishing a regulated and transparent U.S. marketplace for nicotine vape products. We view the FDA’s action as a sign of growing recognition of science-backed alternatives for smokers, and we are optimistic that it will create opportunities for CEA Industries to participate in the U.S. nicotine vape market over the long-term.”
CEA Industries believes the FDA’s authorization of JUUL sets an important precedent for product validation and regulatory clarity across the e-cigarette industry. The Company sees this development as paving the way for broader participation in the U.S. market under a more defined and predictable regulatory framework.
About CEA Industries Inc.
CEA Industries Inc. (NASDAQ: VAPE) is a growth-oriented company focused on building category-leading businesses in regulated consumer markets. With a focus on the high-growth, Canadian nicotine vape industry, one of the fastest-expanding segments of the global nicotine market, CEA Industries targets scalable operators with strong regulatory alignment, defensible market share, and high-margin business models. The Company provides capital, operational expertise, and strategic resources to accelerate retail expansion, strengthen e-commerce infrastructure, and drive long-term value creation in performance-driven sectors. For more information, visit www.ceaindustries.com.
HALIFAX, Nova Scotia, July 18, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Silver Tiger Metals Inc. (TSXV:SLVR)(OTCQX:SLVTF), based in Halifax, Nova Scotia, focused on Developing Production at the El Tigre Silver Mining District in Sonora Mexico, today announced that Glenn Jessome, President & CEO, will present live at the Metals & Mining Virtual Investor Conference hosted by VirtualInvestorConferences.com, on July 23, 2025.
DATE: July 23 TIME: 10:30 AM ET LINK:REGISTER HERE Available for 1×1 meetings: July 23 – 25
This will be a live, interactive online event where investors are invited to ask the company questions in real-time. If attendees are not able to join the event live on the day of the conference, an archived webcast will also be made available after the event.
It is recommended that online investors pre-register and run the online system check to expedite participation and receive event updates.
About Silver Tiger and the El Tigre Historic Mine District
Silver Tiger Metals Inc. is a Canadian company whose management has more than 27 years’ experience discovering, financing, and building large hydrothermal gold and silver mines in Mexico. Silver Tiger’s 100% owned 28,414 hectare Historic El Tigre Mining District is located in Sonora, Mexico. Principled environmental, social and governance practices are core priorities at Silver Tiger.
Silver Tiger commenced work on its El Tigre Project in 2017. El Tigre intends to build an open pit and underground mine. Silver Tiger has drilled over 150,000 meters at the El Tigre Project, with 119,000 meters completed since 2020. Silver Tiger has completed several MREs, a maiden MRE in 2017 and MRE updates in 2023 and 2024. The PEA for the El Tigre open pit was released in November 2023.
The October 2024 PFS for the El Tigre open pit delivered robust economics. The PFS projects an After-Tax NPV of US$222 million at a 5% discount rate, an After-Tax IRR of 40.0%, and a payback period of 2.0 years. This open pit operation is expected to have a 10-year mine life. The El Tigre project delivers a life of mine undiscounted After-Tax Cash Flow of US$318 million, with initial capital costs of $86.8 million (including $9.3 million in contingency). Operating cash costs are projected at $973/oz AuEq and $12/oz AgEq, with AISC at $1,214/oz AuEq and $14/oz AgEq. The economics of the Project have been evaluated based on a discounted $26/oz silver price and gold price of $2,150/oz.
Silver Tiger is now drilling from underground drill pads, focusing on the high-grade silver Veins, Sulphide and Shale Zones. A PEA for the permitted underground mineral resource is expected to be released in July 2025.
About Virtual Investor Conferences® Virtual Investor Conferences (VIC) is the leading proprietary investor conference series that provides an interactive forum for publicly traded companies to seamlessly present directly to investors.
Providing a real-time investor engagement solution, VIC is specifically designed to offer companies more efficient investor access. Replicating the components of an on-site investor conference, VIC offers companies enhanced capabilities to connect with investors, schedule targeted one-on-one meetings and enhance their presentations with dynamic video content. Accelerating the next level of investor engagement, Virtual Investor Conferences delivers leading investor communications to a global network of retail and institutional investors.
CONTACTS: Silver Tiger Metals Inc. Devin Devarennes VP Corporate Development & Investor Relations 902-233-3656 Devin@silvertigermetals.com
Virtual Investor Conferences John M. Viglotti SVP Corporate Services, Investor Access OTC Markets Group (212) 220-2221 johnv@otcmarkets.com
VANCOUVER, British Columbia, July 18, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Element79 Gold Corp (OTCQB: ELMGF, CSE: ELEM, FSE: 7YS0), a mining company focused on gold and silver exploration with a portfolio of assets in Nevada and Peru, today announced that CEO and Director, James C. Tworek, will present live at the Metals & Mining Virtual Investor Conference hosted by VirtualInvestorConferences.com, on July 23, 2025
This will be a live, interactive online event where investors are invited to ask the company questions in real-time. If attendees are not able to join the event live on the day of the conference, an archived webcast will also be made available after the event.
It is recommended that online investors pre-register and run the online system check to expedite participation and receive event updates.
Upcoming 43-101 reports in progress for Elephant and Gold Mountain
Preparing for exploration at Elephant project,
Acquisition of drill-ready Gold Mountain project in Battle Mountain trend
Near-term catalysts include:
Updated technical disclosures and resource modeling;
Drilling and exploration program launches at Gold Mountain and Elephant;
Strategic communications and investor engagement to reinforce market positioning
About Element79 Gold Corp
Element79 Gold Corp is a mining company focused on gold and silver exploration, with a portfolio of assets in Nevada and Peru. The Company is actively advancing its Gold Mountain and Elephant projects in Nevada and holds the high-grade Lucero mine in southern Peru. Element79 Gold is listed on the OTCQB Market (OTCQB: ELMGF), Canadian Securities Exchange (CSE: ELEM), and the Frankfurt Stock Exchange (FSE: 7YS0).
About Virtual Investor Conferences®
Virtual Investor Conferences (VIC) is the leading proprietary investor conference series that provides an interactive forum for publicly traded companies to seamlessly present directly to investors.
Providing a real-time investor engagement solution, VIC is specifically designed to offer companies more efficient investor access. Replicating the components of an on-site investor conference, VIC offers companies enhanced capabilities to connect with investors, schedule targeted one-on-one meetings and enhance their presentations with dynamic video content. Accelerating the next level of investor engagement, Virtual Investor Conferences delivers leading investor communications to a global network of retail and institutional investors.
CONTACTS: Mike Smith VP, Corporate Development C: +1.604.319.6853 ms@element79.gold
Virtual Investor Conferences John M. Viglotti SVP Corporate Services, Investor Access OTC Markets Group (212) 220-2221 johnv@otcmarkets.com
Joaquina Portillo is an indigenous elderly resident from the rural community of Rio Verde, Department of Canindeyú, Northeast Paraguay. She recently attended an outpatient care day hosted in her community and was very pleased with the comprehensive care that she and her family received.
“I came with my whole family. We have several ailments, but the main one is the flu. We are very happy, they treated us all very well,” said Joaquina.
The outpatient care day, one of many held locally, promotes dialogue between health care providers and indigenous and rural communities about intercultural care and provides a range of health services through outreach activities.
This activity was part of a broader project called Expanding Access to and Quality of Primary Health Care and Integrated Health Services in the XIV Health Region – Canindeyú, Paraguay, from 2023 – 2025.
Previously, indigenous communities in Northeast Paraguay have struggled to access the health services they need despite increasing rates of communicable and noncommunicable diseases. The Ministry of Public Health and Social Welfare has worked closely with PAHO/WHO, through the UHC Partnership, to expand access to and improve the quality of primary health care services at the community level, with family health teams playing a major role.
The combination of applying geospatial analysis to identify health facility gaps, the training of health workers, and strategic approaches to health system policy has led to improved equity and access to services for many remote and indigenous populations.
Access to health services increases
The inter-programmatic and interdisciplinary initiative included developing and implementing a tool for monitoring and managing health services using geospatial data about family health units, training health workers especially in the control of communicable and noncommunicable diseases, and strategic Health Situation Analysis to facilitate the design of effective health policies.
The initiative has enabled progress on multiple fronts to improve health services in Canindeyú including expanding access to health care for vulnerable populations, strengthening trust in public health services among indigenous and rural populations, increasing the technical capacity of health workers, and optimizing responses to health emergencies.
Across the Department from 2022-2024 health insurance coverage increased by 18.1% and access to health services increased by 25.1%. From April-June 2023 to April-June 2024 the number of primary care visits increased by 10.5%, and the number of overall medical consultations increased by 19%. In the same period, there was also a 29% increase in the proportion of pregnant women who received an HIV and Syphilis test during the first trimester of pregnancy.
Created by PAHO/WHO, the ‘Modular Essential Conditions Assessment’ methodology (VCEm in Spanish) evaluates essential factors for the provision of services in health facilities. It was implemented in 14 health regions, including Canindeyú, to drive sustainable improvement within health service networks and to empower health workers. The methodology reveals significant changes that can be made with little or no investment.
“There are many activities that do not require a large investment such as providing training to health workers on protocols which can be done virtually. I believe this benefit will be reflected in fewer patients reaching critical conditions,” said Dr Angie Duarte, Director of the Curuguaty District Hospital.
The implementation of the modular VCEm at the Canindeyú RISS facilities identified opportunities to improve and prioritize actions to promote inclusive, equitable, and culturally appropriate health services that maintain respect for traditional medical knowledge and foster intercultural dialogue.
“The implementation of the project in Canindeyú, with the valuable support of the UHC Partnership, clearly reflects our inter-programmatic and territorial approach. This initiative was aligned with the country’s efforts to advance health equity by strengthening local capacities, promoting the use of innovative technologies, and ensuring appropriate care tailored to cultural and territorial realities,” said Dr Haydee Padilla, WHO Representative to Paraguay.
“We capitalized on lessons learned from previous experiences, which allowed for a more effective and sustainable approach. Joint work with local actors and the incorporation of intercultural dialogue and community-based health care were essential in closing historical access gaps. Furthermore, the implementation of intersectoral work reinforces the positive impact of this cooperation. This experience confirms that international collaboration, aligned with national priorities, can generate real and lasting transformations in health systems,” Dr Haydee Padilla concluded.
The UHC Partnership operates in over 125 countries, representing over 3 billion people. It is supported and funded by Belgium, Canada, the European Union, France, Germany, Ireland, Luxembourg, Japan, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, and WHO.
New York, July 18, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — As the price of Ripple (XRP) breaks through the historical high for the first time in 7 years, reaching $3.55, the crypto market sentiment continues to heat up. In response to investors’ strong demand for a stable way to increase the value of digital assets, the well-known cloud computing service provider Ripplecoin Mining officially launched its new mobile cloud mining APP today. Through AI computing power scheduling technology, it helps coin holders easily obtain daily income and achieve the dual goals of asset growth and risk hedging.
The market boom has created new demands, and cloud mining has emerged.
According to CoinMarketCap data, as of July 18, XRP rose by more than 17% in a single day, surpassing the historical peak in 2018, and ranked third in the global cryptocurrency market value, following BTC and ETH. At the same time, mainstream altcoins such as ETH and Solana also rose, pushing the overall market to break through the $3.89 trillion market value mark. Analysts generally believe that with the expansion of institutional applications and the access of new financial instruments such as ETFs, holders are increasingly demanding “passive income tools other than trading.” Ripplecoin Mining has precisely seen this trend and launched a new cloud mining application, allowing global users to start AI-driven mining tasks through mobile phones without hardware or technical barriers, and obtain daily income dividends in the form of USDT. “We believe that when crypto assets enter the next stage of the cycle, stable, secure, and intelligent computing services will become an important supplement to mainstream investment strategies.” – Ripplecoin Mining spokesperson said at the press conference
Product highlights: AI computing power scheduling + mobile-friendly experience
Ripplecoin Mining cloud mining platform already supports mining of multiple mainstream currencies, including BTC, XRP, ETH, DOGE, SOL, etc., and will gradually expand to more asset categories. Core advantages include: Free experience for new users: Register and get $15 cloud computing power, and start earning immediately; Convenient operation on mobile terminal: Support iOS and Android, complete registration, contract selection, and daily dividend collection in 3 steps; AI intelligent mining system: The platform deploys 120+ green data centers around the world to allocate optimal computing power in real time; Zero threshold entry: No need to buy mining machines, no need to configure electricity, no technical knowledge required; Multi-currency combination mining: Support one-click configuration of multi-currency income combination, and optimize asset allocation strategy.
Simple steps to quickly participate in cloud mining and get income
Choose a contract: Supports multi-currency payments (XRP, BTC, ETH, DOGE), flexible contract types, and income is paid daily;
Get income: You can view mining output in the App every day and get income with one click, without complicated operations. The following contracts explain the potential income you can get
Contract Price
Contract Duration
Daily Earnings
Total Revenue
$100
2Days
$5
$100 + $10
$500
5Days
$6
$500 + $30
$1,200
8Days
$16
$1,300 + $130
$3,000
12Days
$43
$3,000 + $518
$8,200
22Days
$125
$8,100 + $2,742
$23,500
30Days
$409
$23,500 + $12,267
Industry analyst’s view: A new generation of “sound investment” tools Industry research organization ChainProof pointed out that with XRP hitting a record high, cloud mining products are seen as a key bridge between the bull market and sustainable returns. Data shows that in the past month, the number of active users using the Ripplecoin Mining platform increased by 26% month-on-month, of which nearly 50% were users with XRP or ETH as their main holdings. “Although the current market has ushered in a wave of rising prices, volatility still exists. Users hope to not only earn the difference in the bull market, but also build daily cash flow.” – Valentin Fournier, chief analyst at BRN commented
Future Outlook: Accelerate global layout and serve ordinary coin holders
Ripplecoin Mining officials said that the platform will launch “cloud mining custody accounts” and “fixed investment computing power products” in the next few weeks to further meet users’ strategic arrangements in different market scenarios. At the same time, the company plans to accelerate localized support in Canada, Singapore, the United Kingdom and Latin America to expand its global user base of more than 9 million.
About Ripplecoin Mining
Ripplecoin Mining was founded in 2017 and is headquartered in London, UK. It is the world’s leading compliant cloud mining platform. Relying on green energy mines, AI scheduling algorithms and mobile-friendly design, Ripplecoin Mining is committed to enabling every cryptocurrency user to participate in the global computing power network in a simple and secure way. At present, the platform supports cloud mining services for mainstream assets such as BTC, ETH, XRP, DOGE, and has served more than 9.5 million users in more than 180 countries and regions.
Disclaimer: The content of this press release does not constitute any form of investment advice, trading advice or financial commitment. There are risks in the cryptocurrency market. Cloud mining participants need to carefully evaluate the potential results based on their actual situation. It is recommended to consult a professional financial advisor in advance.
As many countries grapple with ageing populations, falling birthrates, labour shortages and fiscal pressures, the ability to successfully integrate immigrants is becoming an increasingly pressing matter.
However, our new study found that salaries of immigrants in Europe and North America are nearly 18% lower than those of natives, as foreign-born workers struggle to access higher-paying jobs. To reach this conclusion, we analysed the salaries of 13.5 million people in nine immigrant-receiving countries: Canada, Denmark, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden and the United States. Data was taken from the period of 2016 to 2019.
Immigrants in these countries earned less primarily because they were unable to access higher-paying jobs. Three-quarters of the migrant pay gap was the result of a lack of access to well-paid jobs, while only one-quarter of the gap was attributed to pay differences between migrant and native-born workers in the same job.
Spain has the largest gap, while Sweden’s is the smallest. Author’s own elaboration
The high-income countries we examined in Europe and North America all face similar demographic challenges, with low fertility rates resulting in an ageing population and labour shortages. Pro-natalist policies are unlikely to change this demographic destiny, but sound immigration policies can help.
Across these countries with vastly different labour market institutions and immigrant populations, a common theme emerged: countries are not making good use of immigrants’ human capital.
Stark regional differences
We found that immigrants earn 17.9% less than natives on average, although the pay gap varied widely by country. In Spain, a relatively recent large-scale receiver of immigrants, the pay gap was over 29%. In Sweden – a country where many employed immigrants find work in the public sector – it was just 7%. These results don’t include immigrants who are unemployed or in the informal economy.
Where immigrants were born also mattered. The highest average overall pay gaps were for immigrants from sub-Saharan Africa (26.1%) and the Middle East and North Africa (23.7%). For immigrants from Europe, North America and other Western countries, the difference in average pay compared to natives was a much more modest 9%.
Migrant pay gaps according to region of origin. The minus sign (−) before figures indicates that immigrants earn less than natives. Note that data for second-generation immigrants is unavailable in France, Spain and the US. Author’s own elaboration
Our results suggest that the children of immigrants faced substantially better earning prospects than their parents. For the countries where second-generation data was available – Canada, Denmark, Germany, Netherlands, Norway and Sweden – the gap narrowed over time, and the children of immigrants had a substantially smaller earnings gap, earning an average of 5.7% less than workers with native-born parents.
The struggle to access higher-paying jobs
Beyond quantifying the gap, we wanted to understand the roots of pay disparities. To create better policies, it is important to know whether immigrants are paid less than natives when they’re doing the same job in the same company, or whether these differences arise because immigrants typically work in lower-paying jobs.
By a wide margin, we found that immigrants end up working in lower-paying industries, occupations and companies; three-quarters of the gap was due to this type of labour-market sorting. The pay gap for the same work in the same company was just 4.6% on average across the nine countries.
These differences represent a failure of immigration policy to incorporate immigrants, as immigrants are relegated to jobs where they cannot contribute to their full potential. Our analyses rule out that the lack of access to higher-paying jobs simply reflects a difference in skill between immigrants and native-born workers. We also found that the size of the pay gap and the key role of unequal access to well-paid jobs is similar for immigrants with and without a university education.
This means that the immigrant-native pay gap in large part represents a market inefficiency and policy failure, with significant social consequences for both immigrants and immigrant-receiving countries.
Although equal pay for equal work policies may seem like a viable solution, they won’t close the immigrant pay gap. This is because they only help those who have already secured work, but immigrants face barriers to employment that begin long before even applying for a job. This includes convoluted processes to validate university degrees or other qualifications, and exclusion from professional networks.
The policy focus should therefore be on improving access to better jobs.
To make this happen, governments should invest in programmes such as language training, education and vocational skills for immigrants. They should ensure immigrants have early access to employment information, networks, job-search assistance and employer referrals. They should implement standardised and transparent recognition of foreign degrees and credentials, helping immigrants to access jobs matching their skills and training.
This is particularly important for Europe as it races to attract – and retain – skilled immigrants who may be having second thoughts about the US in the Trump era. In the European Union, around 40% of university-educated non-EU immigrants are employed in jobs that do not require a degree, an underutilisation of skills known as brain waste.
Some countries are already taking steps to remedy this. Germany’s Skilled Immigration Act – which took effect in 2024 – allows foreign graduates to work while their degrees are being formally recognised. In 2025, France reformed its Passeport Talent permit to attract skilled professionals and address labour shortages, especially in healthcare.
These kinds of policies help ensure that foreign-born workers can contribute at their full capacity, and that countries can reap the full benefits of immigration in terms of productivity gains, higher tax revenue and reduced inequality.
If immigrants can’t get access to good jobs, their skills are underutilised and society loses out. Smart immigration policy doesn’t end at the border – it starts there.
Are Skeie Hermansen has received funding from the European Research Council (ERC) under the European Union’s
Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme (grant agreement no. 851149), the Research Council of Norway (grant 287016), and the Center for Advanced Study at The Norwegian Academy of Science
and Letters (Young CAS grant 2019/2020).
Marta M. Elvira receives funding from the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation, grant PID2020-
118807RB-I00/AEI /10.13039/501100011033
Andrew Penner no recibe salario, ni ejerce labores de consultoría, ni posee acciones, ni recibe financiación de ninguna compañía u organización que pueda obtener beneficio de este artículo, y ha declarado carecer de vínculos relevantes más allá del cargo académico citado.
TORONTO, July 18, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Red White & Bloom Brands Inc. (CSE: RWB) (“RWB” or the “Company”) is pleased to report that it has filed its consolidated audited financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2024 (the “Financial Statements”), together with the related management’s discussion and analysis (“MD&A”), and accompanying CEO and CFO certifications (collectively, the “Annual Filings”).
As previously disclosed, the Company’s Annual Filings and its interim financial statements and MD&A for the three-month period ended March 31, 2025 (the “2025-Q1 Filings”) were delayed beyond the prescribed deadlines under applicable Canadian securities laws. As a result, a failure-to-file cease trade order (“FFCTO”) was issued by the applicable securities regulator, effective July 3, 2025.
With the Annual Filings now completed, the Company is working diligently to finalize and file the 2025-Q1 Filings. The FFCTO will remain in effect until the 2025-Q1 Filings are completed and the applicable securities regulator revokes the order.
Revenues were $18.7 million for 2024-Q4, representing a $2.8 million increase compared to restated 2023-Q4 revenues of $15.9 million.
Gross profit, after fair value adjustments, was $5.4 million for 2024-Q4, a decrease of $5.1 million from restated 2023-Q4 gross profit after fair value adjustments of $10.6 million.
Operating expenses totaled $9.1 million for 2024-Q4, a decrease of $3.7 million compared to restated 2023-Q4 operating expenses of $12.8 million.
EBITDA was $6.3 million for 2024-Q4, an increase of $97.6 million compared to restated 2023-Q4 negative adjusted EBITDA of $91.3 million which included $94.6 million in non-cash impairments.1
Fiscal Year 2024 (“2024-YTD”) Consolidated Results Compared to Restated Fiscal Year 2023 (“2023-YTD”)
Revenues for 2024-YTD were $80.2 million, reflecting a $10.6 million increase compared to restated 2023-YTD revenues of $69.6 million.
Gross profit, after fair value adjustments, for 2024-YTD totaled $28.4 million, an increase of $3.4 million from restated 2023-YTD gross profit after fair value adjustments of $25.0 million., marking an increase of $3.4 million.
Operating expenses for 2024-YTD were $40.4 million, an increase of $9.4 million compared to restated 2023-YTD operating expenses of $31.0 million.
EBITDA was $10.8 million for 2024-YTD, a net increase improvement of $99.76 million compared to 2023-YTD negative adjusted EBITDA of $89.0 million which included $94.6 million in non-cash impairments.
For additional details on the Company’s financial results, refer to the Company’s filings at SEDAR+: www.sedarplus.ca
About Red White & Bloom Brands Inc.
Red White & Bloom is a multi-state cannabis operator and house of premium brands operating in the United States, Canada and select international jurisdictions. RWB is predominantly focusing its investments on major U.S. markets, including California, Florida, Missouri, Michigan, and Ohio in addition to Canadian and International markets.
Red White & Bloom Brands Inc. Investor and Media Relations Edoardo Mattei, CFO IR@RedWhiteBloom.com 947-225-0503
__________________________ 1Refer to Note 33, Discontinued Operations, of the Company’s 2024-YE Financial Statements for details on impairments.
Neither the CSE nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the CSE) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
FORWARD LOOKING INFORMATION
This press release contains forward-looking statements and information that are based on the beliefs of management and reflect the Company’s current expectations. When used in this press release, the words “estimate”, “project”, “belief”, “anticipate”, “intend”, “expect”, “plan”, “predict”, “may” or “should” and the negative of these words or such variations thereon or comparable terminology are intended to identify forward-looking statements and information. There is no assurance that the near-term priorities outlined in this press release will yield results in line with management expectations. Such statements and information reflect the current view of the Company with respect to risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ materially from those contemplated in those forward-looking statements and information.
By their nature, forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause our actual results, performance or achievements, or other future events, to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Such factors include, among others, the following risks: risks associated with the implementation of the Company’s business plan and matters relating thereto, risks associated with the cannabis industry, competition, regulatory change, the need for additional financing, reliance on key personnel, market size, and the volatility of the Company’s common share price and volume. Forward-looking statements are made based on management’s beliefs, estimates and opinions on the date that statements are made, and the Company undertakes no obligation to update forward-looking statements if these beliefs, estimates and opinions or other circumstances should change. Investors are cautioned against attributing undue certainty to forward-looking statements.
There are several important factors that could cause the Company’s actual results to differ materially from those indicated or implied by forward-looking statements and information. Such factors include, among others, risks related to the Company’s proposed business, such as failure of the business strategy and government regulation; risks related to the Company’s operations, such as additional financing requirements and access to capital, reliance on key and qualified personnel, insurance, competition, intellectual property, and reliable supply chains; risks related to the Company and its business generally; risks related to regulatory approvals. The Company cautions that the foregoing list of material factors is not exhaustive. When relying on the Company’s forward-looking statements and information to make decisions, investors and others should carefully consider the foregoing factors and other uncertainties and potential events. The Company has assumed a certain progression, which may not be realized. It has also been assumed that the material factors referred to in the previous paragraph will not cause such forward-looking statements and information to differ materially from actual results or events. However, the list of these factors is not exhaustive and is subject to change and there can be no assurance that such assumptions will reflect the actual outcome of such items or factors. While the Company may elect to, it does not undertake to update this information at any particular time.
THE FORWARD-LOOKING INFORMATION CONTAINED IN THIS PRESS RELEASE REPRESENTS THE EXPECTATIONS OF THE COMPANY AS OF THE DATE OF THIS PRESS RELEASE AND, ACCORDINGLY, IS SUBJECT TO CHANGE AFTER SUCH DATE. READERS SHOULD NOT PLACE UNDUE IMPORTANCE ON FORWARD LOOKING INFORMATION AND SHOULD NOT RELY UPON THIS INFORMATION AS OF ANY OTHER DATE. WHILE THE COMPANY MAY ELECT TO, IT DOES NOT UNDERTAKE TO UPDATE THIS INFORMATION AT ANY PARTICULAR TIME EXCEPT AS REQUIRED IN ACCORDANCE WITH APPLICABLE LAWS.
NON-IFRS AND SUPPLEMENTARY FINANCIAL OR OPERATING MEASURES The Company references non-IFRS and supplementary financial or operating measures, including, but not limited to, EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA. These measures do not have a standardized meaning prescribed by IFRS and are most likely not comparable to similar measures presented by other public company issuers including those operating in the cannabis industry. Non-IFRS measures provide investors with additional insights into the Company’s financial and operating performance which may not be garnered from traditional IFRS measures. The management of the Company, including its key decision makers, use non-IFRS measures in assessing the Company’s financial and operating performance. The Company calculates EBITDA as net income or loss excluding current and deferred income tax expense, finance expense, interest expenses, interest income and amortization of discounts, and depreciation and amortization. The Company calculates Adjusted EBITDA as net income or loss excluding current and deferred income tax expense, finance expense, interest income and amortization of discounts, depreciation and amortization, fair value changes in biological assets, realized fair value changes in inventory sold, share based compensation, termination costs, gains or losses on evaluation of financial instruments, impairments of intangible assets, impairment of goodwill, impairment of property, plant and equipment, accreted interest on leases and applicable short term and long term liabilities, gains or losses on asset disposals, gains or losses on settlement of debt, gains or losses on debt modification, foreign exchange, expected credit losses and bad debt expense, acquisition costs, business transaction costs, gain on extinguishment of payables, and non-recurring expenses such as carrying costs associated with dormant assets and penalties and late fees.
TORONTO, July 18, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Red White & Bloom Brands Inc. (CSE: RWB) (“RWB” or the “Company”) is pleased to report that it has filed its consolidated audited financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2024 (the “Financial Statements”), together with the related management’s discussion and analysis (“MD&A”), and accompanying CEO and CFO certifications (collectively, the “Annual Filings”).
As previously disclosed, the Company’s Annual Filings and its interim financial statements and MD&A for the three-month period ended March 31, 2025 (the “2025-Q1 Filings”) were delayed beyond the prescribed deadlines under applicable Canadian securities laws. As a result, a failure-to-file cease trade order (“FFCTO”) was issued by the applicable securities regulator, effective July 3, 2025.
With the Annual Filings now completed, the Company is working diligently to finalize and file the 2025-Q1 Filings. The FFCTO will remain in effect until the 2025-Q1 Filings are completed and the applicable securities regulator revokes the order.
Revenues were $18.7 million for 2024-Q4, representing a $2.8 million increase compared to restated 2023-Q4 revenues of $15.9 million.
Gross profit, after fair value adjustments, was $5.4 million for 2024-Q4, a decrease of $5.1 million from restated 2023-Q4 gross profit after fair value adjustments of $10.6 million.
Operating expenses totaled $9.1 million for 2024-Q4, a decrease of $3.7 million compared to restated 2023-Q4 operating expenses of $12.8 million.
EBITDA was $6.3 million for 2024-Q4, an increase of $97.6 million compared to restated 2023-Q4 negative adjusted EBITDA of $91.3 million which included $94.6 million in non-cash impairments.1
Fiscal Year 2024 (“2024-YTD”) Consolidated Results Compared to Restated Fiscal Year 2023 (“2023-YTD”)
Revenues for 2024-YTD were $80.2 million, reflecting a $10.6 million increase compared to restated 2023-YTD revenues of $69.6 million.
Gross profit, after fair value adjustments, for 2024-YTD totaled $28.4 million, an increase of $3.4 million from restated 2023-YTD gross profit after fair value adjustments of $25.0 million., marking an increase of $3.4 million.
Operating expenses for 2024-YTD were $40.4 million, an increase of $9.4 million compared to restated 2023-YTD operating expenses of $31.0 million.
EBITDA was $10.8 million for 2024-YTD, a net increase improvement of $99.76 million compared to 2023-YTD negative adjusted EBITDA of $89.0 million which included $94.6 million in non-cash impairments.
For additional details on the Company’s financial results, refer to the Company’s filings at SEDAR+: www.sedarplus.ca
About Red White & Bloom Brands Inc.
Red White & Bloom is a multi-state cannabis operator and house of premium brands operating in the United States, Canada and select international jurisdictions. RWB is predominantly focusing its investments on major U.S. markets, including California, Florida, Missouri, Michigan, and Ohio in addition to Canadian and International markets.
Red White & Bloom Brands Inc. Investor and Media Relations Edoardo Mattei, CFO IR@RedWhiteBloom.com 947-225-0503
__________________________ 1Refer to Note 33, Discontinued Operations, of the Company’s 2024-YE Financial Statements for details on impairments.
Neither the CSE nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the CSE) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
FORWARD LOOKING INFORMATION
This press release contains forward-looking statements and information that are based on the beliefs of management and reflect the Company’s current expectations. When used in this press release, the words “estimate”, “project”, “belief”, “anticipate”, “intend”, “expect”, “plan”, “predict”, “may” or “should” and the negative of these words or such variations thereon or comparable terminology are intended to identify forward-looking statements and information. There is no assurance that the near-term priorities outlined in this press release will yield results in line with management expectations. Such statements and information reflect the current view of the Company with respect to risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ materially from those contemplated in those forward-looking statements and information.
By their nature, forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause our actual results, performance or achievements, or other future events, to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Such factors include, among others, the following risks: risks associated with the implementation of the Company’s business plan and matters relating thereto, risks associated with the cannabis industry, competition, regulatory change, the need for additional financing, reliance on key personnel, market size, and the volatility of the Company’s common share price and volume. Forward-looking statements are made based on management’s beliefs, estimates and opinions on the date that statements are made, and the Company undertakes no obligation to update forward-looking statements if these beliefs, estimates and opinions or other circumstances should change. Investors are cautioned against attributing undue certainty to forward-looking statements.
There are several important factors that could cause the Company’s actual results to differ materially from those indicated or implied by forward-looking statements and information. Such factors include, among others, risks related to the Company’s proposed business, such as failure of the business strategy and government regulation; risks related to the Company’s operations, such as additional financing requirements and access to capital, reliance on key and qualified personnel, insurance, competition, intellectual property, and reliable supply chains; risks related to the Company and its business generally; risks related to regulatory approvals. The Company cautions that the foregoing list of material factors is not exhaustive. When relying on the Company’s forward-looking statements and information to make decisions, investors and others should carefully consider the foregoing factors and other uncertainties and potential events. The Company has assumed a certain progression, which may not be realized. It has also been assumed that the material factors referred to in the previous paragraph will not cause such forward-looking statements and information to differ materially from actual results or events. However, the list of these factors is not exhaustive and is subject to change and there can be no assurance that such assumptions will reflect the actual outcome of such items or factors. While the Company may elect to, it does not undertake to update this information at any particular time.
THE FORWARD-LOOKING INFORMATION CONTAINED IN THIS PRESS RELEASE REPRESENTS THE EXPECTATIONS OF THE COMPANY AS OF THE DATE OF THIS PRESS RELEASE AND, ACCORDINGLY, IS SUBJECT TO CHANGE AFTER SUCH DATE. READERS SHOULD NOT PLACE UNDUE IMPORTANCE ON FORWARD LOOKING INFORMATION AND SHOULD NOT RELY UPON THIS INFORMATION AS OF ANY OTHER DATE. WHILE THE COMPANY MAY ELECT TO, IT DOES NOT UNDERTAKE TO UPDATE THIS INFORMATION AT ANY PARTICULAR TIME EXCEPT AS REQUIRED IN ACCORDANCE WITH APPLICABLE LAWS.
NON-IFRS AND SUPPLEMENTARY FINANCIAL OR OPERATING MEASURES The Company references non-IFRS and supplementary financial or operating measures, including, but not limited to, EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA. These measures do not have a standardized meaning prescribed by IFRS and are most likely not comparable to similar measures presented by other public company issuers including those operating in the cannabis industry. Non-IFRS measures provide investors with additional insights into the Company’s financial and operating performance which may not be garnered from traditional IFRS measures. The management of the Company, including its key decision makers, use non-IFRS measures in assessing the Company’s financial and operating performance. The Company calculates EBITDA as net income or loss excluding current and deferred income tax expense, finance expense, interest expenses, interest income and amortization of discounts, and depreciation and amortization. The Company calculates Adjusted EBITDA as net income or loss excluding current and deferred income tax expense, finance expense, interest income and amortization of discounts, depreciation and amortization, fair value changes in biological assets, realized fair value changes in inventory sold, share based compensation, termination costs, gains or losses on evaluation of financial instruments, impairments of intangible assets, impairment of goodwill, impairment of property, plant and equipment, accreted interest on leases and applicable short term and long term liabilities, gains or losses on asset disposals, gains or losses on settlement of debt, gains or losses on debt modification, foreign exchange, expected credit losses and bad debt expense, acquisition costs, business transaction costs, gain on extinguishment of payables, and non-recurring expenses such as carrying costs associated with dormant assets and penalties and late fees.
TORONTO, July 18, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Red White & Bloom Brands Inc. (CSE: RWB) (“RWB” or the “Company”) is pleased to report that it has filed its consolidated audited financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2024 (the “Financial Statements”), together with the related management’s discussion and analysis (“MD&A”), and accompanying CEO and CFO certifications (collectively, the “Annual Filings”).
As previously disclosed, the Company’s Annual Filings and its interim financial statements and MD&A for the three-month period ended March 31, 2025 (the “2025-Q1 Filings”) were delayed beyond the prescribed deadlines under applicable Canadian securities laws. As a result, a failure-to-file cease trade order (“FFCTO”) was issued by the applicable securities regulator, effective July 3, 2025.
With the Annual Filings now completed, the Company is working diligently to finalize and file the 2025-Q1 Filings. The FFCTO will remain in effect until the 2025-Q1 Filings are completed and the applicable securities regulator revokes the order.
Revenues were $18.7 million for 2024-Q4, representing a $2.8 million increase compared to restated 2023-Q4 revenues of $15.9 million.
Gross profit, after fair value adjustments, was $5.4 million for 2024-Q4, a decrease of $5.1 million from restated 2023-Q4 gross profit after fair value adjustments of $10.6 million.
Operating expenses totaled $9.1 million for 2024-Q4, a decrease of $3.7 million compared to restated 2023-Q4 operating expenses of $12.8 million.
EBITDA was $6.3 million for 2024-Q4, an increase of $97.6 million compared to restated 2023-Q4 negative adjusted EBITDA of $91.3 million which included $94.6 million in non-cash impairments.1
Fiscal Year 2024 (“2024-YTD”) Consolidated Results Compared to Restated Fiscal Year 2023 (“2023-YTD”)
Revenues for 2024-YTD were $80.2 million, reflecting a $10.6 million increase compared to restated 2023-YTD revenues of $69.6 million.
Gross profit, after fair value adjustments, for 2024-YTD totaled $28.4 million, an increase of $3.4 million from restated 2023-YTD gross profit after fair value adjustments of $25.0 million., marking an increase of $3.4 million.
Operating expenses for 2024-YTD were $40.4 million, an increase of $9.4 million compared to restated 2023-YTD operating expenses of $31.0 million.
EBITDA was $10.8 million for 2024-YTD, a net increase improvement of $99.76 million compared to 2023-YTD negative adjusted EBITDA of $89.0 million which included $94.6 million in non-cash impairments.
For additional details on the Company’s financial results, refer to the Company’s filings at SEDAR+: www.sedarplus.ca
About Red White & Bloom Brands Inc.
Red White & Bloom is a multi-state cannabis operator and house of premium brands operating in the United States, Canada and select international jurisdictions. RWB is predominantly focusing its investments on major U.S. markets, including California, Florida, Missouri, Michigan, and Ohio in addition to Canadian and International markets.
Red White & Bloom Brands Inc. Investor and Media Relations Edoardo Mattei, CFO IR@RedWhiteBloom.com 947-225-0503
__________________________ 1Refer to Note 33, Discontinued Operations, of the Company’s 2024-YE Financial Statements for details on impairments.
Neither the CSE nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the CSE) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
FORWARD LOOKING INFORMATION
This press release contains forward-looking statements and information that are based on the beliefs of management and reflect the Company’s current expectations. When used in this press release, the words “estimate”, “project”, “belief”, “anticipate”, “intend”, “expect”, “plan”, “predict”, “may” or “should” and the negative of these words or such variations thereon or comparable terminology are intended to identify forward-looking statements and information. There is no assurance that the near-term priorities outlined in this press release will yield results in line with management expectations. Such statements and information reflect the current view of the Company with respect to risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ materially from those contemplated in those forward-looking statements and information.
By their nature, forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause our actual results, performance or achievements, or other future events, to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Such factors include, among others, the following risks: risks associated with the implementation of the Company’s business plan and matters relating thereto, risks associated with the cannabis industry, competition, regulatory change, the need for additional financing, reliance on key personnel, market size, and the volatility of the Company’s common share price and volume. Forward-looking statements are made based on management’s beliefs, estimates and opinions on the date that statements are made, and the Company undertakes no obligation to update forward-looking statements if these beliefs, estimates and opinions or other circumstances should change. Investors are cautioned against attributing undue certainty to forward-looking statements.
There are several important factors that could cause the Company’s actual results to differ materially from those indicated or implied by forward-looking statements and information. Such factors include, among others, risks related to the Company’s proposed business, such as failure of the business strategy and government regulation; risks related to the Company’s operations, such as additional financing requirements and access to capital, reliance on key and qualified personnel, insurance, competition, intellectual property, and reliable supply chains; risks related to the Company and its business generally; risks related to regulatory approvals. The Company cautions that the foregoing list of material factors is not exhaustive. When relying on the Company’s forward-looking statements and information to make decisions, investors and others should carefully consider the foregoing factors and other uncertainties and potential events. The Company has assumed a certain progression, which may not be realized. It has also been assumed that the material factors referred to in the previous paragraph will not cause such forward-looking statements and information to differ materially from actual results or events. However, the list of these factors is not exhaustive and is subject to change and there can be no assurance that such assumptions will reflect the actual outcome of such items or factors. While the Company may elect to, it does not undertake to update this information at any particular time.
THE FORWARD-LOOKING INFORMATION CONTAINED IN THIS PRESS RELEASE REPRESENTS THE EXPECTATIONS OF THE COMPANY AS OF THE DATE OF THIS PRESS RELEASE AND, ACCORDINGLY, IS SUBJECT TO CHANGE AFTER SUCH DATE. READERS SHOULD NOT PLACE UNDUE IMPORTANCE ON FORWARD LOOKING INFORMATION AND SHOULD NOT RELY UPON THIS INFORMATION AS OF ANY OTHER DATE. WHILE THE COMPANY MAY ELECT TO, IT DOES NOT UNDERTAKE TO UPDATE THIS INFORMATION AT ANY PARTICULAR TIME EXCEPT AS REQUIRED IN ACCORDANCE WITH APPLICABLE LAWS.
NON-IFRS AND SUPPLEMENTARY FINANCIAL OR OPERATING MEASURES The Company references non-IFRS and supplementary financial or operating measures, including, but not limited to, EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA. These measures do not have a standardized meaning prescribed by IFRS and are most likely not comparable to similar measures presented by other public company issuers including those operating in the cannabis industry. Non-IFRS measures provide investors with additional insights into the Company’s financial and operating performance which may not be garnered from traditional IFRS measures. The management of the Company, including its key decision makers, use non-IFRS measures in assessing the Company’s financial and operating performance. The Company calculates EBITDA as net income or loss excluding current and deferred income tax expense, finance expense, interest expenses, interest income and amortization of discounts, and depreciation and amortization. The Company calculates Adjusted EBITDA as net income or loss excluding current and deferred income tax expense, finance expense, interest income and amortization of discounts, depreciation and amortization, fair value changes in biological assets, realized fair value changes in inventory sold, share based compensation, termination costs, gains or losses on evaluation of financial instruments, impairments of intangible assets, impairment of goodwill, impairment of property, plant and equipment, accreted interest on leases and applicable short term and long term liabilities, gains or losses on asset disposals, gains or losses on settlement of debt, gains or losses on debt modification, foreign exchange, expected credit losses and bad debt expense, acquisition costs, business transaction costs, gain on extinguishment of payables, and non-recurring expenses such as carrying costs associated with dormant assets and penalties and late fees.
Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region
Hong Kong Customs seizes suspected methamphetamine worth about $1.1 million (with photo) Customs officers on July 16 inspected an express parcel, which was declared as baby bottle sanitiser, arriving in Hong Kong from Canada via the Mainland at the Shenzhen Bay Control Point. Upon examination, Customs officers found the batch of suspected methamphetamine concealed inside a baby bottle sanitiser.
Customs officers subsequently mounted a controlled delivery operation yesterday (July 17) and arrested a 56-year-old woman and a 58-year-old man in Mong Kok suspected to be connected with the case.
An investigation is ongoing.
Customs will continue to step up enforcement against drug trafficking activities through intelligence analysis. The department also reminds members of the public to stay alert and not to participate in drug trafficking activities for monetary return. They must not accept hiring or delegation from another party to carry controlled items into and out of Hong Kong. They are also reminded not to carry unknown items for other people, nor to release their personal data or home address to others for receiving parcels or goods.
Under the Dangerous Drugs Ordinance, trafficking in a dangerous drug is a serious offence. The maximum penalty upon conviction is a fine of $5 million and life imprisonment.
Members of the public may report any suspected drug trafficking activities to Customs’ 24-hour hotline 182 8080 or its dedicated crime-reporting email account (crimereport@customs.gov.hk) or online form (eform.cefs.gov.hk/form/ced002Issued at HKT 16:42
INVL Technology (hereinafter – the Company) notifiesthat on 17 July 2025 it terminated the agreement with a company of the Corum group, specifically, the Zurich branch of Luxembourg-based Corum Group International S.à.r.l., which was hired to assist INVL Technology in divesting of it‘s portfolio companies before the end of the envisaged investment period. Certain terms will remain in force for the 12 month period after the termination date (tail period).
Despite the termination of the collaboration with Corum Group, the Company continues to actively pursue the sale of its portfolio companies. Negotiations with potential buyers are ongoing, and initiated processes are not being suspended. the Company will also launch a search for new investment advisors that have expertise in business divestments.
The decision to terminate the collaboration with Corum Group was made to provide greater flexibility in exploring alternative strategic options for the sale of the portfolio companies.
Additional information:
INVL Technology, a company that invests in IT businesses, decided to terminate the contract with the Zurich branch of Corum Group’s Luxembourg-based unit Corum Group International on intermediary services in the divestment of INVL Technology’s portfolio companies on 17 July 2025. Certain terms of the agreement will remain in force for a 12-month tail period.
“Notwithstanding the challenging economy and ongoing stagnation of B2B technology companies in Europe, the US and Canada, resulting in a less-than-ideal situation in the market for divesting businesses, we have interested parties, and we are continuing the sale process. We decided to terminate the contract with our current investment advisor in order to be able to explore other divestment possibilities. We are not halting the process and Corum Group will complete negotiation processes with the parties that have expressed interest in the portfolio companies. INVL Technology will seek for other exit opportunities,” says Kazimieras Tonkūnas, the Managing Partner at INVL Technology. “The portfolio companies are performing well, their results will be reflected in the report for the first half of the year which we will publish at the end of August.”
INVL Technology, which is managed by INVL Asset Management, the leading alternative asset manager in the Baltics, is a closed-end investment company.
INVL Technology owns and manages the cybersecurity company NRD Cyber Security, the GovTech company NRD Companies, and the Baltic IT company Novian.
The shares of INVL Technology are traded on the secondary list of the Nasdaq Vilnius stock exchange (INC1L).
The person authorized to provide additional information: Kazimieras Tonkūnas INVL Technology Managing Partner E-mail k.tonkunas@invltechnology.lt
INVL Technology (hereinafter – the Company) notifiesthat on 17 July 2025 it terminated the agreement with a company of the Corum group, specifically, the Zurich branch of Luxembourg-based Corum Group International S.à.r.l., which was hired to assist INVL Technology in divesting of it‘s portfolio companies before the end of the envisaged investment period. Certain terms will remain in force for the 12 month period after the termination date (tail period).
Despite the termination of the collaboration with Corum Group, the Company continues to actively pursue the sale of its portfolio companies. Negotiations with potential buyers are ongoing, and initiated processes are not being suspended. the Company will also launch a search for new investment advisors that have expertise in business divestments.
The decision to terminate the collaboration with Corum Group was made to provide greater flexibility in exploring alternative strategic options for the sale of the portfolio companies.
Additional information:
INVL Technology, a company that invests in IT businesses, decided to terminate the contract with the Zurich branch of Corum Group’s Luxembourg-based unit Corum Group International on intermediary services in the divestment of INVL Technology’s portfolio companies on 17 July 2025. Certain terms of the agreement will remain in force for a 12-month tail period.
“Notwithstanding the challenging economy and ongoing stagnation of B2B technology companies in Europe, the US and Canada, resulting in a less-than-ideal situation in the market for divesting businesses, we have interested parties, and we are continuing the sale process. We decided to terminate the contract with our current investment advisor in order to be able to explore other divestment possibilities. We are not halting the process and Corum Group will complete negotiation processes with the parties that have expressed interest in the portfolio companies. INVL Technology will seek for other exit opportunities,” says Kazimieras Tonkūnas, the Managing Partner at INVL Technology. “The portfolio companies are performing well, their results will be reflected in the report for the first half of the year which we will publish at the end of August.”
INVL Technology, which is managed by INVL Asset Management, the leading alternative asset manager in the Baltics, is a closed-end investment company.
INVL Technology owns and manages the cybersecurity company NRD Cyber Security, the GovTech company NRD Companies, and the Baltic IT company Novian.
The shares of INVL Technology are traded on the secondary list of the Nasdaq Vilnius stock exchange (INC1L).
The person authorized to provide additional information: Kazimieras Tonkūnas INVL Technology Managing Partner E-mail k.tonkunas@invltechnology.lt
In the thrilling finale of the TV series The Americans, set during the Reagan administration, deep-cover KGB operatives Philip and Elizabeth Jennings are faced with a difficult decision. Posing as an ordinary American married couple, for decades they have raised children, filed tax returns and slipped effortlessly into the rhythms and routines of everyday suburban existence in Washington, D.C.
All the while, they’ve been spying – gathering intelligence and surreptitiously feeding it to their communist masters in Soviet Moscow. Now, with the FBI closing in and their cover on the brink of collapse, they must decide whether to stay and face arrest or flee the country they’ve come to call home. There’s also their teenage children to consider.
The story seemed too incredible to be true – but in fact it was based in part on Donald Heathfield and Ann Foley, subsequently outed as Andrei Bezrukov and Elena Vavilova, a Russian couple who had spent more than 20 years masquerading as Canadians. At the time of their unmasking, they were living quietly in the United States with Tim and Alex, their two sons.
Review: The Illegals: Russia’s Most Audacious Spies and the Plot to Infiltrate the West – Shaun Walker (Profile)
A new book, The Illegals, tells of a network of Russian agents operating across the US, during the late 20th and early 21st centuries – including Bezrukov and Vavilova. It opens with their dramatic 2010 arrest, part of ten Russian spies (mostly illegals like them) detained by the FBI.
Author Shaun Walker, the Guardian’s central and eastern Europe correspondent, draws on declassified archival material and first-hand interviews. The result is an engrossing, eye-opening account of the secret world of the Soviet “illegals programme”: embedded spies who lived surreptitiously in the West without the safety blanket of diplomatic protection.
As Walker explains, “legals” were Russian operatives working under official cover – as diplomats or embassy staff, privy to diplomatic immunity. By contrast, “illegals” operated off the grid. They crept silently into Western countries under false identities, often stolen from the dead. This made them harder to detect, but left them far more vulnerable if exposed.
One of the most high-profile figures in the 2010 spy bust was Anna Chapman. Unlike many other illegals, Chapman didn’t even bother to disguise her Russian identity. Instead, as Walker recounts, she entered America using a British passport – acquired through a brief marriage to a UK citizen – and worked as a New York real estate broker.
Her photogenic looks and media-friendly persona made her the public face of the scandal. After being deported, Chapman reinvented herself as a television host, runway model and pro-Kremlin influencer.
The real Americans
Walker outlines how Bezrukov and Vavilova first met in the early 1980s, as history students in Siberia. There, KGB “spotters” identified them for potential recruitment. Later, he adds,
they progressed to an arduous training programme lasting several years, moulding their language, mannerisms and identities into those of an ordinary couple. They left the Soviet Union separately in 1987, staged a meeting in Canada, and began a relationship as if they had just met.
Having married under their assumed names, Andrei and Elena adopted the habits and customs of an ordinary middle-class life. After the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, the couple were cut off from Moscow, but by the end of the decade they were reactivated by the SVR, Russia’s new foreign intelligence agency. Around this time, Andrei won a place at Harvard’s Kennedy School, allowing the family to move to Massachusetts and integrate further into American society.
As Andrei networked in academic and policy circles, Elena maintained the illusion of domestic normality, fashioning herself as a doting “soccer mom”, raising the kids and keeping house. Meanwhile, she was secretly decoding encrypted radio messages in the back room.
This went on for years. Then, one day, an unexpected knock on the door as they celebrated their son Tim’s 20th birthday brought the charade crashing down. FBI agents burst in, handcuffed the couple in front of their sons and marched them out into the street.
Soon after their arrest, Andrei and Elena were deported to Russia in a high-profile spy swap. They were awarded state honours by Vladimir Putin and briefly became minor celebrities in Moscow. Their sons, both born in Canada, were left reeling.
In 2016, Walker tracked the sons down for a piece he was writing for The Guardian: they were in the process of suing the Canadian government to have their citizenship reinstated, having been stripped of it when everything kicked off. In 2019, a court ruled Tim and Alex (who was 16 when the FBI arrested his parents) could keep their citizenship. Both insisted they had known nothing about their parents’ espionage work.
Alex Valivov, son of Russian ‘illegal’ spies disguised as Americans, talked to the media after he won a court bid to keep his Canadian citizenship.
Putin ‘beside himself’
As Walker recounts, the raid had been coordinated by then-FBI director Robert Mueller. It had been timed to avoid derailing a carefully planned diplomatic summit.
In 2009, Barack Obama launched a high-profile “reset” of relations with Russia. Obama wanted to woo Dmitry Medvedev – a moderate political figurehead standing in for Putin, who remained the real power behind the scenes in Russia.
A planned summit in Washington intended to cement the spirit of renewed cooperation. But as the scale of Russia’s covert operation became apparent, the White House was faced with a dilemma: how to respond without jeopardising the reset.
According to Walker, Obama was irked by the whole situation. He quipped that it felt like something out of a John Le Carré novel. Eventually, a compromise was reached: the arrests would happen, but only after Medvedev’s visit, so as not to cause undue embarrassment.
Colonel Aleksandr Poteyev, deputy head of Directorate “S” of the SVR, was the man overseeing the illegals scheme. After the arrests were made, he quietly walked out of the agency headquarters in Yasenevo for the last time. He was the mole who had tipped off the Americans. From there, he made his way to Ukraine, where the CIA could safely extricate him to the US. On hearing the news, Putin was reportedly beside himself with rage, Walker writes.
Intrigued by this “twisted family story”, Walker started to look into the illegals venture in greater depth. He quickly realised “there was nothing quite like it in the history of espionage”. At times, various intelligence agencies had deployed operatives as foreign nationals, “but never with the scope or scale of the KGB programme”.
A century of dramatic, bloody history
The illegals were, in Walker’s reckoning, something uniquely Russian, rooted in the country’s complex historical experience. The more he read, the more he came to view the programme as a lens through which he could “tell a much bigger story, of the whole Soviet experiment and its ultimate failure, a century of dramatic and bloody history”.
To understand how the illegals project came about, Walker winds the clock all the way back to 1917, when the Bolsheviks seized power – and espionage became a cornerstone of the nascent Soviet state. He reminds us while Lenin and his comrades had won formal control of the nation, “they still faced the colossal task of implementing and retaining it across the vast Russian landmass”.
Lenin was sure that state institutions would eventually wither away, the evolving worker’s paradise rendering them meaningless. However, to achieve this happy end point, he believed an interim period of ruthless state violence was required.
The Cheka: precursor to the KGB
This helps to explain why he established the Cheka, a secret police force tasked with crushing counterrevolutionary activity and enforcing Bolshevik rule. At its head was Feliks Dzerzhinsky, a fanatical Polish ideologue who had spent years in Siberian exile. Far from a temporary measure, the Cheka “quickly grew to a huge fighting force that could be unleashed on political and class enemies”, Walker writes.
Feliks Dzierzynski was the head of the Cheka, the Russian secret police force that preceded the KGB. Wikimedia Commons
The Cheka was an important player in the Russian Civil War, which pitted Lenin’s Reds against the Whites – a loose alliance of pro-tsarist regiments and foreign mercenaries, often united by little more than their implacable hatred of Bolshevism. The situation on the ground was chaotic and unpredictable; both sides engaged in ruthless violence.
Here, in this blood-drenched crucible, the Bolsheviks honed their clandestine methods – konspiratsiya (subterfuge) – perfecting the use of disguises, false identities and underground communication. In areas where the Whites gained a territorial foothold, agents were ordered to stay behind and coordinate resistance, laying the groundwork for what would become the illegals programme.
When the Bolsheviks emerged victorious in 1921, the Cheka was not disbanded – but repurposed. The practice of planting operatives deep inside enemy lines survived the war and expanded in scope. Lenin’s idea of combining legal diplomatic work with illegal undercover infiltration became a defining feature of how the Soviet Union would run its intelligence services for the next 70 years.
Stalin’s secret police
Under Lenin’s successor, Joseph Stalin, the secret police was transformed into an all-encompassing instrument of surveillance, repression and domination.
Purges consumed the party. Ideological fervour curdled into show trials and murderous terror. And paranoia became an organising principle of Soviet political life. The demand for vigilance intensified – not just at home, where informants and denunciations became routine, but also abroad. Real and purported enemies were seen lurking in the democratic institutions of the West.
Ironies abound here. The very methods that helped to sustain the early Soviet state – secrecy, trickery, duplicity – soon became grounds for suspicion on Stalin’s watch. The generation of illegals trained and embedded during the 1920s and early 1930s were among those earmarked for liquidation, Walker writes. Stalin, ever wary of plots against him, came to view his own spies as potential traitors.
He ignored – or wilfully dismissed – much of the intelligence they had risked their lives to gather, often with disastrous consequences. When advance warnings of Operation Barbarossa, Hitler’s secret plan to betray Stalin and launch a massive invasion of the Soviet Union, landed on his desk in 1941, for instance, they were waved away as provocation or outright fabrication. In some cases, he had his spies tortured or shot. Loyalty was no protector against paranoia.
Dmitry Bystrolyotov was a legend in Soviet intelligence circles. Alchetron
Among the casualties was Dmitry Bystrolyotov, who Walker describes as “perhaps the most talented illegal in the history of the programme”. A truly chameleonic figure, Bystrolyotov was a dashing and multilingual agent whose exploits in Western Europe made him a legend in Soviet intelligence circles. “His speciality was the recruitment of agents who had access to diplomatic codes and ciphers,” the Russian scholar Emil Draitser attests, “and his modus operandi involved women”.
Through a series of painstakingly crafted affairs, Bystrolyotov gained access to confidential dispatches, internal memos and state secrets. His work offered Stalin a rare glimpse into the inner workings of Europe’s ruling elite. But when The Great Terror rolled around in 1937, none of it mattered. He was arrested, sentenced and dispatched to the Gulag, callously tossed aside by the system he had served with such distinction.
Walker emphasises:
the history of the illegals offers a neat reflection of the story of Russia itself. The early programme, with its soaring ambition, its obsession with subterfuge, and its disregard for the well-being of individuals, holds up a mirror to the fiery utopianism of the early Soviet Union.
Did the Cold War really end?
These were people expected to vanish into enemy territory, sacrifice their identifies and live double lives, all in service of a revolutionary vision. But by the time the Soviet Union spluttered to an ignominious halt in 1991, that dream had long since died.
As Walker shows, most of the operatives who followed in the footsteps of Bystrolyotov were not darkly romantic infiltrators scaling embassy walls or charming secrets out of countesses. They were “sleepers” – often efficient, occasionally incompetent – blending quietly into Western cities and suburbs, awaiting a call to action that, in many cases, never came. The glitz had given way to the grind.
The Americans ends with Phillip and Elizabeth, the couple based on Bezrukov and Vavilova, gazing out across the Moscow skyline. Two weary spies coming in from the cold, they have returned to a rapidly unravelling motherland that may not understand – let alone appreciate – the sacrifices they have made in the service of its ideology.
As Walker discovered, Berzukov, when he isn’t being paid handsomely by an oil company, now lectures in international relations at one of Russia’s most prestigious universities. Vavilova, fittingly enough, now writes spy fiction.
Yet in real life, the story doesn’t end quite there. Under Putin, a former KGB officer who cut his teeth in the culture of espionage, Russia’s intelligence services have returned to the illegals programme with a renewed sense of purpose (though stripped of the ideological zeal that once propelled it).
Walker is careful not to indulge in idle speculation, but he points to compelling evidence suggesting the illegals programme has evolved rather than vanished. High-profile attacks on UK soil – including the poisoning of form spy Sergei Skripal – suggest Russian intelligence agencies remain willing to operate far beyond their national borders.
In the same breath, Walker describes what might be termed the digital turn of the illegals programme. In the place of suburban sleepers decoding radio signals, Russia has backed teams of online operatives – “troll illegals” – tasked with wrecking havoc across Western social media platforms.
These paid agents don’t gather intelligence so much as sow discord. They stoke culture wars, amplify political divisions and undermine trust in democratic institutions. Walker offers Russia’s meddling in the rancorous 2016 American election as an illustrative case in point.
In Putin’s merciless autocracy, secrecy has once again became a virtue – and the spy, far from being a dusty relic of the 20th century, is once again a symbol of national strength.
In that sense, The Illegals is not just a history of espionage. It is a timely reminder that, at least for some, the Cold War never really ended. It just burrowed deeper underground.
Alexander Howard does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News
Swimming at the Rhine-Ruhr World University Games will feature several student-athletes who competed at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.
High-profile coaches who have been behind some of biggest stars will also be part of the Games.
Team USA will see Olympians Emma Lebron Weber and Jacob Ryan Mitchell as well as world junior mixed and women’s relay gold medalist Maxine Charlize Parker in the pool.
Olympians Julie Brousseau, Patrick Hussey and Emma O’Croinin will be the shepherds for Canada.
Canada’s Ashley McMillan will be on the chase for medals having made the final in the 200m individual medley at the 2024 world championships.
Britain will have a strong presence in the 100m breaststroke with Commonwealth Games bronze medallist Archie Goodburn in the squad.
Loughborough’s Fleur Lewis will be on the medal hunt in the 800m freestyle after breaking an 18-year-old British short-course record in the 1,500m freestyle at the BUCS Championships 2023.
With the World Aquatics Championships beginning immediately after the opening of the FISU Games, many student-athletes will be heading straight from Berlin to Singapore.
Among them is Paige Van Der Westhuizen from Zimbabwe, who studies at the University of Stirling in Scotland.
“I’m feeling good,” she said. “Having the World University Games just before the World Aquatics Championships will be tough, but I’m excited.”
Swimming Australia’s head coach Rohan Taylor, who had coached Beijing 2008 Olympic champion Leisel Jones, said that the FISU Games will also help provide an incentive to keep student-athletes in their sport.
“Athletes often face a crossroads that can end their careers,” Taylor said on Thursday. “They think they have to choose between university and a professional career of swimming.”
“The World University Games provide an incentive for athletes to continue developing both paths by keeping them in the sport longer.”
July 17, 2025 – Ottawa – National Defence / Canadian Armed Forces
On June 20, 2025, representatives of the governments of Canada and Australia signed a landmark technology partnership arrangement, a critical milestone in the rapid development and deployment of Canada’s A-OTHR system.
Through this arrangement, Australian industry partners will work with Canadian companies to build expertise and capacity in Canada, grow our domestic sovereign defence industry, support high-paying Canadian jobs, and help Canada scale up its own radar system and technology.
Canada’s Arctic Over-the-Horizon Radar (A-OTHR) system is a key component of Canada’s North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) modernization plan and will provide advanced early warning, enable faster detection and decision making by the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) for airborne threats, and provide long-range surveillance to meet Canada’s domestic and continental security needs.
After careful consideration, Canada determined that a technology partnership with the Government of Australia, which currently operates one of the most advanced Over-the-Horizon Radar capabilities in the world, would provide the best solution for strengthening CAF domain awareness of Canada’s northern approaches. It will also quickly deliver a crucial capability to the CAF and NORAD commanders.
The first stage of the A-OTHR program will deliver an initial capability by the end of 2029.
Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments
A study published in Circulation: Cardiovascular Imaging looks at cardiac scarring and arrhythmia in veteran males.
Prof Steffen Petersen, Professor of Cardiovascular Medicine, Queen Mary University of London; Consultant Cardiologist at Barts Health NHS Trust; BHF Data Science Centre Interim Director; and Immediate Past President, European Association of Cardiovascular Imaging, said:
“This study is an important contribution to improving our current understanding of the long-term heart health impact of endurance exercise in older asymptomatic male athletes. First, scar formation in the heart is common in about half of those athletes enrolled. Second, a type of scar which is not due to poor blood supply of the heart muscle predicts the occurrence of ventricular arrhythmias, but a very common type (insertion point between the left and right heart) is not concerning, which is reassuring to know.
“A strength of the study is the confidence we can have in the accuracy of the outcome regarding ventricular arrhythmias, as determined by implantable loop recorders. A weakness is the limited generalisability of the findings due to the small sample size, exclusive inclusion of male endurance athletes over 50 years of age from a single centre.”
Prof James Ware, Professor of Cardiovascular and Genomic Medicine, Imperial College London and the MRC Laboratory of Medical Sciences, and NHS consultant cardiologist, said:
“This is in my opinion a well designed and well executed study. The authors themselves acknowledge the principal limitations of the study, and the conclusions are balanced and fair. The press release is a fair reflection of the science described in the article.
“I would note:
“This is a highly selected group of competitive athletes who have trained intensively for many years. I would not expect these findings to have direct relevance to most recreational athletes, and I would not want anyone to be scared of exercise as a result of this study. Regular physical activity is hugely beneficial for the vast majority of people, and I would encourage participation and enjoyment. Dr Swoboda emphasises this in his own comments.
“Nonetheless, fibrosis (scarring) is evidently more common in these high intensity athletes, and associated with heart rhythm abnormalities. This is something we need to understand better.
“Most of the arrhythmias observed were non-sustained ventricular arrhythmia (NSVT) – that is short runs of abnormal rhythm lasting
‘VENTricular arrhythmia and cardiac fibrOsis in endUrance eXperienced athletes (VENTOUX)’ by Wasim Javed first author et al. was published in Circulation: Cardiovascular Imaging at 00:01 UK time on Friday 18 July 2025.
Declared interests
Prof Steffen Petersen: “Disclosures:
Consultancy, Circle Cardiovascular Imaging, Inc., Calgary, Alberta, Canada (in my view no conflict related to this work).
Named reviewer of two relevant European guidelines:
Pelliccia A, Sharma S, Gati S, Bäck M, Börjesson M, Caselli S, Collet JP, Corrado D, Drezner JA, Halle M, Hansen D, Heidbuchel H, Myers J, Niebauer J, Papadakis M, Piepoli MF, Prescott E, Roos-Hesselink JW, Graham Stuart A, Taylor RS, Thompson PD, Tiberi M, Vanhees L, Wilhelm M; ESC Scientific Document Group. 2020 ESC Guidelines on sports cardiology and exercise in patients with cardiovascular disease. Eur Heart J. 2021 Jan 1;42(1):17-96. doi: 10.1093/eurheartj/ehaa605. Erratum in: Eur Heart J. 2021 Feb 1;42(5):548-549. doi: 10.1093/eurheartj/ehaa835. PMID: 32860412.
Visseren FLJ, Mach F, Smulders YM, Carballo D, Koskinas KC, Bäck M, Benetos A, Biffi A, Boavida JM, Capodanno D, Cosyns B, Crawford C, Davos CH, Desormais I, Di Angelantonio E, Franco OH, Halvorsen S, Hobbs FDR, Hollander M, Jankowska EA, Michal M, Sacco S, Sattar N, Tokgozoglu L, Tonstad S, Tsioufis KP, van Dis I, van Gelder IC, Wanner C, Williams B; ESC Scientific Document Group. 2021 ESC Guidelines on cardiovascular disease prevention in clinical practice. Eur J Prev Cardiol. 2022 Feb 19;29(1):5-115. doi: 10.1093/eurjpc/zwab154. PMID: 34558602.
Author of relevant European consensus paper:
Galderisi M, Cardim N, D’Andrea A, Bruder O, Cosyns B, Davin L, Donal E, Edvardsen T, Freitas A, Habib G, Kitsiou A, Plein S, Petersen SE, Popescu BA, Schroeder S, Burgstahler C, Lancellotti P. The multi-modality cardiac imaging approach to the Athlete’s heart: an expert consensus of the European Association of Cardiovascular Imaging. Eur Heart J Cardiovasc Imaging. 2015 Apr;16(4):353. doi: 10.1093/ehjci/jeu323. PMID: 25681828.”
Prof James Ware: “I was not involved in this study, though have collaborated with Dr Swoboda on other research projects.
Industry relationsships (in the last 2 years): I have received research support from Bristol Myers Squibb, and have acted as a paid advisor to Health Lumen, Tenaya Therapeutics, and Solid Biosciences. I am a founder with equity in Saturnus Bio.
I do not consider that these relationships are directly related to the subject of this paper.”
TORONTO, July 17, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Rivalry Corp. (the “Company” or “Rivalry”) (TSXV: RVLY), an internationally regulated sports betting and media company, is pleased to announce that effective July 17, 2025, the Ontario Securities Commission has revoked the management cease trade order (“MCTO”) it had previously granted to the Company on May 2, 2025 under National Policy 12-203 – Management Cease Trade Orders, as the Company successfully completed the filing of its (i) annual audited financial statements, management’s discussion and analysis, and related certifications for the year ended December 31, 2024, and (ii) unaudited interim financial statements, management’s discussion and analysis, and related certifications for the three months ended March 31, 2025 (collectively, the “Annual and Interim Filings”).
The revocation of the MCTO means members of management are no longer prevented from trading the Company’s securities. All of the Annual and Interim Filings are available under the Company’s profile on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca.
About Rivalry
Rivalry Corp. wholly owns and operates Rivalry Limited, a leading sport betting and media company offering fully regulated online wagering on esports, traditional sports, and casino for the digital generation. Based in Toronto, Rivalry operates a global team in more than 20 countries and growing. Rivalry Limited has held an Isle of Man license since 2018, considered one of the premier online gambling jurisdictions, as well as an internet gaming registration in Ontario, and is currently in the process of obtaining additional country licenses. With world class creative execution and brand positioning in online culture, a native crypto token, and demonstrated market leadership among digital-first users Rivalry is shaping the future of online gambling for a generation born on the internet.
No stock exchange, securities commission or other regulatory authority has approved or disapproved the information contained herein. Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this press release.
Company Contact: Steven Salz, Co-founder & CEO ss@rivalry.com
Investor Contact: investors@rivalry.com
Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Information and Statements
This news release contains certain forward-looking information within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities laws (“forward-looking statements”). All statements other than statements of present or historical fact are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are often, but not always, identified by the use of words such as “anticipate”, “achieve”, “could”, “believe”, “plan”, “intend”, “objective”, “continuous”, “ongoing”, “estimate”, “outlook”, “expect”, “project” and similar words, including negatives thereof, suggesting future outcomes or that certain events or conditions “may” or “will” occur. These statements are only predictions.
Forward-looking statements are based on the opinions and estimates of management of the Company at the date the statements are made based on information then available to the Company. Various factors and assumptions are applied in drawing conclusions or making the forecasts or projections set out in forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are subject to and involve a number of known and unknown, variables, risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond the control of the Company, which may cause the Company’s actual performance and results to differ materially from any projections of future performance or results expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Such factors, among other things, include regulatory or political change such as changes in applicable laws and regulations; the ability to obtain and maintain required licenses; the esports and sports betting industry being a heavily regulated industry; the complex and evolving regulatory environment for the online gaming and online gambling industry; the success of esports and other betting products are not guaranteed; changes in public perception of the esports and online gambling industry; failure to retain or add customers; the Company having a limited operating history; negative cash flow from operations and the Company’s ability to operate as a going concern; operational risks; cybersecurity risks; reliance on management; reliance on third parties and third-party networks; exchange rate risks; risks related to cryptocurrency transactions; risk of intellectual property infringement or invalid claims; the effect of capital market conditions and other factors on capital availability; competition, including from more established or better financed competitors; and general economic, market and business conditions. For additional risks, please see the Company’s management’s discussion and analysis for the 12 months ended December 31, 2024 under the heading “Risk Factors”, and other disclosure documents available on the Company’s SEDAR+ profile at www.sedarplus.ca.
No assurance can be given that the expectations reflected in forward-looking statements will prove to be correct. Although the forward-looking statements contained in this news release are based upon what management of the Company believes, or believed at the time, to be reasonable assumptions, the Company cannot assure shareholders that actual results will be consistent with such forward-looking statements, as there may be other factors that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. Readers should not place undue reliance on the forward-looking statements and information contained in this news release. The forward-looking information and forward-looking statements contained in this press release are made as of the date of this press release, and the Company does not undertake to update any forward-looking information and/or forward-looking statements that are contained or referenced herein, except in accordance with applicable securities laws.
ExportNZ is pleased to see a years-long dairy dispute between Canada and New Zealand resolved, unlocking higher export value for Kiwi business.
Executive Director Josh Tan says the outcome is a win for New Zealand dairy exporters, and a win for the rules-based trading system.
“It’s essential that our trade agreements function as they were agreed to – particularly in the current global trade context. Likewise, our trade partners should ensure they are playing by the rules.
“Canada remains a valuable trade partner to New Zealand. In agreeing to meet its obligations under the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), Canada has guaranteed better market access for Kiwi exporters and we commend them for honouring this agreed outcome.
“ExportNZ acknowledges the Minister for Trade and Investment and our New Zealand officials, for their persistent effort to reach the right outcome under the CPTPP agreement.”
Source:Dairy Companies Association of New Zealand (DCANZ)
Dairy exporters will benefit from the settlement of New Zealand’s CPTPP quota dispute with Canada, as announced by the Government today.
TheDairy Companies Association of New Zealand(DCANZ) welcomes the news and congratulates the Government for settling the long-running issue that has been costing New Zealand because of quotas that couldn’t be fully used. DCANZ also acknowledges the work of the previous Government in initiating the dispute process.
The heart of the issue has been Canada limiting the use of the 16 small quotas that facilitate CPTPP dairy access by allocating the majority of import licenses to its own processors, which mostly don’t use them. This practice, along with quota licence hand-back-and-reallocation happening late in the quota year and no penalties for under-use, has limited other importers with a stronger interest in New Zealand products from using the agreed access. Other administrative processes have also added cost and slowed trade when it does occur.
In 2023, a panel of trade law experts ruled that Canada’s approach did not comply with the CPTPP agreement requirements to administer the quotas in a manner that provides importers the opportunity to utilise the volumes fully.New Zealand was forced to trigger the mandatory negotiations allowed for under the CPTPP’s rules when Canada didn’t comply with this ruling. While not achieving the preferred immediate move to a simpler on-demand system so that quota licences only go to importers who want to use them, DCANZ agrees that adequate improvements have been made to settle the dispute.
DCANZ Executive Director Kimberly Crewther says she looks forward to New Zealand exporters enjoying an easier time trading into the 16 CPTPP dairy tariff rate quotas from 1 January 2026.
“The improved administrative provision that will result from this agreement will make the quotas commercially more usable and valuable for our exporters.
“Under the agreement, Canada will bring forward the dates for return and reallocation of quota licences that the initial recipients will not use and introduce penalties for recipients who either do not use their allocation or transfer it on to importers who want to use it.
“This has been a long time coming and we believe it will make a positive difference.
“We will be watching implementation closely. Significantly, if those changes don’t work, there is also provision that quota allocation could move to our first preference of an on-demand system.”
In the meantime, Crewther says DCANZ remains concerned that Canadian subsidised exports are continuing to harm New Zealand exporters’ interests in global markets for dairy protein products.
“Canada needs to be held equally to account for this, via the World Trade Organisation (WTO).
“Earlier this year, DCANZ joined United States and Australian dairy industry representatives in calling for government action to stop Canada from dumping artificially low-priced dairy protein exports on world markets.
“Its milk pricing mechanisms are enabling their dairy processors to access milk proteins at below the cost of production and so distort its export of a range of products.
“This practice is at odds with Canada’s international trade obligations and must be addressed as a matter of urgency under the WTO’s rules.”
