In response to United States President Donald Trump’s tariffs, the Manitoba government is issuing a directive to Manitoba Liquor and Lotteries (MBLL) to stop the sale of American products in the province, Premier Wab Kinew announced today. “Trump’s tariff tax is an attack on Canadians,” said Kinew. “We support the federal response to these tariffs and here in Manitoba, we’re stopping the sale of American products at Manitoba liquor marts. How you choose to spend your money is one of the most important decisions you as a consumer can make. There are plenty of great Manitoba breweries and distilleries to support instead.” Effective Tuesday, Feb. 4, MBLL will be directed to pull American products off the shelves of liquor marts and will stop ordering American alcohol, the premier noted. The premier added the province will roll out more supports for Manitoba businesses and workers throughout the week in response to the U.S. tariffs. Manitoba’s U.S. Trade Council will meet on Monday to discuss the impacts of the tariffs and the province’s response. For more information, Manitoba businesses or workers impacted by tariffs can contact the Manitoba government tariff hotline at 1-877-827-4330 (toll-free) or 204-945-8011, Manitoba Government Inquiry at 204-945-3744 or visit https://manitoba.ca/tariffresponse/.

Some interesting things from the last 7 - 10 days Pizza Express has had a major change to their menu. Includes the following Italian Hero Pizza; house dressing base, ham, salami, mozzarella, onions, banana peppers, tomato, pepperoni and the Carnivore Pizza: meat sauce, ground beef, pepperoni, mozzarella, Italian sausage, bacon Keystone Centre has announced PBR is back on May 23rd and 24th. In the past this has been sold out. For many people sad news as Peavey Mart will close. Following the recently announced closures of 22 stores in Ontario and Nova Scotia, Peavey Mart released a statement on Facebook on January 28 that they will now begin store closing sales at all remaining locations across Canada. Former WWE Superstar Tatanka will be holding a meet and greet at this year's Dakota Nation Winterfest on Saturday, February 1 from 11am-4pm. darryl@bdnmb.ca

Harvest Manitoba is thrilled to announce the expansion of its Meals2Go student nutrition program to the community of Brandon, Manitoba. Starting this week, Betty Gibson and King George schools will be the first two Brandon schools to join the Meals2Go program. This milestone marks a historic expansion for the Meals2Go program, which provides essential weekend and summer meals to students. With the addition of Brandon schools, the program now supports nearly 5,000 students each week across 15 schools, including locations in Winnipeg, Opaskwayak Cree Nation, and Brandon. “The smiles on the faces of students, parents and teachers when we deliver the kits at our Meals2Go schools each week is the best reward,” said Mika Peterson, Harvest Manitoba’s Director of Community Programs. “It is wonderful to be able to bring this important program to even more kids this year.” Earlier this year, Harvest Manitoba began consultation with school divisions to identify schools with the highest needs for Meals2Go expansion. New support from Manitoba Education & Early Childhood Learning, along with expanded donor support from the K&P Talbot Community Fund, has allowed the addition of 2500 new students to be served weekly starting this year. “Harvest Manitoba has always been about more than just hampers; we’re about hope,” said Harvest Manitoba’s President & CEO Vince Barletta. “Programs like Meals2Go are an important part of our mission to help young children and families thrive and have the best chance for a future without food insecurity.” The Meals2Go program started in 2018 as Breakfast2Go, and it has continued to grow every year to meet the growing need for improved nutrition among K-8 students in Manitoba. This program, delivered by Harvest Manitoba, provides weekend nutrition kits to students in participating schools each Friday afternoon during the school year. These kits contain nutritious food items, including milk, yogurt, fresh fruit, granola bars and cereal. Harvest Manitoba also delivers Meals2Go programming during the summer months with pop-up locations outside school locals.  

In 2025, Parks Canada plans to permit watercraft on Clear Lake under a "one boat, one lake" aquatic invasive species prevention program. This program will be similar to the one implemented in 2023. The public will be invited to provide input on how the 2025 program will be applied. The discovery of hundreds of live juvenile zebra mussels attached to docks and infrastructure near the east end of Clear Lake in the fall of 2024 indicated that zebra mussels are not isolated to the Boat Cove area of the lake, where they had previously been found and where the containment curtain had been installed. This discovery prompted a review of management actions. With input and advice from Indigenous advisors, the Province of Manitoba, and leading scientific and international experts, Parks Canada has determined that eradicating zebra mussels from Clear Lake in Riding Mountain National Park is not feasible. Zebra mussels are a real and significant threat to Clear Lake and downstream waterbodies. These waterbodies flow through five First Nations, are important for agriculture, industry, and recreation, and provide drinking water for tens of thousands of people. Parks Canada is committed to managing the impacts of zebra mussels on the natural environment and to the vitality of the local tourism economy. Parks Canada representatives will be set-up near the skating rink behind the Visitor Centre on February 1 and 2 from 12:00 PM to 4:00 PM. Come contribute your input to the 2025 AIS Prevention Program during the Winter Adventure Weekend. The information collected will be used to inform the management of Clear Lake’s aquatic invasive species prevention program for 2025. There is also an opportunity to provide input through an online questionnaire available until February 28, 2025 through this link: https://parks-parcs.simplesurvey.com/f/s/Clear-Lake-Riding-Mountain-2024 For more information and updates about zebra mussels, boating and aquatic invasive species prevention in Riding Mountain National Park visit: https://parks.canada.ca/pn-np/mb/riding/activ/moto-boat Source Riding Mountain National Park Bulletin

Some local news and developments over the past 10 days 1 - The former location for Kam Lung on Park Ave will have some major changes coming soon. BDNMB.CA will have the exclusive when we can disclose all details. 2 - Pizza Express have sold their Winnipeg location to local owners. 3 - Leon's Furniture has also sold to local group of owners no names disclosed at this time. 4 - Dollarama (Shoppers Mall) will be closed for renovations until February 1st. 5 - Papa John's on 18th Street has been sold last week. Be well more bits and bites coming soon darryl@bdnmb.ca