Pickles take centre stage among concession vendors at Red River Ex

The thought of biting into a deep-fried Oreo with a pickle inside may sound repulsive, but the unusual sweet treat and other pickled foods have been growing in popularity at fairs across North America.

Deep Fried Pickle Oreos, Blue Taki Pickle Pizza and Pickled Fries are just a few of the 60 or so food vendors set up at the Red River Exhibition, which started Friday and runs to June 21.

The fried sweet and tangy Oreos have become a bestseller, says Harrison Swift, co-owner of Concessions Inc., which specializes in creating unique foods that appear at exhibitions across the country.

“We’ve done it in Toronto at the CNE, we’ve done it at the Calgary Stampede and now it’s making its debut here so we’re super excited about it,” says Swift.

Winnipeg fans celebrate Canada’s first point at World Cup — on home soil

Winnipeg soccer fans groaned as Bosnia and Herzegovina took the early lead against Canada at the FIFA World Cup Friday afternoon.

“It’s the way it goes” said Mark Seburn, 67, one of a few dozen footy fanatics who were getting their game on at X-Cues’ Café and Lounge.

It was Canada’s first match on home soil — at Toronto Stadium.

“It’s a special moment,” Seburn said, noting he got into the sport when his children played as youngsters. He said soccer has brought their family closer together.

‘Exceeded expectations’: Holy Shakes opens first Manitoba shop in St. Vital Centre

Since opening on April 11, the eatery’s 20 employees have sold more than 10,000 milkshakes, said franchisee Kiran Pandher.

‘Fentanyl fold’ on city streets stresses prompt need for supervised consumption site: premier

Alarmed after seeing the “fentanyl fold” on city streets, Premier Wab Kinew promises a supervised drug consumption site will open this month — despite concerns essential staffers have yet to be hired.

In a sit-down interview with the Free Press Friday, the premier reinforced that the site — announced in the summer of 2024 — would be operational by the end of June.

“The urgency of the drug crisis is so visible in a way that everyone sees it,” Kinew said.

The province received approval from Health Canada for the Indigenous-led site, at 366 Henry Ave., in May.

Storm insurance claims could set Manitoba record

Manitoba is on pace to set a record for insurance claims related to this week’s storms.

Insurance brokers have been inundated with calls to assess and process claims for flooded basements and properties. Local insurer ONE Insurance said it has received more than 700 claims and expects to issue millions of dollars to its clients.

“It is definitely the single largest event that we’ve experienced in our organization,” said interim CEO Rey Girardin.

Residents in the RM of Rockwood, including in Stonewall and Balmoral, have submitted the most claims, he said.

New UFO files describe spinning discs, glowing orbs and one object shaped like a potato

One was a rotating disc that sent out beams of light. Another was a shining red orb of a hue the observer had never seen before. Then there was the one compared to a potato, and also a bean, but with a coat of shimmering, fish-like scales.

Unmoved by young offender’s progress, Manitoba judge ordered prison term; Indigenous man later chose death

The day started with an email from my editor.

“Are there any updates on Ethan Wildcat?” she wanted to know.

Good question, and one I was curious to answer, as well. It had been more than three years since Wildcat, a young first-time offender, was sentenced to three years in prison in a case that highlighted how differently Indigenous and non-Indigenous offenders in similar circumstances can be treated by the justice system.

Wildcat was 19 when he was arrested in March 2021 following a firearm incident at a Winnipeg home that resulted in no injuries.

Winkler hosts first LGBTTQ+ celebration Saturday

Sebastian Saunders is both excited and nervous about returning to Winkler to tell his story at his hometown’s first Pride event.

To get through his anxiety, he imagines a younger version of himself in the audience. “I’m just imagining that kid being like: ‘Oh, I can be happy and healthy and be myself and find community and be OK,’” he says.

Growing up attending church in Winkler, Saunders internalized a lot of homophobia and transphobia. “I was indoctrinated to believe I was a giant abomination,” he says. At times he thought about taking his own life.

Saunders was diagnosed with cancer when he was 19. The experience forced him to ask himself hard questions. When he finished chemotherapy, he told his family and friends he was queer. “I was ostracized by most of the people around me,” he says.

New Brunswick woman sues OpenAI, alleging ChatGPT led to daughter’s death

When 24-year-old Alice Carrier told ChatGPT that she had to die to stop the pain she was feeling, the chatbot allegedly appeared to agree. By the next day, Carrier was dead.

CancerCare MDs, staff call attention to specialist’s resignation, warn of dire consequences

A group of doctors and medical staff has warned the possible departure of a highly specialized Health Sciences Centre physician would be “devastating news” that could spark an exodus of skilled medical professionals from Manitoba.

The 14 doctors and medical staff at CancerCare Manitoba wrote a letter May 7 about the pending resignation of interventional radiologist Alessandra Cassano-Bailey.

The document, which was addressed to three members of the organization’s senior leadership, said Cassano-Bailey tendered her resignation after efforts to introduce a liver cancer procedure — which is available elsewhere in Canada — were ignored for years.

“It will be a huge loss to the province if such an excellent and compassionate doctor leaves,” reads the letter, obtained by the Free Press.

Alberta picks university to cost out separation, panel to assess ahead of referendum

EDMONTON - Alberta's government said Friday it has picked the University of Calgary to study potential costs of the province leaving Canada.

It has also formed what it calls an expert advisory panel to review the university's report and provide a separate assessment.

The panel is led by economist Jack Mintz, a go-to expert for Alberta governments who has served on several advisory groups and panels in recent decades.

It also features business leaders and former politicians Janice MacKinnon, a Saskatchewan NDP finance minister, and Ted Morton, an Alberta Progressive Conservative finance minister.

Free Press Summer Reading Challenge for kids returns with a trove of new titles

Calling all young readers — the Free Press Summer Reading Challenge for Kids is back in session!

A partner program to the Free Press Book Club since 2020, the summer reading challenge offers four titles for each of three reading levels based on age — 7 to 9 years old, 10 to 12 years old and 13 to 15 years old. McNally Robinson Booksellers staffers curated the reading lists, prioritizing a diversity of perspectives, formats and topics to make sure there’s something for everyone — and there’s even a few local authors on the list.

The Summer Reading Challenge also offers budding reviewers the opportunity to submit their thoughts on any of the books on the reading lists, with a rating out of five stars, and have their reviews published in the books section of the Free Press print and online editions. All kids registered for the reading challenge will also receive activities and reading resources for each book to encourage deeper learning and hopefully help spur some thoughts and reflections for those reviews.

More information about each book on the reading lists, as well as additional information about what to include in reviews, can be found here. All of the books are available for purchase at McNally Robinson, and almost all are also available at the Winnipeg Public Library.

Small grocers embrace Ottawa’s national food security strategy

Independent grocers and industry stakeholders are welcoming the federal government's national food security strategy, aimed at boosting competition among grocers, growing local produce year-round and improving consumer affordability.

Winnipeg police warn of nihilistic violent extremism targeting children

Winnipeg police have warned against the escalating threat of online nihilistic violent extremism that targets children and youth and said officers are investigating incidents in Winnipeg.

Police said Friday online predators, who reject societal values, are intent on causing destruction or chaos rather than achieving a defined ideological objective.

“It’s happening, it is real,” Const. Claude Chancy said. “That’s why we have this whole plan process in effect. But at this point, we just cannot speak to any type of specifics in regards to investigations.”

Const. Andrea Lefort, an expert in violent extremism, said the public must understand the scale of the problem, noting the RCMP and the Canadian Security Intelligence Service are aware of cases across the country.

Ottawa moves to tighten rules barring forced labour products from Canada

OTTAWA - The federal government tabled a bill Friday to change the way Canada bars imports of products made with forced labour following an American tariff threat.

Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand was in Paris with Prime Minister Mark Carney as the legislation was tabled by her parliamentary secretary, Rob Oliphant.

"This will be a made-in-Canada solution to an international problem," Oliphant told reporters on Parliament Hill.

He said the bill would create a public list of products that have been linked to forced labour in specific regions, based on intelligence from embassies and other authorities.

What Elon Musk’s trillion means in real terms

The number “one trillion” is hard in itself for the human mind to comprehend. One trillion dollars is a thousand times greater than $1 billion. And a million times more than $1 million. Here are some ways to think about how far one trillion could go.

Supreme Court rules New Brunswick lieutenant-governor must be bilingual

The Supreme Court of Canada has ruled that the lieutenant-governor of New Brunswick must be able to perform their functions in both official languages.

Statistics Canada reports household debt outpaced income in first quarter

Statistics Canada says the amount Canadian households owe outpaced income for the sixth straight quarter.

SpaceX stock soars in debut and makes Elon Musk the first trillionaire

NEW YORK (AP) — Elon Musk became the world’s first trillionaire after shares of his rocket company SpaceX soared in Wall Street's biggest initial public offering of stock.

Shares in SpaceX jumped more than 19% after opening for trading Friday, a sign that investors are looking past the billions the company is losing and instead betting that its massive investments in satellites, orbital data centers and artificial intelligence will pay off in the future.

SpaceX opened around midday at $150 a share, then rose to around $168, before finishing the day just below $161. That price gave the company a market value of $2.1 trillion, making it the sixth largest public U.S. company — larger even than its founder and CEO's other big business, the electric vehicle maker Tesla.

Between his holdings in SpaceX and Tesla, where he is also CEO, Musk is now worth an estimated $1.1 trillion, according to Forbes.