March 14, 2018 marks the 100th anniversary of John Deere's tractor business, and the company has big plans for its centennial celebration. John Deere entered the farm tractor business in 1918 through the acquisition of the Waterloo Gasoline Engine Company. At the recent National Farm Machinery Show in Louisville, Kentucky, John Deere product marketing manager... Read More
Category: Ag Business
Despite armies of well-meaning accountants, bankers and consultants urging them to do so, many Canadian farm families don’t have a plan in place to transfer ownership between generations. It could be the word succession that’s getting in the way. This can imply an abrupt change, when the older generation is booted out to pasture and... Read More
Ontario farmers have a new cost-share program to help them reduce their carbon footprint and become more energy efficient. The GreenON Agriculture program, recently announced by the Ontario Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change, is specifically aimed at producers of agricultural commodities in permanent, climate-controlled buildings. The Ontario Soil and Crop Improvement Association will... Read More
Salford Group has made its first foray into aftermarket equipment with the launch of mounted air boom applicators for common sprayer chassis and floater chassis. The company unveiled its Salford-Valmar 6700 last week at the National Farm Machinery Show in Louisville, Kentucky. The company bills the new release as the world's only aftermarket chassis mounted... Read More
Are you driving too fast and compromising the life of your tracks? Maybe you're driving too slow and could hit the throttle and get to the field faster? Track maker Camso plans to answer those questions when they launch new smart track technology in North America. Smart track technology will see sensors embedded in tracks... Read More
Timing a white mould fungicide application in soybeans can be tricky business. The typical recommendation is to spray a first-pass fungicide at the R2 to R2.5 stage. Most Ontario soybean fields, however, are highly variable and can contain plants progressing at different growth rates within the stand. How can you tackle this challenge? BASF technical... Read More
The world of agribusiness mergers and acquisitions has been very busy in the last 24 months, especially in the seed and crop protection industry, with three large deals closing in a relatively short time period. In any deal, there are opportunities for third party companies to acquire assets that must be shed due to competition... Read More
If you've been attending agricultural and food conferences over the last decade you've likely heard countless references to "feed the 9 billion" or to double production by 2050 to meet the appetite of a growing global population. Is it time we revisited this oft-cited food prediction? Penn State University's Mitch Hunter thinks so. Hunter and... Read More
Are you spending too much on energy to power your farm? Do you know the major energy users on your farm? If you don't know the answers to those questions you have some work to do, says Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs engineer James Dyck. Energy prices have soared in recent years... Read More
The Liberal government's minimum wage hike will cost Ontario fruit and vegetable growers $297 million over the next two years. The impact on the industry was calculated by professional consultants and presented to all levels of the provincial government, but Premier Kathleen Wynne, Members of Provincial Parliament (MPPs) and senior bureaucrats chose not to listen,... Read More