The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization hosted an international symposium in Rome last month on The Role of Agricultural Biotechnologies in Sustainable Food Systems and Nutrition. The FAO's goal for the event was to debate and exchange ideas on how biotech can benefit smallholder farmers — both in sustainability and nutrition — in the... Read More
Category: Eastern Canada
A certain irony exists in the fact that quinoa — a relatively new crop to modern farmers and today’s consumers — is both a cousin to one of Canada’s most notorious weeds (lamb’s quarters), and a food plant that’s been around in a primitive form for hundreds of years in South America. But Quinta Quinoa,... Read More
Ontario’s 2016 budget made many headlines last week – from free university tuition for low income families to a 4.3 cent climate-change-fighting gas tax, and even a lower-than-expected deficit. But what does it all mean for agriculture, farmers and rural Ontario? With some help from our RealAgriculture twitter followers, we peppered Ontario Agriculture, Food and... Read More
Grains continued to trade sideways to lower through the end of February as the data points that keep coming do not support a reversal of the bearish market fundamentals. The market is taking into account more crop conditions from Europe and South America, while adjusting for the new forecasts for U.S. grain supply, demand, and... Read More
Over the past few years, we've been inundated with media updates surrounding H5N1, Ebola, and now, Zika virus. But something we often overlook in all the coverage, is that many diseases — and in fact, all three of the aforementioned — are zoonotic. In other words, they can be passed between humans and animals. That... Read More
We have many traditions in agriculture. Skills and knowledge in the industry are passed on from generation to generation. This passing of the knowledge torch is one of the mechanisms that makes agriculture special. Sometimes our wisdom is built on the passing of legend. In this case, we're talking about rain happening ninety days after... Read More
A guest editorial submitted by Cam Dahl, President of Cereals Canada: It is baffling. Egypt is a country facing food shortages yet they are blocking wheat shipments from around the world. Their quarantine agency has decided to impose a zero tolerance for ergot. This is despite the fact that the contracts signed by Egypt’s central... Read More
Earlier this month we brought you all the sizzle from the launch of the new Case IH 2000 Series Early Riser Planter. Now it’s time for the steak. Just after the public unveiling at the National Farm Machinery Show in Louisville, Kentucky, Real Agriculture’s Bernard Tobin took a tour of the new planter with Case... Read More
Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food Lawrence MacAulay announced a $1 million investment in genomic technologies for the cattle sector today. "Canada's beef sector contributes significantly to the country's economy," said Minister MacAulay. "Investments in genomic testing offer producers a science-based approach to improve the selection of beef breeds for improved productivity and quality." The funding... Read More
We’re seeing an early spring in many areas…what does it mean for winter wheat? The Chinese government looks to be putting up an obstacle to Canadian canola exports, and seed is going to be a major factor in determining how many pulse acres get planted on the prairies. As well, federal ag minister Lawrence MacAulay... Read More