It costs money to promote Canadian Beef and finally some of this funding will be on the backs of importers. Federal Agriculture Minister, Gerry Ritz announced this morning that an amendment to the Beef Cattle Research, Market Development and Promotion Levies Order to include an import levy on beef cattle, beef and beef products. The... Read More
Category: Eastern Canada
Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz was in Saskatoon, Sask., today, to announce $15 million worth of further investments to the agriculture industry from the AgroInnovation Program and the new Growing Forward 2 policy framework. “Thanks to the commitment to innovation today and over the years, special crops and pulse industries are well-positioned to capture new market... Read More
As Gary Larson once said, The Chickens are Restless. If you're not on Twitter, you likely haven't heard about a growing group of disgruntled farmers taking aim at Panera Bread Company's cheap shot at conventional agriculture. Cheap shot is perhaps being generous — an entire ad campaign has been built around fear mongering and misinformation,... Read More
Guess what? The old "turn the fans on and leave them on" at harvest isn't necessarily true. Contrary to what farmers have been told and have been doing for quite some time, warm days actually add or maintain moisture levels in grain bins. Yes, really. Research on the subject out of the Indian Head Agricultural... Read More
While there is increased interest in narrow row corn both north and south of the Canadian border, the harvest equipment required for 15" row corn isn't exactly the norm. Sure, the Geringhoff header may one day mean row width doesn't matter, but in the interim, 30" centres are the norm. In response to the interest... Read More
The 2013 calving season was, to say the least, awful on our farm. Ugh, I still shudder at the thought of it. If you were anything like me, you were confused. The lack of sleep and surplus of snow certainly didn’t help. Why is this calf sick? What are these signs and symptoms indicative of?... Read More
Well-managed pastures can produce good yields for years, but will produce best if fertility of those pastures is planned for the long-term. Big producing pastures require big fertility numbers, though grazing helps to cycle these nutrients back to the soil. Over-grazing, too low or high stocking densities and time all can begin to mine pasture... Read More
Hedging is a big scary word to many farmers. And it's understandable — it's an account that can flucuate significantly, making it seem like you've lost money. But, unlike speculators that never grow or store crops, farmers are in a unique position to use hedging as a low-risk price management tool. Why? Because as your... Read More
Good reasons exist to better understand what sustainability means on the farm – and a lot of them have to do with consumers. It’s vital for farmers themselves to know how to best care for the land, water and air in which they produce food. No smoke and mirrors. Unsustainable practices mean trouble in the... Read More
When it comes to spraying, earlier in the day is always better, right? Well, no. And that's because of a often misunderstood or unknown atmospheric condition known as an inversion. Inversions happen in the absence of sunlight, and can cause disastrous spray drift issues if farmers are spraying in them. It's not a simple concept... Read More