#Plant15 continues at a rapid pace, and it will now include some sugar beet acres in southern Alberta, as growers have settled their contract dispute with Rogers Sugar. The Canadian livestock industry is also awaiting the final ruling from the WTO in the dispute over U.S. country of origin labeling. There’s plenty more on these... Read More
Category: Features
What a week! The planting is going fast and furious, and farmers are getting itchy for rain. In this week’s Wheat Pete’s Word, hosted by Peter Johnson, we tackle why a dry spring is a-OK and why not to worry too much about rain just yet. What’s more concerning is the downright cool weather forecast... Read More
It’s hard to miss the construction of a new grain elevator. The sheer size of the structure almost instantly changes the skyline in a rural area. Neighbours, farmers and motorists watch with curiosity from a distance as the structure takes shape. If you go back almost a century, the construction of a new elevator was... Read More
"It's what the consumer demands." Whether it be new products on store shelves, changes to government regulation, or new on-farm protocols, this has become the trumping selling point for whatever it is that needs selling. “The Consumer” is demanding oversight. “The Consumer” wants a more sustainable product. “The customer (read: consumer)” is always right. But... Read More
Want to spot an uber-Apple lover? Check wrists. The Apple watch began shipping about two weeks ago, and for those willing to part with a starting price of $500 (CDN), the status symbol offers wearers the ability to send everything from a simple text message to their heart beat, from their wrist (apparently provided there... Read More
There’s plenty to cover in this week’s ag news update — from planting progress across the country to trouble in Alberta’s sugar beet industry. Oh, there was also an election in Alberta. Here’s “This Week on Real Ag” for the first week of May: Get the latest ag news delivered to your in-box — subscribe... Read More
We’re into the first week of May, and the challenges facing farmers this year couldn’t be any more different than last year, even if we planned it. Speaking of polar opposite, let’s kick off this week’s Wheat Pete’s Word with a look at the tale of two wheat crops — those that look GREAT, and... Read More
With all the excitement about data and new tools for recording farm production and operational activities, collecting the data is often the easy part. The challenge comes in turning the data and observations into simple, actionable information. Whether it's vehicle or equipment activity, irrigation tracking, soil test results, basic field records or the markets, the... Read More
When it comes to supply management, it looks like the showdown between Canada and the rest of the world is reaching another tipping point. But those strange bedfellows, Ontario and Quebec, aren’t going to take it lying down. Late last week the U.S., with its insatiable appetite for accessing Canadian supply-managed markets, said Canada won’t... Read More
In theory, price transparency is required for a free market to be efficient. In reality, farmers like to know they’re getting a fair value for their grain. A lack of transparency was seen by some producers as one of the reasons why the Canadian Wheat Board’s monopoly needed to be dismantled. That wish was granted... Read More