In a surprising move, U.S. company Merck Animal Health has suspended sales of the beta-agonist Zilmax, a cattle growth promotant, according to a Reuters report. The decision comes on the heels of Tyson Foods Inc. announcing last week that the company would no longer accept slaughter cattle that had been fed the feed additive. JBS... Read More
Category: Features
If you had asked me in February what “CYL” was, I likely would have answered with a completely made-up, yet entirely coy response. Six months later? I have a whole new network of industry leaders at my fingertips, a very encouraging mentor, a community of friends, educational opportunities galore and a $1,000 budget to attend... Read More
The summer of 2013 is turning out to be nothing like the last two years, which may prove problematic for several first-time soybean growers in the province. While 2013 soybean acres likely did not hit the massive 1.3 million mark once estimated, there are likely about a million acres of the nitrogen-fixing crop out in... Read More
Herbicide spray drift gets all the attention, and for good reason — the impacts are visual and nearly immediate. Does that mean drift doesn't occur with other products? Absolutely not. It also doesn't mean it's OK to skip steps to minimize drift of fungicides or insecticides. The reasons for doing so are financial, agronomic, environmental... Read More
If you've been watching U.S. corn and soy acreage estimates closely, Monday's production and acreage downsizing of the soybean crop may not come as a surprise. In fact, many farmers and analysts were scratching their heads at earlier figures given the poor growing conditions and late start both crops had. Still, when the USDA numbers... Read More
Editor’s note: This is Owen Roberts’ Real Talk, Real Action column. Each week, Owen will offer his insight into how farmers and the agricultural industry can participate in the rural- and ag-related discussions going on around them. Contact Owen at owen@uoguelph.ca or on Twitter at @TheUrbanCowboy. Transparency – that is, being forthright, ethical and proactive... Read More
Trichomaniasis and vibriosis are infectious diseases that cause infertility in cattle as a result of embryonic death. Cows will often abort within the first 90 days of pregnancy, making it difficult to detect. One of the few signs of infection is a higher than average number of cows coming back into service in late fall,... Read More
In the last Beef Research School episode, we took a virtual walk through a riparian area to assess its health. Healthy riparian areas, that transitional zone from pasture to waterway, are critical to decreasing riverbank erosion and nutrient migration to waterways. Once you've determined the general health of your riparian areas, it's time to put... Read More
How often do you walk the waterways, riverbanks and marshy areas of your pastures? These transitional areas from pasture to waterway, called riparian zones, are vital to soil and water health and deserve attention now and again to ensure cattle haven't been too hard on them, or that invasive species or undesired species have moved... Read More
What does NHL hockey, the weather, German apps and fanny packs have to do with mobile technology? Come, let me show you. In this edition of the always informative but rarely serious AgNerds, Shaun Haney is joined by someone other that the elusive Peter Gredig. Yes, it's true, Rick Taillieu, Winnipeg Jets fan number 1... Read More