Farmers in Western Canada can be forgiven for feeling just a little hesitant when pricing new crop earlier this year, given how many were on the wrong side of a grain contract after the drought of 2021. But even the most risk averse farmer has had an opportunity to price into a heck-of-a market...until now.... Read More
Category: Poll
The federal government has published the Clean Fuel Regulations, part of its plan to "decarbonize" the energy sector. The policy is a double edged sword for agriculture — on one hand, low-carbon-intensity fuel includes ethanol and renewable diesel, which can create marketing opportunities for corn, wheat, canola, and soy. But many fear that the end... Read More
As Canadians, we have a lot of things in excess — fresh air, clean water, ample land, and an embarrassment of trees. But, when it comes to lazy summer days and weekends at the cottage, our season can be rather compact once you take out the time for seeding and planting, scouting, spraying, making hay,... Read More
Is there a word you're just totally sick of? Maybe it's a marketing buzzword, such as free-range or grass-fed, or maybe it's a policy or economic term, such as sustainability or global pandemic. Whatever it may be, some words start out as possibly positive but with time (and maybe overuse) they start to irk us.... Read More
Picture this: You're driving down a backroad and a vehicle approaches. You glance at your hand on the steering wheel. What happens next? Does one finger move up with a nod of recognition? Do you give a two finger salute? Maybe you give an entire hand wave? Or, if you're like me, sometimes the wave... Read More
As the calendar flips to June, farmers are urgently trying to complete planting or seeding across Canada. No matter the reason, whether you are feeling behind or there's poor weather on the horizon, we all tackle the logistical challenges of planting and seeding in different ways. Some farmers are solo artists, while others have large... Read More
Weather is the one subject we just can't help but talk about. As I sit here in southern Alberta and look out at the rain drops — albeit, not large amounts of it, but hey it's rain — finally pitter-pattering against the window, I'm thinking about rainy-day traditions. On our farm, since we do live... Read More
There's no denying the precision placement that a planter delivers, and there can be other advantages, too, including lower seed costs. But there are challenges to planting vs. seeding. Planters can limit fertility applications in one pass and require slower driving speeds. Plus, if you've got a well-equipped seeder, switching to or adding a new... Read More
Perhaps the only area of Canada really rolling full steam ahead on seeding or planting is southern Alberta, and that's not because conditions are great — it's just extremely dry. In Ontario, a slow start to the spring warm up and some wetter conditions have kept farmers from really getting going until just this weekend... Read More
It's not totally uncommon for crop to go missing out of remote bins, especially when crop prices climb. Fuel thefts aren't rare, either, and cattle rustling is still a thing. But lately, GPS units and pickup trucks seem to be the theft of choice for n'er-do-wells. Between a shortage of parts, high crop prices, high... Read More