Grains came through mid-October with corn and wheat staying relatively unchanged-to-lower while the oilseeds complex saw a bit of a tick up. Overall, the market has been weighing in El Nino reports, more North American harvest progression, and the dryness of some areas around the world. Some headlines to watch include scorching temperatures continuing to... Read More
Category: Western Canada
Advancements in genetic selection and nutrition are unlocking the potential to improve beef cattle feed efficiency by up to 20 percent, says a beef research scientist with Alberta Agriculture and Forestry. Whether it’s on a cow/calf operation or in a feedlot, managing feed costs is a critical part of the business. Susan Markus, in the... Read More
With this week's tragic death of three young girls in central Alberta, farm safety is once again at the tip of everyone's tongue. As usual, the agriculture industry is pouring its heart out for the loss that has been suffered by the family. Such a tragic event spurs much emotion and grief for everyone in... Read More
A tragic event in Alberta has gripped the Canadian ag community and beyond, harvest is wrapping up and what would a Liberal win on Monday mean for the Trans-Pacific Partnership? Here’s this week’s ag news podcast with Kelvin Heppner: Listen to last week’s TWORA here. Subscribe: iTunes | Android | RSS
In 2009, 51.2% of Canada's business and financial professionals were women, according to Statistics Canada, well up from the 38.3% in 1987. But, there's still room for movement into managerial positions, with 37% of those roles being filled by women, and only 31.6% in senior managerial roles (both up from 30.1% and 21%, respectively, in... Read More
Words like "excellent" and "great" are being used to describe the 2015 corn crop in the grain corn-growing regions of Western Canada. "I'm almost tempted to say phenomenal, but that sometimes sets high expectations," says Dieter Schwarz of PRIDE Seeds in this Corn School episode. "We certainly have a great corn crop. Yields are average... Read More
Less expensive heat that doesn’t go out when there’s a bad storm. In a nutshell, that’s why many rural properties feature outdoor wood furnaces, but the technology inside wood furnaces has also improved to make them more environmentally sustainable (read: efficient). “Everybody seems to keep their house, shops and buildings a lot warmer than they... Read More
Saik’s Agri-Treks has taken us to favelas in Brazil, not-quite-elephant-proof fencing in Africa, Agritechnica in Germany and desert irrigation in Arizona. But this time, Rob Saik takes us on an exploration of our own backyard — or, Ieuan Evans’ backyard — in sunny Alberta. Related: Will Agriculture be Allowed to Feed 9 Billion? Rob Saik’s... Read More
It's certainly not a disease you want to find in your fields, but if you do, there are good reasons to talk about it — specifically, report it — says Michael Harding, research scientist with Alberta Agriculture and Forestry. "If it's the first time clubroot's been found in the field, by reporting it, you can... Read More
There have certainly been plenty of headlines surrounding Syngenta’s choice to rebuff Monsanto’s $47 billion acquisition attempts. But, what does the future hold for the Swiss agribusiness now that the takeover bid is in the rearview mirror? “I think our position has been fully vindicated. We were very clear that we saw the execution risks... Read More