Port workers in B.C. who have been on strike for the past 13 days will be returning to work, after the British Columbia Maritime Employers Association and the International Longshore and Warehouse Union Canada agreed to a proposal from federal mediators on Thursday. The two sides have reached a tentative four-year agreement and are finalizing... Read More
Category: Western Canada
The federal and Saskatchewan governments have announced a change to crop insurance offered by Saskatchewan Crop Insurance Corporation (SCIC) to allow more acres of low-yielding crops to be redirected to help livestock producers. Following on the heels of a similar announcement in Alberta last week, SCIC is again doubling the low yield appraisal threshold, allowing... Read More
Manitoba dairy farmer David Wiens has been elected to serve as the president of Dairy Farmers of Canada (DFC). Wiens, who has served as vice-president of DFC since 2011, succeeds Pierre Lampron in leading the national dairy producer organization. He farms together with his brother Charles at Grunthal, Man., milking 230 cows and farming 1,600... Read More
When talking soil, often the topic focus is on soil type, nutrients, moisture, or microbiology. But what about soil structure? As Steve Larocque, Alberta farmer and founder of Beyond Agronomy explains in this Soil School episode, the physical types of soil can't be changed, whether it be sand, silt, or clay. However, how land is... Read More
True armyworms hungry for grassy plants, including wheat, have arrived in large numbers in parts of the Prairies this summer. The pest, which migrates north as a light brown moth, arrived in Manitoba during the last week of May, explains John Gavloski, entomologist with Manitoba Agriculture, in this armyworm-focused Wheat School episode filmed at the... Read More
The Alberta government is raising the loan limits available to cattle producers through the province’s Feeder Associations Guarantee program, reflecting increased cattle prices. Individual and joint membership loan limits will be raised to $3 million from $2 million. "Feeder associations are an essential part of Alberta’s livestock industry and are a proven way to support... Read More
Research has repeatedly shown corn's yield potential starts declining if plants don't emerge within a tight timeframe, but dry conditions following planting can wreak havoc on best-laid plans for uniform emergence. If one in six corn plants is two leaf stages behind the rest, expect a four per cent yield reduction, says Morgan Cott, agronomy... Read More
Richardson has made another move to diversify into food processing, announcing the acquisition of a 150-year old British malt company. The Canadian grain company says it has acquired Ragleth Limited, the parent company of Anglia Maltings Limited, headquartered in Norfolk, England. Anglia employs 360 people, operating seven malt facilities in the United Kingdom, Poland, and... Read More
Advancements in RNA interference (RNAi) technology could soon unlock new tools for managing canola pests and pathogens, such as sclerotinia and flea beetles. RNAi — ribonucleic acid interference — involves targeting specific RNA sequences in a disease or pest, rather than targeting entire proteins or enzymes, as is the case with current pesticides. It's a... Read More
We're into the dog days of summer, and the cattle markets are certainly reflecting that. Add in the July 1st holiday in Canada, and July 4th in the U.S., and we've got a slow start to the markets this week, says Anne Wasko of the Gateway Livestock Exchange. However, that doesn't mean we don't have... Read More