Category: Western Canada

While flooding in recent years has underlined the need for a collaborative approach to water management in Western Canada, some farmers and others involved in managing water on farmland are organizing themselves with the aim of creating a common voice focused on sustainable water management that supports agriculture. In Saskatchewan, the Saskatchewan Farm Stewardship Association... Read More

The National Bee Health Roundtable (BHRT) recently held its third workshop in Ottawa. The roundtable, a coalition of stakeholders with a direct interest in the health of bees, reports making clear progress over the last year evidenced by the release of the National Bee Health Action Plan. “The collaborative approach of the roundtable, which brings... Read More

While the Canada Grain Act provides farmers with the right to order their own railcars, in reality there have been major challenges for many farmers and their administrators in securing access to producer cars for shipping grain over the last few years. One of the factors contributing to the producer car problem has been an…Read More

A total of $2.2 million is going to be spent over the next four years on winter wheat agronomic research in Western Canada, with the money coming from the federal government and several producer-funded and industry organizations. Lethbridge MP Jim Hillyer announced the federal commitment of $1 million to the Alberta Wheat Commission on Tuesday.... Read More

With findings of clubroot disease in parts of Western Canada where it has not been a problem before, at what point should a farmer in these new clubroot areas switch to growing clubroot-resistant canola varieties? To make that decision, you must first assess and prioritize the risks to your canola, suggests Anastasia Kubinec, oilseed specialist…Read More

To justify purchasing a new piece of technology for a farm, its value can’t be based on the “wow factor.” It must solve a problem and improve the overall efficiency of the operation. With that in mind, are farmers being sold more technology than they need? Should a producer have to pay for the cost... Read More

The Canadian government has announced $1.83 million for an research project involving international partners looking at potatoes and potato pests at a genetic level. Parliamentary Secretary Gerald Keddy, on behalf of Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz, announced the funding Fredericton on Tuesday. According to Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, researchers will use new data about the DNA... Read More

In the Canadian context, when someone says wheat, we think bread or pasta and maybe crackers and cookies. But for huge portions of the world's population, wheat means noodles, steam buns and dumplings. While all these products do come from the same crop, it's possible that each product requires a specific class of wheat, with... Read More

A wheat variety might produce huge yields or have stellar disease resistance, but if there's no market for it, there's probably no point in registering the variety for production in Canada. Instead, it might even have a negative impact, damaging Canada's reputation for consistency and quality. As Lisa Nemeth of the Canadian International Grains Institute…Read More

The occupation "farmer" shows up in more than a few Top 10 lists — like "The 10 most trustworthy roles," for example. But there's one Top 10 list that we'd all rather not have made where farmers hold the number 9 spot. That's the Top 10 list of most dangerous jobs in North America. It's... Read More