Welcome back to The Agronomists! We're kicking off 2023 with a focus on profitability. Is top yield the driver, or is long-term thinking a better bet for profit planning? Joining host Lyndsey Smith to dig in to this topic is Chad Anderson, of Anderson Agronomy Services, and Edgar Hammermeister, Saskatchewan farmer and agrologist with Western... Read More
Category: Western Canada
In September of 2022, Protein Industries Canada (PIC) launched an Artificial Intelligence Program, focused on working with agri-food companies across the country to support them in developing AI technology for use in their business. The program's first round of applications saw a steady flow of intake, the organization says, with projects currently under review for... Read More
Gordon Bacon, former CEO of Pulse Canada and the Canadian Special Crops Association (CSCA), has been recognized for the innovation and value he has brought to the pulse industry. Bacon was presented with the Pulse Promoter Award at the Saskatchewan Pulse Grower's (SPG) annual meeting in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan on Monday. The award recognizes individuals who... Read More
After spending close to 2,500 hours over the last five years operating a sprayer equipped with optical spraying technology on his farm near Fisk, Saskatchewan, Carl deConinck Smith is not only an early adopter, but also a proponent of weed-sensing technology on sprayers. "Five years ago, we felt it was about a three-year return on... Read More
Beef and cattle markets south of the border started the year off steady and on solid footing, which is good news at the wholesale level. Does this steady market offer a suggestion of what's to come? For this first Beef Market Update of 2023, Anne Wasko, of the Gateway Livestock Exchange, joins Shaun Haney to... Read More
The total number of birds on Canadian farms lost due to H5N1 avian influenza nearly hit the 7 million mark in the 2022 calendar year, with over 40 per cent of those birds affected in the last two months in southern B.C. Heading into 2023, the ongoing outbreak of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) is... Read More
There are fewer farmers every year in Canada. That's just reality. The impacts of a shrinking demographic are complex and far-reaching, but also sometimes right in front of us — like now, during the Annual General Meeting season of producer groups. The same farmer attending four different meetings, for example, doesn't necessarily make the most... Read More
The Beef Cattle Research Council's Future Farm scenarios has looked at the five-year financial impact of investing in rotational grazing management or tightening up the calving season. Drawing on findings from the Canadian Cow-Calf Cost of Production Network, the scenarios exercise looked at where to invest in infrastructure to best improve profitability. For both questions... Read More
Greg Peterson, A.K.A. Machinery Pete, has been following, analyzing, and commenting on the used equipment market for decades, and even he has to admit that 2022 was surprising. Just when you couldn't think the used market of 2021 could be topped, 2022 came along and blew it out of the water, he says in the... Read More
New demand for canola oil is driving a wave of expansion in canola processing capacity, and along with it, there's going to be a large increase in the supply of the main byproduct — canola meal. The amount of canola processed in Western Canada is expected to grow by around 50 per cent in two... Read More