Quarantine imposed on several ranches, which typically sell calves after weaning and aren’t set up to feed them
Ranchers in the Jenner and Suffield regions of southeastern Alberta are reeling after a quarantine was imposed when one cow tested positive for tuberculosis. TB must be reported by law in Canada and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency has imposed quarantine on an unknown number of cattle in at least two community pastures in the […] Read more
Barb Glen
Stories by Barb Glen
No kidding, this job is a shear delight
PINCHER CREEK, Alta. — Two retired teachers are at last dealing with kids that don’t talk back. There might be some teasing and running in the hallways or alleyways but that’s all in a day’s work on a goat farm. Tom and Catherine Sheard operate Mountain Sunset Angoras on the outskirts of Pincher Creek. About […] Read more
Animal welfare bill’s defeat relieves livestock groups
Groups say the bill was flawed and would have allowed animal rights groups to challenge farm practices
Livestock groups were pleased at the Oct. 5 defeat of Bill C-246, legislation to modernize the Canadian Animal Protections Act, in a 198-84 House of Commons vote. The private members bill, brought forward by Liberal MP Nathaniel Erskine-Smith of Beaches-East York, was primarily de-signed to address the practices of shark finning and imported dog and […] Read moreCommunity reports detail needs, issues
Thirty-two Canadian communities released Vital Signs reports Oct. 4, snapshots of various aspects of life, social issues, work and play. Among them were southern Sask-atchewan, southwestern Alberta, southeastern Alberta and Calgary. Vital Signs reports are projects of their respective community foundations with each foundation deciding on its own what areas to explore and highlight in […] Read more
Applications still accepted
Deadlines have been extended by the Alberta government as it seeks candidates to sit on the Agriculture Financial Services Corp. and the Agricultural Products Marketing Council. Applications for AFSC will be accepted until Oct. 17 and those for the marketing council will be accepted until Oct. 21. Agriculture Minister Oneil Carlier said eight people will […] Read more
Industry ‘head tax’ adds strain to feedlots
In the wake of the pending closure of Western Feedlots, one of the largest such operations in Alberta, a group of southern Alberta feedlot owners says a new municipal tax puts even more pressure on their ability to operate. Lethbridge County has imposed a $3 per animal unit tax on livestock producers as a way […] Read more
The hardest choice
Safeguards require that the patient:
Twenty-six Albertans have ended their lives since February, when medical assistance in dying became legal for Canadians who meet specific criteria. Nancy Campbell, co-ordinator of the MAID care team in the southern zone, has been there for some of those deaths. One man’s words stick with her. “I asked him, ‘if I had the opportunity […] Read more
Alberta 4-H celebrates 100 years
For an organization that is almost 100 years old, 4-H Alberta isn’t showing its age. That must be because its members have always been ages nine to 20. The youth club will celebrate its 100th birthday next year, and the southern region announced its celebratory plans Sept. 27. The 56 clubs in the southern zone, […] Read more
Ceapro has big plans for oats
The common oat continues to find its way into uncommon products, and the Edmonton-based biotechnology company Ceapro said it plans to continue that trend. Its new $14 million bioprocessing extraction facility, officially opened Sept. 28, is designed to allow Ceapro to expand its oat extraction processes and marketing of oat-based ingredients to nutraceutical and pharmaceutical […] Read more
Alberta employers urged to tap funding for employee training
Alberta’s minister of labour is encouraging employers to use the Canada-Alberta Jobs Grant to assist in training current and new employees. Minister Christina Gray said more than $29 million has already been approved for job training and more than 2,400 employers in the province will receive grants. The minister provided an update on the program […] Read more
