New age limit | The industry benefits from BSE testing by increasing confidence in the beef sector, says veterinarian
Changes to Alberta’s BSE surveillance program are designed to encourage producers to provide a larger number of samples. Starting Nov. 1, cattle owners can now submit any animal older than 30 months for BSE testing if it is dead, down, diseased or distressed or if its showing neurological signs of illness. An upper age limit […] Read more
Barb Glen
Stories by Barb Glen
Industry official welcomes JBS takeover of XL
Foreign ownership not always bad | JBS has a good track record overseas and will open new markets, says Ted Haney
The potential purchase of XL Foods assets by international meat giant JBS USA raises no concerns about foreign ownership for the former head of the Canadian Beef Export Federation. Ted Haney said there were no other suitors for the federal Lakeside plant in Brooks, Alta., and other XL assets after Canada’s largest beef recall and […] Read moreLamb producers hope for stability
Prices levelling | But supplies not keeping pace
CLARESHOLM, Alta. — Lamb prices have dropped from heady highs last year, and producers are hopeful they have stabilized. Howard Paulsen, the Alberta Lamb Producers director for Zone 1, said lamb prices are now $110 compared to $185 last year. “One of the things I’ve heard is it was just kind of a perfect storm,” […] Read moreFarm labour standards said lacking
Food companies are under pressure to refuse products from farms without ethical labour standards
An Alberta Liberal MLA continues to encourage food companies to consider the province’s lack of farm worker protection when choosing suppliers. Dr. David Swann made headlines earlier this year when he urged PepsiCo Frito Lay, a major purchaser of Alberta potatoes, to stop buying from farms in Alberta because there is no legislative requirement for […] Read more
Give and take: respect key to family’s success
Targeting skills | Brothers have individual responsibilities and interests on the mixed farm
CHIN, Alta. — John, George and Mark Lohues are points on the triangle that make up Lohues Farms and Coyote Flats Charolais. Their homes at the three corners are separated by an expanse of fertile farmland purchased by their late father, Hank, 13 years after he immigrated to Canada from Holland in 1956. Theirs is […] Read moreCattle producers call for inquiry into XL beef recall
Independent inquiry needed | Internal review ‘not good enough’: ABP
FORT MACLEOD, Alta. — Southern Alberta cattle producers want a thorough independent inquiry into the XL Foods beef recall and plant shutdown. Those at an Alberta Beef Producers (ABP) zone meeting in Fort Macleod last week supported a motion from producer Bill Newton calling for an inquiry that will go beyond the internal review so […] Read moreHigh E. coli cattle unlikely source of meat recall: study
Data from a small study on cattle that expel large amounts of E. coli bacteria in their manure shows surprising results, says one of the re-searchers involved. Tim McAllister, an Agriculture Canada researcher and expert on cattle nutrition and microbial ecology, said super shedders, as these cattle are known, may not be as big a […] Read more
Dairy industry says milk price worth the money
Fair compensation | Farm leader says producers quit in countries where prices are too low
The price of milk is frequently criticized as being too high in Canada compared to the United States and other countries, but the chair of Alberta Milk defends it. Hennie Bos, a dairy farmer near Lacombe, Alta., said milk is not expensive considering its value. “I would say, if you look at your total grocery […] Read more
Alta. dairy farmers vow pizza kit war
Supply management | The imported kits use cheese amounts that circumvent tariffs
Alberta dairy producers like pizza because of its generous use of cheese. But they aren’t fans of pizza made from “pizza kits” that contain imported cheese and are used by Canadian companies to make pies for retail sale. In September, Dairy Farmers of Canada launched a challenge through the Canadian International Trade Tribunal seeking a […] Read moreAlberta BSE testing changes
Changes to Alberta’s BSE surveillance program effective Nov. 1 are designed to encourage producers to provide a larger number of samples. Cattle owners can now submit any animal older than 30 months for BSE testing if it is dead, down, diseased or distressed, or if its showing neurological signs of illness. Previously an upper age […] Read more
