Investigations into three of the affected farms have found no transport links to Manitoba, Ontario or the United States, which are all locations where PED has been found.  |  File photo

Alberta continues search for source of PED virus

The affected farms have a few things in common, but no firm links regarding potential spread are evident


A few answers and more questions have emerged as investigations continue into Alberta’s four cases of porcine epidemic diarrhea virus. The fourth case was confirmed March 15, two days after a provincial briefing on the first three cases. Investigators in the provincial chief veterinary office and Alberta Agriculture have ruled out several ways the virus […] Read more

Growers want piling process to be faster

Long lineups of trucks loaded with sugar beets can be a common sight in southern Alberta at piling stations during fall harvest season. Sugar beets are delivered by truck to several stations where they are weighed and piled. Drivers can face long waits to unload during peak times and the Alberta Sugar Beet Growers board […] Read more

Canadian hog producers are on board with quality assurance programs to ensure the safety and value of pork, but before taking steps into a more detailed pig care and traceability program, they want per pig payments to reflect the extra effort that will be involved.
 | File photo

Hog farmers want quality assurance premium

Producers meet with processors to discuss how they can be better rewarded for participating in traceability program

Canadian hog producers are on board with quality assurance programs to ensure the safety and value of pork, but before taking steps into a more detailed pig care and traceability program, they want per pig payments to reflect the extra effort that will be involved. A meeting between Canadian pig producer organizations and pig processors […] Read more


Opposition leads Alta. gov’t as election looms

Opposition leads Alta. gov’t as election looms

The polling results become narrower when voters are asked for their impressions of the NDP and UCP leaders

The Alberta election has not yet been called but political watchers agree the campaign is already well under way. The vote must take place sometime between March 1 and May 31. Zack Ziolkowski, Alberta counsel with the legal and lobby firm that represents Alberta agricultural groups to government, predicted an April 15 election when he […] Read more

Eric Cowger of AltaLink conducts a safety briefing for visitors to the hawk nest installation site.  |  Barb Glen photo

VIDEO: Alta. project builds new home for hawk couple

The nest pole was erected earlier this month to lure two ferruginous hawks away from a busy road in southern Alberta

CRANFORD, Alta. — When a pair of ferruginous hawks returns to southern Alberta this month, they will see a new home on the landscape. A nest pole was erected March 4 in a pasture north of Cranford near Taber, Alta., that wildlife biologists hope will meet with approval from a hawk twosome that last year […] Read more


Grassy Lake, Alta., will be home to a $41.8 million fertilizer terminal for Federated Cooperatives Ltd. The facility will be the third fertilizer terminal for FCL, which opened other facilities in Hanley, Sask., and Brandon in 2017. | FCL graphic

FCL plans new fertilizer terminal for Alberta

The new 34,000-tonne capacity plant in Grassy Lake will have a loop track to accommodate 110-car unit trains

TABER, Alta. — Grassy Lake, Alta., will soon be home to a $41.8 million fertilizer terminal for Federated Co-operatives Ltd. The facility will be the third fertilizer terminal for FCL, which opened other facilities in Hanley, Sask., and Brandon in 2017. Grassy Lake, east of Taber, Alta., is a hamlet within the Municipal District of […] Read more

For farmers, long hours spent in tractors and other farm equipment, interspersed with shorter bouts of heavy labour, can wreak havoc with health.


VIDEO: Sitting your way toward a bad back

Long hours spent in farm equipment, interspersed with 
shorter bouts of heavy labour, can be a recipe for disaster

Farmers can be extreme examples of weekend warriors, those folks with relatively sedentary jobs who then undertake extreme sports and activities on weekends. For farmers, long hours spent in tractors and other farm equipment, interspersed with shorter bouts of heavy labour, can wreak havoc with health. Scott Lawrence, a Lethbridge-based osteopath, frequently treats people who […] Read more

Johne’s is caused by the bacterium mycobacterium avium paratuberculosis (MAP), which can spread through colostrum, milk and manure. | File photo

Johne’s initiative pays off for dairy producers

One expert suggests expansion of the work by making disease management a separate module in proAction program

About 80 percent of western Canadian dairy herds are affected by Johne’s disease, an illness characterized by diarrhea, edema and gradual weight loss that often results in early culling. Dr. Herman Barkema, professor of epidemiology of infectious diseases at the University of Calgary, said the Alberta Johne’s Disease Initiative has helped address the problem, but […] Read more


The third and fourth cases of porcine epidemic diarrhea virus in Alberta were announced mere hours apart March 1. | File photo

More PED found on Alberta hog farms

Updated – March 4, 2019 – 1430 CST – Alberta Pork has updated their announcement made last week to note the third reported case of PED has been found to be a “false positive.” The third and fourth cases of porcine epidemic diarrhea virus in Alberta were announced by Alberta Pork mere hours apart March […] Read more

Canada’s first major wind energy project peeks out of the clouds on Cowley Ridge in southern Alberta with the Livingstone range in the background. The turbines have been replaced with newer ones in recent years.  |  Joanne Elves photo

Pioneer wind turbine on the auction block

Power-generating wind turbines were a novelty in southern Alberta back in the 1990s. When a few of them popped up near Cowley, Alta., an area known for its frequent westerly winds, they were items of interest and landmarks to point out when driving by. Now the southwestern corner of Alberta has hundreds of wind turbines […] Read more