DIDSBURY, Alta. — When Berend and Karen Ridder agreed to appear on a local Calgary television show, one of their goals was to show urban residents that milk does not come from the grocery store. They wanted to project a positive message from their dairy farm near Didsbury, Alta. and do some myth busting at […] Read more
Barbara Duckworth
Stories by Barbara Duckworth
Chicken farmers gain quota under new deal
Chicken Farmers of Canada has signed a new 10 year quota allocation agreement to increase production across the country. All member provinces will receive more quota, but provinces with fast growing populations, particularly Alberta and Ontario, could get more. A tentative agreement was reached last summer and the provinces were allowed to increase production at […] Read more
Strong prices fail to spark expansion
Slow to rebuild herds | With beef prices so high, it is more lucrative to sell to the meat market than as a replacement heifer
All the pieces have come together for the Canadian beef industry this year, yet expansion does not seem to be in play. Record returns in Alberta that average $700 per head for cow-calf producers and more than $200 per head for feedlots are an incredible turnaround from years of debilitating losses. Alberta feeder steers, 550 […] Read moreAllergies among factors cited for dip in milk consumption
Dairy producers want to know why fewer people are drinking milk. A glass a day was common 20 years ago in Great Britain, Canada and the United States, but all have seen fluid consumption fall 25 percent for that period, says Richard Sanchez of Dairy Farmers of Canada. Instead, consumers are switching to alternatives such […] Read more
Antibiotic use in pets goes under microscope
ATLANTA, Ga. — Antibiotic resistance is often blamed on doctors over-prescribing medications. The situation is no different among veterinarians who treat pets. “Pets, especially cats and dogs, are a potential source of spread of antimicrobial resistance due to common use of antimicrobials in the pet population,” Jeff Bender of the University of Minnesota’s college of […] Read more
Harmony Beef operator could reopen former Alta. producer-owned facility this spring
Canada’s newest beef packing plant hopes to start processing cattle next spring. Harmony Beef, located north of Calgary, plans to start taking feedlot cattle for the first six months of operations to test the new systems installed. The plant was bought by Rich Vesta and his family last year and is now being renovated. The […] Read more
CDC pushes for reduced antibiotic use
ATLANTA, Ga. — Antibiotic resistant bacteria are gaining added attention as a worldwide public health challenge. Prudent use is emphasized in human medicine, yet the Centers for Disease Control in the United States estimates that 30 to 50 percent of all antibiotics prescribed for American patients are inappropriate. Bacteria naturally evolve and inevitably over time […] Read more
Dwindling cash trades spurs Canfax shift to contract tracking
A new method of voluntary price reporting is now available in Canada. Canfax has collected information on cattle contracts between feedlots and packers for the last month. It is confidential and released only to the feedlots that report to Canfax. Canfax’s market information was based on cash trade reports for more than 40 years, but […] Read more
Antibiotic resistance an ‘emerging crisis’
On-farm use Public health concerns are changing the way antibiotics can be used in animal agriculture
ATLANTA, Ga. — Common infections killed thousands every year before the age of antibiotics. Women died of infection after childbirth, pneumonia killed 30 percent of those who contracted it and 70 percent of meningitis patients died. Ear infections caused deafness. Rheumatic fever and heart failure could result from a sore throat. Bacterial resistance followed as […] Read more
Reproductive stage affects mineral needs
Nutritional requirements depend on whether the cow is pregnant, recovering from calving or lactating
Mineral deficiencies found in western Canadian cattle could be related to the feed, soil, water or not enough supplements. “I know far too many producers who have learned the hard way from cows not eating enough minerals,” said John McKinnon, beef industry research chair at the University of Saskatchewan. Lameness, milk fever, downer cows, retained […] Read more
