THREE HILLS, Alta. – The high cost of commercial fertilizers could make hauling manure greater distances a good idea this year. High fertilizer costs had some producers holding back on fall applications this year, with some hinting they may halve their nitrogen use next year. However, it is important to compare what the crop is […] Read more
Barbara Duckworth
Stories by Barbara Duckworth
Saudi Arabian money pleases Black Angus breeders
REGINA – A half interest worth $115,000 in a Black Angus cow that sold to Saudi Arabian partners has injected a major dose of enthusiasm into the purebred cattle business. Offered at the second annual Gala on Prairies sale Nov. 28 in Regina, sale manager Hugh Ross was beaming after the event, which saw live […] Read more
Studies show no link in price, packer ownership
The controversy over packer ownership of cattle and other marketing arrangements offered by meat packers goes back to 1919, yet studies show the practice has had little impact on prices paid to producers. Market analyst Anne Dunford of Gateway Livestock Exchange said her feedlot clients request contract arrangements with packers to manage risk in a […] Read more
Inspected plants decline
The number of federally inspected beef packing plants in Canada has been declining for many years. In 1988, the Canadian Meat Council reported that at least eight plants were operating in Alberta: Burns Meats in Lethbridge; Canada Packers in Calgary, Lethbridge and Red Deer; Centennial Packers in Calgary; Gainers Foods in Edmonton; XL Foods in […] Read more
Commercial winners strive for consistency
REGINA – When Michael Wheeler came to Canadian Western Agribition and saw the competition his bulls were up against, he had no expectation of winning. “There were a lot of powerful Black and Red Angus bulls,” he said after the commercial show where his pen of three Red Angus bulls not only won their class […] Read more
4-H serves youth winners well
REGINA – Feeling under the weather was not enough to hold Jaelayne Wilson from leading her Angus heifer to victory before judge Jim Hallberg at the Canadian Junior Beef Xtreme competition. This is not the first time the 15-year-old has won the big prize at Canadian Western Agribition but she admits it never gets boring […] Read more
Agribition honours Maine Anjou pioneer
REGINA – A heifer show to honour a man who revered the cattle business was the theme of the first Mainetainer event at Canadian Western Agribition Nov. 27. Robert Smith of Wimborne, Alta., who died of cancer in 2006, was an early adopter of Maine Anjou cattle when his father, J.O. Smith, imported some of […] Read more
Angus grabs limelight with $82,500 high seller
REGINA – With the largest presence in the barns of Canadian Western Agribition, Angus producers established their dominance by winning the supreme champions and by having the high seller during the week-long event. Overall, the Angus Masterpiece sale Nov. 26 averaged $4,456 with a total of $418,875 on 94 lots. The high seller at $82,500 […] Read more
New technology services new generation of farmers
A poster in a downtown Calgary boardroom displays a cartoon diagram of what happens to grain from the time it is seeded until it is delivered to port. It was those steps in the food production process that convinced Kryos president Trevor Nimegeers that his software development company could help agribusinesses and farmers gather information […] Read more
Supreme champs both Angus
REGINA – A seasoned rancher at the top of his game and a 10-year-old girl who cleaned up at this year’s junior shows are the winners of the Canadian Western Agribition supreme championship. Roger Hardy of Soo Line Angus at Midale, Sask., won with his Black Angus bull named Soo Line Yellowstone 6344, and Laurie […] Read more
