A calf persistently infected with bovine viral diarrhea can cost a producer $20 per cow per year, says a Pfizer Animal Health veterinarian. BVD and infectious bovine rhinotracheitis, or IBR, are two troublesome diseases that can be controlled with a diligent vaccination program, said Les Byers. Immunization offers fetal protection, stops the disease cycle and […] Read more
Barbara Duckworth
Stories by Barbara Duckworth
Busy women take control of menu chaos
After feeling harried in the kitchen at the end of the working day, four busy Calgary professionals decided they needed help. The four women agreed they wanted detailed menu planning via the internet so they could offer a variety of easy to prepare, nutritious meals their families would eat. The result was the launch of […] Read more
Access delays cash advances
Livestock producers lack access to a new federal cash advance payment program because no one wants to administer it. Manitoba and Ontario pork and beef producer organizations say they would administer the Advance Payments Program rolled out April 1, but add they need more details because of the different marketing dynamics within the livestock industry. […] Read more
Three-in-one biofuel facility planned in Alta.
A biofuel venture producing a range of green energy products has been proposed for Strathmore, Alta. CR Fuels Inc. plans to build an ethanol, biodiesel and biogas facility near Cattleland Feedyards. The facility is estimated to be worth $275 to $325 million, and the company hopes construction starts this fall. Plans and building permit applications […] Read more
Planning keeps family farm humming
STRATHMORE, Alta. – When an Australian agriculture minister told his Canadian hosts he wanted to visit an ordinary farm, he was taken to the home of Kelly and Rhonda Wheeler at Strathmore. Rory McEwen shed his entourage of assistants, and spent a morning visiting with the young couple over coffee in the kitchen to talk […] Read more
Biodiesel plant will use animal fat
HIGH RIVER, Alta. – Alberta’s first biodiesel plant using animal fat and canola is expected to be in production by year end. Western Biodiesel Inc. from Calgary has already started construction on an 1,800 sq. metre facility at High River. The company plans annual production of 19 million litres of biodiesel using mostly tallow from […] Read more
Weather frustrates eager Alta. farmers
Glenn Sawyer was feeling pleased with himself. He had sold a load of barley on April 18 for $3.92 per bushel to a local feed mill. It was his best barley price since he started farming in 1974. It did a lot to lift his spirits as he plans his spring work. “I’m really optimistic […] Read more
Alta. braces for more pine beetle damage
CAROLINE, Alta. – Five mountain pine beetles can kill a mature pine tree. The little black beetle has affected more than 21 million acres of pine forest in the interior of British Columbia and is moving east. The Alberta government formed a mountain pine beetle advisory committee last year to try and ward off the […] Read more
Alberta to clear way for carbon trading
CAROLINE, Alta. – Alberta farmers could receive cash for reducing greenhouse gases once the provincial government works out details on how to regulate carbon markets. Carbon trading will be allowed in Alberta by July 1, said Karen Haugen-Kozyra of Climate Change Central, a provincial agency that examines weather patterns and the effects of pollutants on […] Read more
New Alta. vet school on target for 2008
The University of Calgary’s veterinary school is moving toward earning accreditation this fall and hopes to admit its first students in September 2008. Representatives from the American Veterinary Medical Association and the Canadian Veterinary Medical Association visit Calgary this June, and provisional approval is expected by September. Developing a new faculty from scratch takes time, […] Read more
