LONDON, Ont. — Major food companies are starting to invest more of their investment budgets into alternative meat products. “We spent over $900 million in the last couple years and are really investing to get bigger in traditional proteins,” said Sonya Roberts, who lead the growth ventures and strategic pricing for Cargill Proteins in Wichita, […] Read more
Barbara Duckworth
Stories by Barbara Duckworth
Beef farms claim local market
LAMBTON COUNTY, Ont. — The concept of farm to fork is not new to many beef producers but making a long-term success of it is another issue altogether. Murray and Sandy Shaw and friends Ralph and Brenda Eyre of Lambton County, Ont., sell their Limousin beef online and through a local farmers’ market under the […] Read more
Family thinks big when expanding feedlot
MOUNT CARMEL, Ont. — Expanding their southern Ontario farm became a case of go big or go home for the Van Osch family. Gerald and Fred Van Osch, who are third generation farmers descended from Dutch immigrants, evaluated their 600 acres of cropland and 900 head of cattle and decided to go big. “We decided […] Read more
Beef trade interest blossoms into packing plant
Ontario woman decided to purchase a federally inspected plant when an opportunity arose to sell beef to China
MOUNT FOREST, Ont. — Nancy Kingsley-Hu likes to think outside the meat box. Once a trader of beer, ice wine and honey to China, she came into the beef business by chance. “Some of my buyers in China were bothering me about pork and beef,” she said from her office at Mount Forest, where her […] Read more
Ag groups continue food guide fight
Beef and dairy producers are opposed to Health Canada’s proposed revisions, including front of packaging labelling
LONDON, Ont. — Proposed revisions to the Canada Food Guide continues to rankle some groups. “The Canada Food Guide is not just about revisions and updates to the food guide, which was necessary. It is about Health Canada’s strategy for healthy eating, which also includes other areas of interest like front of packaging labelling,” said […] Read more
Alberta family strives to build sustainable farm
On the Farm: Amy and Kevin Leitch take an old-fashioned approach to their venture but also embrace renewable energy
ROCKY MOUNTAIN HOUSE, Alta. — Kevin and Amy Leitch take sustainability seriously on their west-central Alberta farm. Some of their practices are the old-fashioned approach of running a mixed farm and producing most of their own food, as well as adopting renewable energy technology. They have made their new house energy efficient and use solar […] Read more
Soil health could present key to yield growth
Clearwater County establishes cover crop trials to see what might work in a region that has an unpredictable climate
ROCKY MOUNTAIN HOUSE, Alta. — Taking care of soil health could become the next green revolution. Agriculturalists are cognizant of soil chemistry but know less about the biology, said Ken Ziegler of the Grey Wooded Forage Association. “The reality is soil biology has a very important part to play in the health of the soil […] Read more
Bear encounters on the rise in Alta.
Man-made food sources on farms such as granaries, silage, gardens and livestock are more nutritious than natural feed
ROCKY MOUNTAIN HOUSE, Alta. — Everybody has a bear story, but the Korth family encounter with a grizzly this spring was too close for comfort. Norman and Irene Korth lamb their 200 ewes from January to May at their farm near Rocky Mountain House. They knew there was increased bear activity in Clearwater County in […] Read more
Family rooted to farm for more than a century
Three generations feed 5,000 head, mostly Black Angus, in an operation that is Ontario Corn Fed Beef certified
LUCAN, Ont. — When a family has worked the same land for more than 100 years, they develop an appreciation for the past and future generations. The Conlin farm at Lucan, near London, is owned and operated by Mike and Jen Conlin and their children along with parents, Tony and Mary Conlin who are retiring. […] Read more
Beef demand continues to keep prices stable
LONDON, Ont. — Solid demand for beef is holding up prices. “We continue probably to be in fairly impressive markets and we continue to look at the big supplies coming down the pipeline … with very solid demand for domestic consumers and internationally,” Brian Perillat, senior market analyst at Canfax, said during the Canadian Beef […] Read more
