A handshake and a cup of coffee may be the first step toward friendlier relations between Canadian and American cattle producers. Meeting their colleagues boot to boot on their own turf, Canadians took a 10-day whirlwind tour of Montana where they held town hall meetings and answered the Americans’ questions about the impact of trade […] Read more
Barbara Duckworth
Stories by Barbara Duckworth
Slim pickins’ for B.C. fruit growers
WINFIELD, B.C. – As Tony diMaria inspects the buds on his grape vines, he talks about the challenges of trying to make a living on a fruit farm. “I have to make money. This is not a pastime or a hobby,” said diMaria, who has farmed all his life in the Okanagan Valley. “The dollars […] Read more
Ranchers want action on duties
BROOKS, Alta. – Canadian cattle producers think the federal minister of agriculture is fiddling while their industry gets burned by anti-dumping duties. Agriculture minister Lyle Vanclief has not met formally with cattle producers since May and they are growing impatient, said Ben Thorlakson, president of the Canadian Cattlemen’s Association. “He has to address the situation […] Read more
B.C. fruit growers say insurance failed them
SUMMERLAND, B.C. – It is a scene that has played out across the Prairies many times this summer. Scared and angry farmers with sunburned faces and shaking voices come before the microphone to ask questions with no answers about farm income and failed support programs. The only difference is that this is happening in British […] Read more
Vaccines, injection methods can scar meat
PENTICTON, B.C.- Most people handling livestock know injections can leave a nasty scar. However, sometimes the medicine causes as much damage as the person handling the needle. “These things cause damage and there are things we can do about it right now,” said Joyce Van Donkersgoed, who is in charge of a beef quality audit […] Read more
Battle against foreign invaders being lost
LETHBRIDGE, Alta. – The alien invasion is here and most people don’t even know it happened. The aliens are not little green men, but tenacious green plants that are taking over millions of acres of land in North America. These plants may appear as pretty flowering plants or hardwood trees that defy destruction. “We are […] Read more
Co-ordinated effort on weeds urged
LETHBRIDGE, Alta. – Noxious weeds are expensive and hard to control, even when their very presence is against the law. “You don’t kill weeds by talking to them or about them,” said Barb Mullin, of Montana’s department of agriculture. She spoke at the recent North American Weed Management Association meeting in Lethbridge. Weed control varies […] Read more
Lakeside grows into beef giant
BROOKS, Alta. – Back in 1966, Garnet and Faye Altwasser probably never expected their feedmill to grow into Lakeside Farm Industries, a company with annual revenues of nearly $1 billion. Located on the outskirts of Brooks, Alta., Lakeside is a leader in the Canadian beef business in the heart of southern Alberta’s massive feeding industry. […] Read more
30 horsepower comes in big package
IRRICANA, Alta. – When Percheron breeder Fred McDiarmid got a phone call asking if he would help drive a 30-horse team, he didn’t say yes right away. “I didn’t know what to think. It’s quite a little job,” said the Veteran, Alta., farmer. The idea of hitching 30 draft horses to pull five grain wagons […] Read more
Canadian beef industry relies on U.S. goodwill: economist
PENTICTON, B.C. – The entire Canadian beef industry could collapse if Canada lost its hoofhold in the export market. “If we lost our export trade totally, Canadians would get to consume 384 million more kilograms (of beef),” said economic analyst Larry Martin of the George Morris Centre. In 1998, Canada produced 1,073 million kg of […] Read more
