LETHBRIDGE, Alta. – Agricultural runoff may have created a few problems on the prairies but there’s no need for farmers to take all the heat when it comes to water pollution. If an ongoing Prairie Farm Rehabilitation Administration study is correct, there is little evidence of widespread water contamination on the Prairies. “The Prairies may […] Read more
Barbara Duckworth
Stories by Barbara Duckworth
Boer goat farm fits into ethnic makeup of region
COCHRANE, Alta. – Ray and Ann Marie Hauck’s first Boer goats arrived at their southwestern Alberta farm in 1993 as an experiment. Today they operate Ram H Breeders, the largest Boer goat farm in North America. They have 1,000 goats, 600 of them purebred Boers. The Haucks started farming in 1978 raising purebred Limousin cattle […] Read more
Meat retailer calls on cattle producers to change ways
RED DEER, Alta. – The quality of beef a retailer sells can make or break his reputation, even if those sales don’t add much to the bottom line. Offering specials on beef draws customers into stores to buy more expensive items like poultry or packaged meats. Those were some of the observations of Jeff McMullen, […] Read more
Alberta ranching museum opens with tours, exhibits
COCHRANE, Alta. – The Western Heritage Centre at Cochrane officially opened July 1. Coming in at a final cost of $15 million, the centre takes its visitors on a walk through western Canadian ranching history that leads straight to life on a modern ranch. The centre will be event-driven, said special events co-ordinator Linda Frederick. […] Read more
Alberta surplus will pay down debt
CALGARY – Alberta will be paying down its long- term debt sooner than anticipated and returning more money to taxpayers. During the August sitting of the legislature a special bill will be passed to reduce the province’s 25 year-mortgage to 13 years. Alberta has undergone tough budget cutting measures in the last three years to […] Read more
Feeding industry bleak unless feed prices drop
RED DEER, Alta. – The last two years have been the worst on record for the Canadian feeding industry and if feed grains prices remain high, feedlots will continue to bleed red ink. That’s part of the stark reality Canfax’s Anne Dunford laid out to the Alberta Cattle Commission’s semi-annual meeting in Red Deer recently. […] Read more
Alberta pork packers call for quality assurance system
RED DEER, Alta. – Alberta’s two major pork processors say within the next five years, they will only buy pigs from quality assurance farms. Canada has a 30 percent pork surplus and it must protect not only its domestic market, but export sales by providing proof that its product is free of flaws. If buyers […] Read more
Farm insurance claims scrutinized
CALGARY – Alberta’s farm income insurance plan has received 538 claims to date but payouts are slow as agriculture officials scrutinize each application. The Farm Income Stabilization Program is also getting a new name and will be called the Farm Income Disaster Program. Gordon Herrington of Alberta Agriculture’s policy secretariat said the program’s platform remains […] Read more
Alberta cattle group broadens membership
RED DEER, Alta. – The Alberta Cattle Commission has approved a new structure but delegates balked at a name change to match the new plan. A proposal to change the name of the 26-year-old commission to Alberta Beef Producers or Beef Producers of Alberta was rejected by a majority of delegates at the recent semi-annual […] Read more
B.C. may see rural crime watch program
PRINCE GEORGE, B.C. – A warning that farming areas are not immune to thieves and vandalism may be the push needed to get a rural crime watch program started in British Columbia. Cpl. Barry Austinson, B.C’s lone livestock investigator stationed in Kamloops, would like to see a program similar to Alberta’s. Livestock producers are often […] Read more
