Garry Fairbairn

After all the headlines and TV news clips in recent weeks about U.S. farmers staging demonstrations against imports of Canadian grain and livestock, it is refreshing to once again see evidence that Canadian and American farmers can work together constructively. In a well-timed announcement, 11 farm organizations issued a joint statement on agricultural trade. It […] Read more

Wheat and barley producers won an important victory last week, when the Canadian Transportation Agency ruled that CP Rail did not provide adequate service in the winter of 1996-97. The ruling opens the way for the Canadian Wheat Board to seek compensation from the railway, through either court action or negotiations. The amount of money […] Read more

As noted in this week’s newspaper, there is no shortage of Canadian officials expressing sympathy with U.S. farmers. It is only understandable, the Canadians say, that frustration over low grain and livestock prices should provoke U.S. farmers into demanding action against imports of grain and livestock from Canada. The financial strain is real enough – […] Read more

Agricultural biotechnology has been having a rough ride in Europe, and it’s going to get worse. A coalition of groups opposed to genetically modified organisms is planning a series of protests in mid-October, just before World Food Day, Oct. 16. Through publicity stunts like dressing up as monsters to protest “Frankenstein foods,” they have succeeded […] Read more

According to the Western Canadian Wheat Growers, electoral boundaries in the coming wheat board elections are unfair because many of them cross provincial boundaries. It’s possible, some say, that Saskatchewan farmers could be elected to seven director positions, compared to only two Albertans and one Manitoban. If they are willing to use such silly scare […] Read more

Last week, the Supreme Court of Canada brought some badly needed common sense to the national unity debate. In a landmark decision, the court ruled that Canada has an obligation to negotiate in good faith if a clear majority of Quebecers vote in favor of a clearly worded statement of secession. Although some separatists tried […] Read more

In about 12 weeks, for the first time in Canadian history, farmers will elect directors of the Canadian Wheat Board. Regulations for the vote are not final, but the plan is for every farmer with a CWB permit book to get one vote. That democratic approach, however, is not universally accepted. Some groups argue that […] Read more

Will Canadian farmers be heroes or villains when the history of the “Greenhouse Effect” is written? The next 12 years should determine the answer. The predicted Greenhouse Effect (global warming) is attributed to more heat being trapped in the atmosphere as human activity causes more “greenhouse gases” to be released. Last December, industrial countries, meeting […] Read more

Two years ago, a network of some 600 scientists around the world conducted an ambitious survey of animal life. They looked at 9,615 bird species, 4,355 mammal species, 1,277 reptile species, 497 amphibian species, 2,158 fish species. The results, as reviewed and analyzed in a recent Worldwatch Institute study, were startling – almost one in […] Read more

Death on the farm can strike in many sudden and unanticipated forms, always unfair and tragic. There are far more dangers than the comparatively obvious threats of tractor rollover and getting caught in an operating auger. Two such cases were reported in last week’s paper. In one, a young Manitoba farmer died after using his […] Read more