Ian Bell

Rex and Donna Davis came up empty handed after spending two years looking for good, affordable ranchland in Alberta. They owned three sections of land west of Nanton, and were hoping to expand. Failing to find what they wanted in Alberta, they turned their attention to Saskatchewan. Last fall, they bought land near Frontier, Sask., […] Read more

Bill Vaags echoes a sentiment shared by farmers. Vaags, a hog producer from Dugald, Man., questions the need for new federal rules to monitor medicated livestock feeds. Canada’s hog producers already are implementing a voluntary quality assurance program, said Vaags, an executive member of the Canadian Pork Council and president of Canada Pork International. Included […] Read more

WASKADA, Man. — The tractor and air seeder sit idle, awaiting the arrival of spring seeding. Nearby are rows of grain bins, most of them empty except for the seed needed to grow a crop this year. For Clair and Gladys Howden, the empty bins are a reminder of a disastrous year in farming. They […] Read more

John Duvenaud remembers the early 1980s when Western Canada was growing 150,000 acres of field peas. That seemed like a lot of peas at the time – but it pales in comparison to what is expected this year and in the coming decade. Duvenaud, who publishes the Wild Oats Grain Markets Advisory newsletter, expects field […] Read more

A group of prairie farmers wants to create their own market for feed peas by building a peacan meal plant near Miniota, Man. Farmers within a 200 kilometre radius of Miniota want to form a co-operative to build the plant, which will blend peas and canola meal to produce a hog feed ingredient. Larry Walker, […] Read more

A parcel of land that once grew hay is now soaked with water and dotted with willow trees at the farm of John Watterson. “Each year it’s getting worse,” said Watterson, a cattle rancher near Carberry, Man. “Now you can’t even use it for pasture because of the water on it.” Watterson said he is […] Read more

The North Dakota Wheat Commission has hired a lawyer and soon will challenge the marketing position of the Canadian Wheat Board, said commission chair Alan Lee last week. Lee alleged the board’s trade distorting practices are giving it an unfair advantage in American and offshore markets for grain. He would not disclose details of the […] Read more

It’s been three weeks and a million questions since the Alberta government introduced its controversial health-care bill. Even premier Ralph Klein, who introduced Bill 11 at the beginning of March, acknowledged it has unleashed a “firestorm” of controversy. The bill would allow private surgical centres to do minor operations with an overnight stay. Much of […] Read more

Angry homeowners near East St. Paul, Man., want a company fined for composting lindane-treated canola seed in a nearby field. Residents said they fought for months to get the toxic compost removed from the field near their homes. One of their greatest concerns is that residual pesticide will leach into the soil, contaminating wells and […] Read more

A Manitoba farmer who drained water from his land without a provincial licence was cleared of wrongdoing last week. The Manitoba Court of Appeal ruled that the authority to regulate drainage lies with municipalities. The decision overturned Ray Hildebrandt’s conviction last summer under the province’s Water Rights Act. Hildebrandt, a grain producer from Ninga, Man., […] Read more