Ian Bell

Scientists who fanned out across parts of Manitoba and Saskatchewan last month found proof that the deadly hantavirus is lurking in rural areas. Scientists from the new federal virology lab in Winnipeg took blood samples from 457 deer mice at 33 locations in southwestern Manitoba and southeastern Saskatchewan. Their research began after a Manitoba woman […] Read more

Money will soon start flowing to Manitoba farmers who were unable to seed a crop this spring due to the glut of rain. Agriculture minister Harry Enns said that affected farmers will start receiving payments on their unseeded acreage before the end of August. The Manitoba government will pay $50 per acre to farmers who […] Read more

MELITA, Man. – A note scrawled in black marker clings to the door of a farm implement dealership here. It tells customers that the dealership is closed “due to economic conditions.” The business went bankrupt, nudged into insolvency by an economy that rises and falls with the fortunes of farmers. Dean Tremaine was the only […] Read more

A former president of the Western Canadian Wheat Growers Association was chosen Aug. 12 as the Conservative candidate for Manitoba’s Arthur-Virden constituency. Larry Maguire, a farmer from Elgin, Man., won the nomination after claiming the majority of votes on a second ballot. He was chosen after a string of events that drew provincewide attention earlier […] Read more

They are seen by some as the economic salvation of hotels in rural Manitoba. Others view them as a scourge upon the province, something that should be wiped out. Video lottery terminals were introduced to southwestern Manitoba in late 1991. They soon spread across the province, becoming a mainstay of hotels large and small. Lucie […] Read more

LENA, Man. – Running his hands along the stone walls of his barn, Charlie Baldock marvels at the workmanship that kept the structure standing for more than 70 years. The walls were built in 1927 using stones plucked from farmers’ fields. The loft, complete with dormers peering out to the north, was built a year […] Read more

Harold Kopetsky was skeptical when he first heard talk of turning five abandoned elevators into an historic site and tourist attraction at his hometown of Inglis, Man. The elevators needed work and he wondered what appeal they would have for tourists. “I was one of the naysayers,” said Kopetsky, who used to work part-time at […] Read more

Farmers who grew industrial hemp last year could find themselves walking a legal tightrope if the crop returned this year as a volunteer plant. Health Canada, Manitoba Agriculture and the RCMP have all had reports of industrial hemp growing in fields not licensed for the crop. The plants grew from seeds that were shed during […] Read more

Buckwheat caught the attention of Manitoba farmers scrambling to get their land seeded this spring. The Manitoba Buckwheat Growers Association believes farmers planted about 50,000 acres to the crop this year, a jump of almost 15,000 acres from a year ago. Michel Durand, president of the buckwheat growers association, said much of the increase is […] Read more

Build it and they will come. At least that’s the hope of grain handling companies competing for a share of the market in western Manitoba. The Brandon region’s skyline has been redrawn in recent years by construction of several new high-volume elevators. Only time will tell whether farmers grow enough grain to support them all. […] Read more