Karen Morrison

Saskatchewan farmers shouldn’t look for a pill to cure copper deficiency in cattle but instead learn what’s preventing their livestock from using what they are eating. Steve Reid, a chemistry professor at the University of Saskatchewan, had doubts that simply adding copper to animals’ diets would increase their copper levels. He began studies to investigate […] Read more

Feeding marigolds to laying hens could improve long-term eye health in humans, says a University of Guelph researcher. Steve Leeson of the university’s department of animal and poultry science is in the second year of a three-year study examining the effects of increased lutein, a pigment found in marigolds. Lutein, which is also found in […] Read more

YORKTON, Sask. – Rural Saskatchewan has given Steve Sanders opportunities he never could have realized in the big city. The Burlington, Ont., native is now growing Prairie Dome elite seed potatoes and operating a 10-acre U-pick strawberry and saskatoon patch with several partners, including his wife Catrina, her sister Tonia Vermette and their parents Elwyn […] Read more

Two new methods of detecting ractopamine in livestock feed are expected to help producers, meat inspectors and export companies better identify and measure residues of the feed additive. Weilin Shelver, a chemist who worked with animal physiologist David Smith in developing the new tests at the Red River Valley Agricultural Research Centre in Fargo, North […] Read more

A water appeal board has upheld an earlier ruling ordering a former provincial cabinet minister to open up a controversial dam in western Saskatchewan. But Frank Blair, a downstream neighbour, says that is not enough and said he plans to appeal to have a second, larger dam opened as well. Last summer, the Saskatchewan Watershed […] Read more

Canadian Prairie Lamb Inc. hopes to finance its value-added business by raising $200,000 through a public share offering. President Gordon Schroeder said more working capital will buy the specialized equipment needed to produce raw and pre-cooked products such as oven-ready lamb kabobs, meatball appetizers and sausages. Each share will cost investors $250. Class A shares […] Read more

MESKANAW, Sask.- A calf bolts when spooked, a steer bunts its handler in the show ring and the winning 4-Her gets showered with water to toast her victory. Such adventures are commonplace in the Meskanaw-Ethelton 4-H Beef Club, which will mark its 50th annual achievement day June 27. Grant Wilton, a club leader for the […] Read more

Standardized rules for development in rural Saskatchewan is one option being explored by SARM’s new 18-member committee. The association of rural governments set up the group to identify impediments to economic development and make recommendations for change, said SARM president Neal Hardy. Those impediments include differing policies in rural municipalities in addition to taxes, access […] Read more

A satellite that monitors daily soil moisture changes around the world could improve short- and long-term weather forecasts. NASA expects to launch the Hydros satellite in 2010 and plans to feed the data it collects into models used by meteorologists to predict the weather. Bob Cormier, meteorologist with Environment Canada, said current weather forecasting models […] Read more

Farm site management is the key to keeping rats out, says Cameron Wilk of Saskatchewan Agriculture. The provincial pesticide specialist said rats are drawn to areas with a good source of water, improperly managed garbage, old granaries and waste grain on the ground. “A rat lives off our refuse.” Wilk said farmers need to eliminate […] Read more