A provincial court judge has fined a former Cargill employee $7,500 for tampering with three waste-water samples in 2012 from the High River meat slaughter plant. An agreed statement of facts said Pushp Pal Singh tampered with three treated waste-water samples containing phosphorus by adding a substance to the samples that reduced the amount of […] Read more
Stories by Mary MacArthur
P.E.I. firm musseling way into new markets
MORELL, P.E.I. — It’s been 38 years since Esther Dockendorff shipped her first mussels from Prince Edward Island to Calgary, but she still re-members the address and postal code of that first customer. A lot has changed since her first shipment of fresh mussels to Calgary’s Billingsgate Fish Company. Today, Mussel King ships frozen, fresh, […] Read more
Hog facility uses undercover video as training tool
An undercover video capturing poor treatment of pigs at a Red Deer assembly yard will be used as an employee training tool, says the chair of Western Hog Exchange. Brent Moen said staff and employees would go through the video frame by frame to help learn how to better handle hogs at the assembly yard. […] Read more
Parishioners don paint for heavenly results
VILNA, Alta. — The Vilna Ukrainian Catholic Church is getting a fresh coat of paint for its 75th birthday. The 19 parishioners, with only five living near this Alberta village, have pooled their money and are seeking donations to help pay the $17,000 painting bill that they hope will keep the church from falling into […] Read more
U.S. analyst takes ‘super weed’ term to task
Designed to scare people | Weeds adapt and change but are not a product of genetic modification
Weeds have always been super, but that doesn’t mean they’re super weeds, said a policy analyst with the Weed Science Society of America. Concerned about the growing use of the term “super weed” in urban media and online, Lee van Wychen said his organization is trying to debunk the super weed myths. Weeds have always […] Read more
Robotic milker reinvigorates Alta. family farm
Next generation | A son’s investment in the family farm has improved family and herd health
ROCKY MOUNTAIN HOUSE, Alta. — What started as a joke ended as a farm succession plan. Cody Nicolay didn’t know how he could join the family dairy, beef and grain farm until he saw a YouTube video of a robotic milker. “I kept putting the idea into Dad’s head,” said Nicolay, who believed buying a […] Read moreAlberta targets Asian markets
Boosting business | New premier sets ag department’s focus
The Alberta agriculture department is focusing on expanding markets and building relationships in the Asia Pacific region. Premier Jim Prentice gave the direction Sept. 17 in his mandate letter to agriculture minister Verlyn Olson. The top priority identified in the letter was to make sure the province’s agriculture industry is positioned for growth in international […] Read more
Forage minerals vary with season
Producers shouldn’t expect that tossing a salt or mineral block into the pasture every month is going to provide their cattle with the proper amounts of trace minerals in their diets. A new study has found a difference in mineral content of Saskatchewan forages between the types of forage, soil zones and the grazing season. […] Read more
More Sask. horses infected
Horses in northern Saskatchewan continue to be infected with equine infectious anemia, despite efforts to control the deadly disease. Three horses tested positive for the disease in August, bringing the total to 60 positive cases in northern Saskatchewan this year. Eighty-nine horses tested positive for the disease in the province last year. There is no […] Read more
Lamb group official’s dedication to sector praised
NISKU, Alta. — Margaret Cook, executive director of Alberta Lamb Producers, was presented with the association’s first recognition award Sept. 6 during an industry marketing meeting. “Margaret is a person who does a pile of work for our industry, and I don’t think that she realizes herself the impact she has on our industry,” said […] Read more
