Beekeepers face challenges in important markets, but demand for true honey amidst rampant fraud could boost prices
WINNIPEG — The level of fake honey on store shelves has reached a boiling point. It’s so bad that the International Federation of Beekeepers’ Associations will not hand out awards for the best honey at its 2025 meeting in Denmark. The associations cannot ensure that all honey in the competition is genuine, so judging and […] Read more
Robert Arnason
Stories by Robert Arnason
Loonie lags as U.S. booms
WINNIPEG — A chart of the loonie’s value in 2024 shows that something changed in early October. For the first nine months of the year, the Canadian dollar was trading between 72 and 74 cents American. On Oct. 1, the loonie was valued at 74.1 cents relative to the U.S. dollar. It then sharply declined, […] Read more
Canola research in Canada needs an ‘overhaul’
WINNIPEG — When Wilf Keller began working at Agriculture Canada in 1973, things were different in crop science. After earning his doctorate from the University of Saskatchewan, Keller joined a team of researchers with Agriculture Canada in Ottawa. In one of his first assignments, a manager asked him to solve a problem related to the […] Read more
Canola takes the slow road to 52 bushels per acre
WINNIPEG — Barring a perfect growing season, Canada’s canola industry will not achieve average yields of 52 bushels per acre in 2025. Growers could have reached 52 bu. per acre by 2025, but tight crop rotations, disease pressure and regulatory issues put a lid on canola gains over the last decade, say a group of […] Read more
Peer groups may be farmers’ pathway to soil health
A variety of organizations have developed programs that allow producers to learn more about taking care of their soil
MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. — Jay Watson understands that farmers listen to other farmers. So, if food companies and agri-food corporations want producers to try new practices and shift toward regenerative agriculture, it will require peer to peer education. “Without that, we’re going to have a hard time reaching scale,” said Watson, while on stage at the […] Read more
Ag exports ‘underperforming’ in Southeast Asia
Potential remains ‘unrealized,’ despite signing trade agreements and opening a new trade office in the Philippines
WINNIPEG — Canada could be missing out on $1.6 billion in annual exports of wheat, frozen potatoes, meat and fertilizer to Southeast Asia. That nugget of data comes from the International Trade Centre (ITC) and Farm Credit Canada, which have studied the potential of agriculture and agri-food exports to Southeast Asian nations. The FCC is […] Read more
Myths, misinformation abound around regenerative ag
WINNIPEG — Regenerative agriculture, like many other topics, gets caught up in the exaggerations, myths and untruths that dominate social media and the worldwide web. It’s easy find examples of questionable claims on the internet, like this one: “Regenerative agriculture can improve the profitability of farms by more than 50 per cent.” (Source: sustainablebiz.ca) If […] Read more
Vague definitions may weaken brand
BRANDON – On his farm in North Dakota, Paul Overby plants cover crops, minimizes tillage and has eight different crops in his rotation. He is fully committed to improving his soil health and the long-term sustainability of his business. Other producers follow their own path, but Overby worries that thousands are casually using the word […] Read more
Federal gov’t spending on climate change soars
Agriculture Canada spent 27 per cent of its science budget on efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions last year
UPDATED: January 8, 2025 – 1500 CST – added Ag Canada data/chart – WINNIPEG — Agriculture Canada spent $223 million more on science and innovation in the 2023-24 fiscal year than it did in 2020-21. However, the money wasn’t used to hire new scientists, expand research centres or study innovative technologies such as gene edited […] Read more
Agriculture prepares for transformation
MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. — Anastasia Volkova is the type of person who gets right to the point. During a coffee break at a sustainable agriculture conference, held in early October in Minneapolis, she provided a six-minute, rapid fire explanation on how farming can be transformed in North America and around the globe. That transformation needs to […] Read more
