How can farmers compete with activists? | Focus on animal welfare, advise livestock experts
The calf, resting near a roadside fence while its mother was grazing, looked abandoned. So a passer-by loaded the 80-pound Charolais into her Lexus SUV, took it back to her garage and attempted to nurse it with formula and a turkey baster. Eventually she took the weakening calf to a veterinarian, where she learned all […] Read more
Robert Arnason
Stories by Robert Arnason
Grandin speaks out about gestation stalls
Temple Grandin answered questions about sow gestation stalls during her appearance in Brandon. The following is a sample of her thoughts on the topic: “One thing I’m going to say, let’s not build any new gestation stall houses. I think that would be really stupid.” “You can’t go into things too fast but there is […] Read more
Put yourselves on YouTube, Grandin tells producers
Her comment may have triggered a laugh, but Temple Grandin sincerely believes livestock producers should post videos of themselves on YouTube. The renowned livestock handling expert, who spoke in Brandon May 23 as part of a book promotion tour, told an audience of 400 that the videos should provide simple, straightforward images about raising livestock, […] Read more
Plant count vital when evaluating seeding practices
Canola growers need to walk into their crops and count the number of plants per square foot, says a Canola Council of Canada agronomist. Doug Moisey, who works in central Alberta, told a recent webinar that fields with insufficient or inconsistent plant densities will generate significantly lower yields. “It’s really critical that we get producers […] Read more
Alfalfa monitoring program helps farmers choose best cutting date
A Manitoba Forage Council program that helps alfalfa growers pinpoint the optimum time to cut their crop is now underway in the province. The Green Gold project disseminates a status report on the progress and maturity of Manitoba’s alfalfa crop to forage growers, dairy farmers and cattle producers. Interested farmers can access the information on […] Read more
Pfizer to cut jobs; PMU ranches not affected
Pharmaceutical giant Pfizer announced today it will cut 50 jobs at its estrogen extraction plant in Brandon in 2012 and 2013, reducing the number of employees at the facility from 130 to 80. However, the cutbacks will not affect pregnant mares’ urine farms in Manitoba and Saskatchewan that supply the plant. “This decision will not […] Read more
Chinese flax demand looks promising
Sales to Western Europe expected to be stagnant
A grain trader who recently travelled to Asia says China wants to buy flax from Canada and that demand for the oilseed will be strong during the next year. Grant Fehr, flax and special crops manager with Keystone Grain, a grain processor and marketer in Winkler, Man., met with grain dealers while visiting China in […] Read morePremium sought for non-GM soybeans
The Ontario soybean industry is trying to figure out how to persuade producers to grow non-genetically modified soybeans when GM beans earn $14 per bushel. Ontario is one of the world’s major players in the non-GM, or food grade, soybean market. The province’s farmers have seeded 2.3 to 2.4 million acres of soybeans a year […] Read more
Fungicides partner up to do double duty
Multi-tasking products | Companies use multiple active ingredients and combine them to develop a better product
Many of the new fungicides reaching the Canadian marketplace are group projects rather than solo acts. While two of the new options feature new chemistries, a developing trend is to combine two modes of action, or active ingredients, into one product. BASF announced this winter that it had registered Twinline, a broad spectrum fungicide for […] Read moreManitoba canola growers urged to watch for aster yellows
In most years, aster yellows aren’t a concern for Manitoba canola growers, but this year could be an exception. In its first insect update of 2012, released in late April, Manitoba Agriculture noted a larger than usual population of aster leafhoppers is present in Minnesota this spring. Aster leafhoppers transmit aster yellows, a disease that […] Read more
