Manitoba Ag Days | Although one farmer says Australia supports GM, Greenpeace says consumers will never accept GM wheat
Australian grain producer Bill Crabtree is convinced that the vast majority of farmers in his country support the concept of genetically modified wheat. Crabtree, who spoke at Manitoba Ag Days in Brandon last week, said it’s likely Australian farmers are more supportive of GM technology than Canadian farmers. “It would be 90 percent of (Australian) […] Read more
Robert Arnason
Stories by Robert Arnason
Scientists peer inside nitrogen fixation
Process occurs when bacteria breach cell walls | Scientists discover that plants allow it to happen
A British discovery that explains how plants fix nitrogen has answered a 124-year-old question and might alter the future of crop agriculture. Since an 1887 study on the nodules that form on legume roots, scientists have tried to understand how soil bacteria breach the cell walls of legumes, which is an essential step in the […] Read moreRookie MLA, real farmer fills ag minister seat in Manitoba
Manitoba Ag Days | Ag industry officials welcome someone with farm experience and hope he will have an influence at the cabinet table
When Ron Kotyshyn walked to the podium last week at Ag Days in Brandon, several producers in the crowd commented, “he is a real farmer.” They couldn’t have said that about either of his predecessors, Stan Struthers or Rosann Wowchuk. Kotyshyn, a cattle farmer who used to run a herd of 250 cows near Ethel-bert, […] Read more
Satisfying birds’ appetites steals confection premium
Manitoba Ag Days | Feathered friends send black oil sunflowers prices up
After years of planting confection sunflowers, Manitoba growers are shifting toward black oil sunflowers because the price gap between the two commodities has narrowed. Manitoba sunflower growers have historically received a premium of seven cents or more per pound for confectionery sunflowers compared to black oils. However, the premium has narrowed because the bird food […] Read morePulse promotion campaign recruits Mr. Bean
Mr. Bean, the bumbling television character best known for getting a Christmas turkey stuck on his head, isn’t an obvious choice for a corporate pitchman. Yet folks at the Canadian Centre for Agri-Food Research Health and Medicine (CCARM) in Winnipeg have found a way to use Mr. Bean’s star power to sell the health benefits […] Read more
Is no-till land worth more?
Higher yields, fewer inputs | Value could be $1,000 per acre more
MINOT, N.D. — It’s a given in the real estate business that property next to the ocean is worth significantly more than property adjacent to a cement factory. In the agriculture business, it’s also a given that “good” land is worth more than “poor” land. With that principle in mind, Jim Halford, a producer and […] Read more‘Real farmer’ takes ag minister chair in Manitoba
When Ron Kotyshyn walked to the podium yesterday afternoon at Ag Days in Brandon, several producers in the crowd commented, “he is a real farmer.” Neither of his predecessors, Stan Struthers or Rosann Wowchuk, were farmers. Kotyshyn, a cattle farmer who used to run a herd of 250 cows near Ethelbert, Man., now operates a […] Read more
Project to examine effectiveness of water management practices
Many western Canadian farmers have adopted beneficial management practices on their land in the last 10 days. While it’s encouraging that thousands of farmers have implemented these sustainable practices, a University of Saskatchewan researcher says scientists really don’t understand how BMPs improve water, soil and air quality. “Farmers have invested quite a bit, in terms […] Read more
Manitoba gets new agriculture minister
A rookie MLA and farmer from Ethelbert became Manitoba’s agriculture minister this morning. As part of a cabinet shuffle announced today, premier Greg Selinger appointed Ron Kostyshyn, who was elected in the Swan River constituency last fall, as Manitoba’s agriculture minister. Kostyshyn replaces Stan Struthers, who is now Manitoba’s minister of finance. Kostyshyn, who has […] Read more
Two cattle slaughter plants in planning stages in Man.
One project looks for funding | Construction on the other to begin soon
Ground might be broken this year for two federally inspected beef processing plants in Manitoba. If they were to succeed, the projects would follow years of talk about the need for a mid-sized cattle slaughter plant in the province. Almost every beef producer in Manitoba would normally agree that a plant is needed in the […] Read more
