After weeks of rancorous debate regarding the fate of the Canadian Wheat Board and an avalanche of contentious words like “steam-rolling”, “Big Brother” and “court injunction,” western Canadian cereal growers are craving another word to describe Canada’s grain industry: certainty. Last week, the board’s fate became less certain when a Federal Court of Canada judge […] Read more
Robert Arnason
Stories by Robert Arnason
Ritz faces rough day in court; how it unfolded
Pundits, producers and political watchers continue to debate the ruling of Federal Court of Canada judge Campbell Campbell, who concluded that federal agriculture minister Gerry Ritz disregarded the rule of law when he failed to hold a farmer vote before introducing a bill that would dismantle the single desk marketing system of the Canadian Wheat […] Read more
Spraying for fusarium worth its weight
WINNIPEG — Wheat flowering used to be one of the most stressful times of the growing season for Neil Galbraith, who farms 3,000 acres north of Minnedosa, Man. Galbraith would become agitated in the middle of summer when high humidity and other factors created the ideal conditions for fusarium head blight to flourish on his […] Read more
Discovery of biological control benefits resistant varieties
WINNIPEG — Almost every one of the millions of distinct species that live on Earth has a natural enemy that will consume or destroy it if given half a chance. That biological reality explains why Vladimir Vujanovic, a University of Saskatchewan microbiologist, was particularly excited when he discovered a fungus that could destroy one of […] Read more
Expert extols wheat benefits
Earlier this year,Maclean’smagazine ran a cover story making the case that wheat is a threat to human health. In the piece, William Davis, the American author of a popular book,Wheat Belly,said wheat products are making consumers fat and compared grain producers to tobacco farmers, because they are growing a commodity that makes people sick. This […] Read more
Seed association appoints students to promote ag
The contradiction is difficult for Andrea De Roo to comprehend: everyone on the planet has to eat, yet few people want a career in the agriculture and food industry. “I think it’s upsetting, especially in Saskatchewan, where we’re such an agriculture province,” said De Roo, a third year agriculture student at the University of Saskatchewan. […] Read more
University of Manitoba gets $3 million research grant
The Canadian government has committed $3 million to the University of Manitoba for research on greenhouse gas mitigation in livestock production. The funding, announced today at the U of M, will go toward research in three areas – long-term crop rotations, converting crops from perennial to annual grasslands and winter feeding of cattle. “This project […] Read more
Ag + education = confusion
WINNIPEG — “Have you ever seen Food Inc.?” Considering it’s 8:30 a.m. at Westwood Collegiate in Winnipeg, the students in the home economics classroom are reasonably alert and responsive when asked if they’ve watched the 2009 documentary film. Most of the students in the Grade 12 foods class, a mix of boys and girls, raise […] Read more
Proposed cattle plant in Man. changes name
A proposed cattle slaughter plant in Winnipeg has a new name. What was Keystone Processors is now known as ProNatur. Managers at the proposed 250 head per day slaughter plant unveiled the new brand at the Manitoba Grazing School in Winnipeg Dec. 5. Kate Butler, executive director of the Manitoba Cattle Enhancement Council, said the […] Read more
Rule changes on foreign workers annoy beekeepers
It’s a simple matter of supply and demand for Lee Townsend. Beekeepers need workers during the summer and there are people from Nicaragua and the Philippines who want to work at apiaries in Alberta. Yet, considering that some of those foreign employees have worked in Alberta for five, 10 or 15 years, it’s hard to […] Read more
