Richard Grosshans thinks he may have discovered a remedy for the declining health of Lake Winnipeg: harvesting cattails from the mouth of the Red River.Grosshans, who’s working on his PhD in biosystems engineering at the University of Manitoba, said it’s a simple idea.Too much phosphorus is flowing into the lake, and cattails have a tremendous […] Read more
Robert Arnason
Stories by Robert Arnason
Manitoba Pork spotlights country in city
For weeks, George Matheson, a hog producer near Stonewall, Man., has heard the same comment from friends and neighbours – I saw you yesterday in Winnipeg.Matheson got used to comments about his face on billboards and buses in the province’s capital as part of a Manitoba Pork Council ad campaign.In early April, the council launched […] Read more
Man. vet clinic, cattle dealers under investigation
The Canadian Food Inspection Agency is investigating a veterinary clinic and three cattle dealers in western Manitoba.It is not providing details.The CFIA executed search warrants April 21 at Brydges and Taylor Veterinary Hospital Ltd., Livestock Ltd., D.A.M. Cattle Buyers Ltd. and J. Quintaine and Sons Ltd., located in the Rural Municipality of Elton, Langford and […] Read more
Biodiesel maker wants Manitoba to promote local purchases
Only a small number of Manitobans use locally made biodiesel, says the owner of Greenway Bio-diesel in Winnipeg, despite a provincial mandate and a new subsidy program for manufacturers.“Manitoba has a two percent mandate, so the oil companies have to buy biodiesel, but they’re not buying in Manitoba,” said Royce Rostecki, who also owns Speedway […] Read more
Anaplasmosis investigation checks severity of Man. outbreaks
The Canadian Food Inspection Agency is trying to determine if two outbreaks of anaplasmosis in eastern Manitoba are isolated incidents or if there’s a risk that the disease will spread to other parts of Western Canada.“We have two pockets in Manitoba…. So do we need to continue to look at them to see is this […] Read more
Environmental groups challenge U.S. biofuel standard
Two environmental groups have filed a legal challenge suggesting the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s new Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS2) will lead to more conversion of natural ecosystems into farmland. The Clean Air Task Force, on behalf of Friends of the Earth, filed the lawsuit in the U.S. Court of Appeals May 25, stating RFS2 will […] Read more
Man. farmers resist pipeline project
Two dozen producers in southwestern Manitoba have a clear message for an American oil and gas company that wants to build a pipeline through the region: not in our backyard.“The way things are going right now, we don’t want it…. We’re telling (the company) to go find another route,” said Darryll Breemersch, who farms southeast […] Read more
Manitoba to introduce farm building code
Manitoba will soon become the first province in Western Canada to legislate a code of standards for farm buildings.The Fire Commissioner’s Office of Manitoba submitted recommendations for a farm building code to labour and immigration minister Jennifer Howard earlier this year.Fire commissioner Chris Jones expects the code will be implemented shortly after the final details […] Read more
Barn fires kill cattle, hogs in Manitoba
Back to back barn fires last week killed 450 dairy cows and 5,000 pigs near La Broquerie in southeastern Manitoba. The first fire destroyed the Hausammann and Sons dairy farm, causing an estimated $10 million in damage, said Alain Nadeau, the community’s fire chief. The second fire razed three pig barns, resulting in a loss […] Read more
AgriRecovery assistance insults Man. producers
Producers in Manitoba’s Interlake, who were unable to plant a crop last spring due to flooding, will receive $15 per unseeded acre from the Manitoba and federal governments. Manitoba’s agriculture minister, Stan Struthers, and MP James Bezan, who represents the Selkirk-Interlake riding, announced details of the funding April 30. “This assistance will help north Interlake […] Read more
