Extensive agricultural flooding in the Red River Valley this spring is now almost guaranteed. Manitoba’s chief flood forecaster is predicting spring water levels similar to 1979, which is known as the second worst flood in the province’s history. “A 1979 (level) flood is more than a flood of inconvenience. It is a serious flood that […] Read more
Robert Arnason
Stories by Robert Arnason
Diesel price jump unlikely – Special Report (story 4)
It seems fuel prices always rise just before the May long weekend. But according to a petroleum industry analyst, that jump at the pump probably won’t happen this year. “I think going into the spring, we will continue to see depressed demand for petroleum products,” said Michael Ervin, president of MJ Ervin and Associates, a […] Read more
Forecasting an art, not a science – Special Report (story 5)
Farmers needing a spring weather forecast may be disappointed in the lack of certainty in the outlook. “If I was to talk about (the Prairies), I would say it is an equal chance” of a warm, cold or average spring, said Richard Moffet, Environment Canada applied research meteorologist. Most forecasters agree with Moffett that this […] Read more
Gestation stall issue riles producers
Based on the participants at a March 14 forum at its headquarters, it appears the Winnipeg Humane Society will soon become much more aggressive in its efforts to ban gestation stalls in Manitoba, says the executive director of the Manitoba Farm Animal Council. “Most of the time I tell people (farmers) that they shouldn’t be […] Read more
Magnesium cited as fix for ‘washy grass’
Most people associate epsom salts with a relaxing soak in the tub, but Doug Gunnink has a different use for what is also known as magnesium sulfate. He sprays it on his pasture. Gunnink, who has a grass-fed beef operation in southern Minnesota, told producers at a Manitoba Agriculture workshop on healthy grasses in Neepawa, […] Read more
Man. beef processor opens
Manitoba’s newest beef processor opened its doors in Winnipeg last week. If things go according to plan, Keystone Processors could be slaughtering 250 to 500 cattle per day by 2011 in a federally inspected plant. On March 10, the company celebrated the first shipment of beef out of its St. Boniface facility, which was formerly […] Read more
Grain growers on roller coaster – Special Report (story 1)
Terry Wilkinson has trouble believing the glass is half full this spring. “With the U.S. recession, I don’t think we’re going to see the prices (for crops) that we’ve got right now are going to hold,” said Wilkinson, who farms 1,000 acres near Melita, Man. “And the prices aren’t that good right now. So, I’m […] Read more
Flooded Manitoba hay growers get help
After an extremely wet summer in 2008 and a cold winter so far in 2009, cattle producers in Manitoba’s Interlake and Westlake regions received welcome news last week. On March 5 in Winnipeg, federal agriculture minister Gerry Ritz and his Manitoba counterpart, Rosann Wowchuk, announced funding for producers unable to harvest a sufficient hay crop […] Read more
Mite fighter bee sought for breeding
Despite similar appearance, all bees are not created equal. Some specialize in pollination and others are good at producing honey. More importantly, some bees have a natural resistance to the mites and bacteria that have decimated hives across Canada in recent years. Leonard Foster, a professor in biochemistry and molecular biology at the University of […] Read more
Economist urges producers to rediscover diversification
A U.S. Department of Agriculture economist wonders why farmers remain stuck on specialization because current research shows diversification equals profits. “It seemed like in the ’80s that specialization was really the key to profitable farms, but it seems like the more recent studies have shown that (specialization) is not enough,” David Archer said during the […] Read more
