A recent spike in the instances of heated canola has agronomists warning farmers to monitor their bins. “If you see a rise in temperature, you need to be pulling out some of that canola and turning it to break up any hot spots as quickly as possible,” said Angela Brackenreed, an agronomist in Manitoba for […] Read more
Stories by Robyn Tocker
Video: Malting barley in short supply
Carryover is low and none is quality crop: Cargill Malt
The demand for malting barley may be increasing, but the amount being produced has put Canada in a tough situation. At the Agri-Trend Farm Forum held in Saskatoon Dec. 3, Lorelle Selinger addressed what the lack of barley means for Canada, and North America as a whole. “In a normal year, Canada would export at […] Read moreLabour deal inked
The labour dispute at Richardson Milling’s oat plant in Martensville, Sask., has been settled. The dispute ended Nov. 17 after an eight-week lockout. United Food and Commercial Workers Local 1400 members and Richardson Milling have a new contract that runs retroactively from 2013 and introduces a new grid system that sees annual wage increases for […] Read more
New Zealand urges dismantling barriers
Canada says dairy supply system doesn’t need changing
The controversy over Canadian dairy tariffs heated up last month between Canada and New Zealand during Trans-Pacific Partnership trade talks. New Zealand argued during the talks that tariffs as high as 300 percent aren’t something it want included in a 21st century trade agreement. “We think Canada would have the opportunity to update its dairy […] Read moreYorkton crushing plant remains in limbo
It remains unclear when operations at the Louis Dreyfus Commodities canola crushing plant in Yorkton, Sask., will resume, after an explosion brought it to a standstill more than a month ago. The plant is “preparing to resume operations as soon as it is safe to do so,” said Brian Conn, vice-president of LDC Canada in […] Read more
Yorkton crushing plant still closed
It’s been a little over a month since an explosion brought the Louis Dreyfus Commodities canola crushing plant to a standstill in Yorkton, Sask., and it’s still unclear when exactly operations will resume. Brant Randles, president of Louis Dreyfus Commodities Canada Ltd, said in October it could take three to seven weeks for operations to […] Read more
Techies unite at ag ‘hackathon’
Innovation and collaboration | University, farm and business communities look at ag issues
Technology has valuably served many industries, but it’s truly freeing up the agriculture industry. “It’s freeing up farmers to expand and progress their industry and their business,” said Anton Canitz, a participant in Canada’s first agriculture hackathon. The University of Saskatchewan’s junior chamber of commerce organized the Emerging Agriculture hackathon at the university Nov. 21-23. […] Read more
Sask. proves bountiful location for UFO spotters
Ufology club formed | Club meetings can attract up to 100 people and organizers plan to increase their frequency
Saskatchewan is a hot spot for extraterrestrial activities, according to Sask Ufology Club founders Dianne and Dave Saum. Dianne said there were 1,700 sightings from Ontario to British Columbia last year and 2,000 this year. Fort Qu’Appelle, Watrous, Lumsden and Saskatoon in Saskatchewan have shown to be hot spots for the activity. The couple lives […] Read more
Producers dole out for their birds
New and improved | 84 percent of producers say they plan to make environmental improvements
A recent survey of Canadian turkey farmers has found that producers are investing in their farms. Sixty-eight percent of the almost 100 producers who completed the Turkey Farmers of Canada survey said they have built or upgraded their operations in the past 10 years. Executive director Phil Boyd said the survey is conducted every three […] Read moreExperts use ancient pig genome to trace history
The recent discovery of an un-changed pig genome has put the porker on a pedestal. Researchers recently discovered that the Iberian pig genome has remained unchanged after five centuries. Miguel Pérez-Enciso, a researcher at the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona in Spain who was part of the research team, said he has always been curious about […] Read more
