Distillers dried grain has become a tantalizing new option in U.S. feed markets, but in Western Canada, the alternative feed ingredient isn’t even on the menu. While ethanol plants south of the border are expected to churn out 17.5 million tonnes of DDG in the 2006-07 crop year, Western Canada is sitting at 9,600 tonnes […] Read more
Sean Pratt
Stories by Sean Pratt
Lab tables replace fields
The miracle cure for the farming sector won’t be found in growing high-value pharmaceutical crops, says one drug manufacturer. Dow AgroSciences has figured out a way to produce plant-made vaccines in the laboratory instead of the field, a discovery that will likely quash hopes of what was expected to be a lucrative niche market for […] Read more
Nations resume GMO treaty talks
Representatives from 132 countries are hoping three times is the charm when it comes to establishing rules governing the trade of genetically modified crops. Parties to the Cartegena Protocol on Biosafety, an international agreement to ensure the safe export of GM products, were scheduled to gather this week in Brazil to resolve some of the […] Read more
Growers OK organic checkoff
Saskatchewan organic producers have endorsed a plan to establish a commission that will redirect existing check-off dollars from a number of provincial commodity groups. Growers returned 235 of the 1,150 ballots that were sent out in January and 78 percent of those were in favour of creating the Saskatchewan Organic Commission. “It shows a clear […] Read more
U.S. group questions soy health claims
A study released by a major U.S. health organization casts doubt on the claim that helped launch the multibillion-dollar soy foods industry. The American Heart Association has determined that soy protein has little or no effect on reducing the risk of heart disease. A review of 22 recent studies on the effects of soy protein […] Read more
Few ripples expected from GMO ruling
A 1,000-page ruling by the World Trade Organization on a dispute involving Europe’s moratorium on genetically modified crops will have little impact on the resumption of trade in commodities like canola, says a trade expert. “Take a Valium. It’s not going to happen in the near future anyway,” said Bill Dymond, senior fellow at the […] Read more
Organic sector seeks elected national body
In an effort to safeguard its guiding principles, the organic industry is attempting to wrest control of the national standard away from the Canadian General Standards Board. Some producers are worried that if the industry doesn’t manage its own standard, it could get watered down by big business interests as they feel is happening in […] Read more
Consumers disavow functional food trend
The Canadian pulse industry intends to follow the lead of the American soy industry by playing up the functional food attributes of legumes. It is a strategy endorsed by many keynote speakers at the Pulse Days conference in Saskatoon in January. Peter Watts, director of market innovation with Pulse Canada, told conference goers that functional […] Read more
Sask. groups gear up for ethanol plants
Two Saskatchewan groups are moving ahead with plans to build small-scale ethanol facilities. North West Terminal Ltd. expects to proceed with a share offering next week to raise $10 million toward its proposed $34 million facility in Unity, Sask. The remaining cost of the plant will be financed through debt. The funds will pay for […] Read more
Wheat midge in east Sask.
The out-of-sight, out-of-mind approach to wheat midge management needs to change to an out-in-the-field-monitoring approach, says Saskatchewan Agriculture. According to the agency’s 2006 forecast, there will be a resurgence in midge populations in the eastern portion of the province, an outlook that caught some farmers off guard. “I was rather surprised that (midge) was still […] Read more
