A big reason why the United States is producing 68 times more ethanol than Canada is that president George Bush’s government has bought into the alternative fuel while prime minister Paul Martin’s hasn’t, say Canadian ethanol advocates. “It’s sort of ironic that a Republican oil man from Texas would be a far bigger promoter of […] Read more
Sean Pratt
Stories by Sean Pratt
GMO treaty talks end with no deal
Canadian grain producers dodged a bullet last week when delegates to the Cartegena Protocol on Biosafety couldn’t reach consensus on stricter rules governing the movement of GMOs, says an agriculture consultant. Two of the 119 member governments attending a five-day meeting in Montreal blocked an attempt to require detailed documentation on bulk shipments of genetically […] Read more
Activists push for no-GM zones
The Council of Canadians has launched a national campaign to limit the spread of genetically modified crops. “It’s part of the international movement that’s taking place for communities to declare themselves GM-free zones,” said Tara Scurr, British Columbia organizer for the council. The goal is to have 50 communities in Canada declare themselves GM-free over […] Read more
Website tracks GM contamination
The world’s first on-line registry of GM contamination incidents proves there has to be stricter rules governing the trade of such crops, say the compilers of the list. GeneWatch UK and Greenpeace International launched the website last week at the same time representatives from 119 countries gathered for a meeting in Montreal to set rules […] Read more
Lower ocean rates may be shortlived
High ocean freight rates have mellowed in the last few months, creating calmer seas for grain shippers, but analysts feel it is a temporary reprieve. According to the Baltic Dry Index, freight rates have fallen 50 percent from their peak in the winter of 2004, reflecting a slumping demand for iron ore out of China […] Read more
Organic farmers appeal
Saskatchewan organic farmers are appealing a Court of Queen’s Bench ruling that denied them class certification in a proposed lawsuit against the developers of GM canola. They claim judge Gene Ann Smith made numerous errors in her May 11, 2005 decision that prevents them from pursuing a class action suit against Monsanto Canada Inc. and […] Read more
Sloppy needle use can be deadly
It is high time cowboys learned the finer points of needlework, says a large animal veterinarian. Mishandling cattle vaccines can lead to mangled meat or dead ranchers, said John Campbell, professor at the University of Saskatchewan’s Western College of Veterinary Medicine. “Micotil is the big one. That’s the one that hit the news in the […] Read more
Watch horses for exhaustion, expert advises
Working horses need a traffic light system, says a leading equine expert. Trish Dowling, a professor at the University of Saskatchewan’s college of veterinary medicine, told producers during the recent Stock Person’s School in Saskatoon that they should develop horse health check systems with three categories of signals: green means go; yellow indicates there are […] Read more
Other species also shut out from May 19, 2005
Defying advice from most scientists, 182 species of cud chewing, multiple stomached creatures other than cattle have been caught for two years in the American BSE import net. For the agricultural species on that list the harm to their markets may be greater than that done to beef. Chris Clark of the Western College of […] Read more
Judge says class dismissed
A Court of Queen’s Bench judge has rejected an attempt by Saskatchewan organic growers to mount a class action lawsuit against the developers of genetically modified canola. In her May 11 decision, justice Gene-Ann Smith ruled the plaintiffs did not meet the five criteria of certification as outlined under the Class Actions Act of Saskatchewan. […] Read more
