LANGHAM, Sask. — Living up to its name, Glacier FarmMedia’s Ag in Motion has reached its five-year anniversary with no sign of slowing down. “It’s very exciting for me personally to have a show that the group of us started from a canola field into an event that’s now grown to the size that it […] Read more
William DeKay
Stories by William DeKay
A Canadian ‘peasant’ visits China
In 1971, when a delegation to China needed a peasant to satisfy chairman Mao Zedong, a Sask. farm woman stepped in
When the call went out in 1971 for a “Canadian peasant” to form part of a delegation to China, Biggar, Sask., resident Evelyn Potter responded. Little did she know then that the photographs she took to document the journey would form a new exhibit now on display at the Diefenbaker Canada Centre at the University […] Read more
Hairy vetch cover crops provide mulch, control weeds
The key to organic rotational no-till lies in the amount of mulch cover, said a research technician. The key is also understanding that tillage will be necessary at some point to control weeds, said Keith Bamford of the Faculty of Agricultural and Food Sciences at the University of Manitoba. Since 2007, Bamford has been studying […] Read more
Great grain mystery: whodunnit?
Piles of grain left along Highway 5 in British Columbia have Warren Chayer perplexed and frustrated. “We’ve got a problem here to a certain degree of grain trucks dumping grain. I’m kind of at my wit’s end to have these grain piles all over the place and bears feeding on them and then bears having […] Read more
Retail chain and its suppliers make sustainability a focus
Firms such as Maple Leaf Foods, Unilever Canada and Agropure join Walmart Canada’s Project Gigaton, which aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions across the supply chain
Walmart Canada is joining an initiative to reduce emissions from its global supply chains. “I’m very pleased to announce that externally we’re going to be launching Project Gigaton in Canada, which is a big deal for us,” Walmart Canada president Lee Tappenden said April 10. The kick-off coincided with Walmart’s annual Sustainability Milestone Summit in […] Read more
Close-to-home organic marketing encouraged
One industry insider urges exporters not to ignore the United States, while another emphasizes domestic processors
Canadian organic growers should focus on the world’s largest organic market sitting right on their doorstep, says an industry spokesperson. “The U.S. is the No. 1 organic market in the world. We’re sitting right next to them and we have an excellent trade agreement and we have an equivalency, which is almost full recognition of […] Read more
RMs told they play key role in clubroot battle
The key to clubroot management is to keep pathogen levels low to allow continued production in infested fields
Rural municipalities with clubroot bylaws are advised to stay quiet if the pathogen is discovered. “From an RM’s perspective, if clubroot is found in their RM, we do really encourage them to keep that information confidential,” said Barb Ziesman, provincial plant disease specialist for Saskatchewan Agriculture. Ziesman spoke at the Saskatchewan Association of Rural Municipalities’ […] Read more
Lake Diefenbaker mega-project gets new look
Sask. MP Ralph Goodale would like to see a link built between the Saskatchewan reservoir and the Qu’Appelle River
It’s time to realize the full potential of a 50-year-old water project, said Ralph Goodale, the federal minister for public safety and emergency preparedness. “We are utilizing only a tiny fraction of the South Saskatchewan River Project’s potential. More water evaporates from Lake Diefenbaker than actually gets used. And the original vision was never completed […] Read more
Overhaul urged for landfill regulatory regime in Sask.
An advisory committee says a lack of clear guidelines and standards in the province has created inconsistent information for landfill users
Saskatchewan’s rural solid waste landfills make up a system that is largely broken, says Richard (Porky) Porter. “There are no standards and guidelines, so nobody really knows where they’re at. Nobody knows what they should be doing because everybody interprets it (regulations) differently,” said Porter, who chaired the solid waste advisory committee consultation and review […] Read more
Vaccine development speeding up
The Vaccine and Infectious Disease Organization-International Vaccine Centre in Saskatoon embraces new technology
Reverse vaccinology is a promising method for creating vaccines that in the near future will protect livestock from prevalent and chronic diseases. Differentiating an infected animal from a vaccinated animal has long been a problem and global trade hinges on the safety and biosecurity of a country’s livestock. The new technology allows researchers to quickly […] Read more
