Livestock Management
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Continuing research into bruises on cattle shows the problem is not going away. A 2016 national beef quality audit in the United States found a loss of $124 million because of bruises that had to be trimmed away as waste. A Canadian audit for the same period reported 32.6 percent of […] Read more
Livestock Management
U.S. beef quality audit continues to find bruised cattle
Sask. clears path for smoother agricultural program funding
Saskatchewan has eased the application process for some of its strategic initiatives under the Canadian Agricultural Partnership after a deluge of applications in the final months of Growing Forward 2. Richelle Bourgoin, executive director of the agriculture ministry’s programs branch, said there were, for example, about 7,750 applications under GF2 for the Farm and Ranch […] Read more
More red meat arriving in Canada from European Union
Beef imports from the United Kingdom to Canada have grown more than 10 percent since a trade deal was ratified in September of 2017. While the Canada-European Union Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement granted Canada significant new beef and veal market access to the EU, business has been both ways. For the 12-month period from […] Read more
Feed shortage increases importance of storage and feeding methods
ROCKY MOUNTAIN HOUSE, Alta. — Widespread feed shortages could make it tough for cattle producers to find enough supplies at affordable prices this winter. That makes waste prevention more important than ever. Storage sheds are ideal but many producers leave bales outside and that can affect nutritional value. Round bales left outside lose their shape […] Read more
Agriculture has the potential to change the world
Welcome to our annual special edition, which we at the Western Producer affectionately call Issue 52. Each year, for the last edition, we select a topic and take a deep dive with our entire newsroom. We parse the topics and go long, finding out what’s new and improving in the industry. We started this back […] Read more
Automated farming: it may be here quicker than you think
CALGARY — Autonomous farming isn’t just a cool idea, it’s a big, iron reality coming to Western Canada this coming year. And once it’s here, autonomous farming could begin sweeping away today’s machines the way cars and tractors swept away horses in North America’s cities and on its farmland. “We are the tip of the […] Read more
Grasping at straws
It’s all in the eye of the beholder. Where some see waste moving out the back end of combines, Catherine Hui Niu sees great opportunity. “Can we explore new use of those materials? Can we make better use, discover new technology to reuse those materials, recycle them, or add value to them?” asked Niu, associate […] Read more
The wild west of agricultural data
Canadian agriculture is in the midst of a sea change that stems from the digitization of farm production data. The sector was a little tardy in showing up for the digital revolution, but most growers now use techniques powered by complex algorithms and massive datasets. Telematics, cloud storage and processing, internet of things (IOT), sensors, […] Read more
Small satellite networks: more than a pretty picture
Faster, smarter, sharper with more options describes the latest satellite technology information and services being delivered to growers. Hundreds of the toaster-sized units orbit the Earth taking thousands of snapshots of all corners of the globe every day. The rapid evolution in satellite technology has made high-resolution aerial field photos readily available to all farmers. […] Read more
The fault with salt
TORONTO — Many people admit they reach for the salt shaker too often but it is the hidden sodium in the average diet that is more risky. “The salt shaker on average only contributes 10 percent of the sodium. It is what is already in the food you are ordering that you can’t touch. That […] Read more
