Atlantic Canada names OYF winner
Morgan and Karissa Smallman of J and J Farms in Alberton, P.E.I., were named Atlantic Canada’s Outstanding Young Farmers for 2022.
Morgan attended Nova Scotia Agriculture College, obtained a degree in economics, and then returned to the sixth-generation J & J Farms Ltd. in 2014 after working as an agronomist.
The producers focus on soil health and plant soil building crops such as Sudan sorghum and alfalfa to ensure optimal soil health for their 400-acre chip stock potato crop.
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Canada’s Outstanding Young Farmers for 2022 are expected to be chosen at the national event in Saskatoon Nov. 23-27.
B.C. names new chief veterinarian
Theresa Burns has been appointed British Columbia’s new chief veterinarian, based in Abbotsford, starting Sept. 6.
Burns holds a doctor of veterinary medicine from the Western College of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Saskatchewan. She also has a master of science in animal reproduction and a doctorate in epidemiology.
Burns has worked as a front-line veterinary practitioner providing care for pets and farm animals, as well as a consultant specializing in veterinary epidemiology, surveillance and One Health, which is an approach that combines factors contributing to animal, human and environmental health.
College plans digital ag degree
Olds College plans to offer a new bachelor of digital agriculture degree through the college’s Werklund School of Agriculture Technology for fall 2023.
It’s one of three programs created as part of the new agriculture technology programs that are intended to support the industry in adopting new technology and help address a skills gap.
The four-year program will prepare graduates to lead disruptive change in agriculture by exploring solutions to real-world problems using digital agriculture technologies and practices.
RDAR seeks climate action projects
RDAR plans to accept applications from August to March for the On-Farm Climate Action Fund program.
The new program supports farmers in adopting best management practices that reduce greenhouse gas emissions and store carbon, specifically for in-field nitrogen management, expanding cover cropping and implementing rotational grazing practices.
The program helps producers adopt different practices by offsetting 85 percent of the cost.
Alberta farmers and ranchers can apply for up to $75,000 in funding to implement practices related to nitrogen management, rotational grazing, and cover cropping.
To help producers prepare to apply for funding, RDAR is hosting a series of one-hour OFCAF webinar sessions.
More information is available on the OFCAF website and in the OFCAF newsletter.
Scholarship winners announced
Agriculture in the Classroom Canada and Dairy Farmers of Canada announced the winners of the inaugural DFC Here for Tomorrow scholarship.
This year’s scholarships are being awarded to Julie Sieg and Sophia Yang, who will receive a total of $5,000. Yang attends secondary school in Vancouver. Sieg attends secondary school in North York, Ont.
The scholarship is open to Canadian students in Grades 10-12 who want to explore careers in sustainable agriculture.
They need to submit one of the following: a written essay of 1,500 words, a video of at least three minutes, or a visual arts piece (ceramics, drawing, painting, sculpture, design, craft, photography, architecture). The submissions must answer three key questions pertaining to their interests, agriculture and food careers, and global sustainability.
More information is at aitc-canada.ca.
Feds fund bioproducts
The federal government is spending about $1.8 million under the AgriAssurance program to assist Bioindustrial Innovation Canada to further develop research-based standards for measuring the quality of bioproducts made from agricultural sources.
The bioeconomy, which is part of the green economy, is based on the production and sale of products other than foodstuffs made from agricultural, aquatic and forestry resources, as well as municipal waste.
This can include crops grown as alternatives to petroleum-based products, such as corn for ethanol, or using stems and leaves to produce bioproducts such as packaging.
The project will also help scientists continue to explore plant genetics and environmental factors that could lead to the development of new crop varieties to supply bioproducts production.
Lakeland hires applied research director
François Paradis is the new director in Lakeland College’s applied research department.
Paradis has 20 years of experience in the agricultural and livestock sectors, including post-doctoral fellowship at the University of Ottawa and has worked with Agriculture Canada supporting research in beef cattle.
The last eight years were with the University of Alberta’s Faculty of Agricultural, Life and Environmental Sciences as a senior administer.
Dr. Haider Abbas has also joined the applied research team as a broadleaf research scientist.
He holds a PhD in agriculture and did collaborative work in research centres in China and the United Kingdom.
Dr. Abbas has worked in agriculture for more than 20 years, the last decade of which were spent as part of the research and development team of Ag- Quest, Cargill and Dow AgroSciences/Corteva.
