Canola Council award
SASKATOON (Staff) – Ken Sarsons has been awarded a life membership in the Canola Council of Canada for his dedication to the industry.
Sarsons began his canola career in 1967 when he was put in charge of the oilseed crushing and flour milling operations of Saskatchewan Wheat Pool in Saskatoon.
At the time, the oilseed plant was crushing flaxseed, but Sarsons could see the potential for rapeseed, the forerunner of canola, as an alternative crop to wheat and barley in Saskatchewan. He encouraged the pool to invest in crushing and marketing the crop that eventually led to CanAmera Foods, Canada’s largest canola crushing company.
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Manitoba businesses get money
Agricultural entrepreneurs in Altona, Lundar and Ethelbert, Man., will get a financial boost from a provincial government business program. Loewen Manufacturing, an Altona manufacturer of combine parts, will receive a $100,000 loan to acquire computer-controlled machine tools.
Vander Built Systems of Lundar has received $50,000 to begin production of the Stock Doctor, a more humane and convenient device for medicating cattle.
Beeline Equipment of Ethelbert is receiving $12,000 to introduce a new line of nests and shelters for leafcutter bees.
Since 1988, the government programs have helped 166 Manitoba businesses develop new products or upgrade production technology.
Agriculture award
Horticulturist Earnest Kerr of Simcoe, Ont., has been named the H.R. MacMillan Laureate in Agriculture.
The award recognizes the most significant contribution to Canadian agriculture during the past five years. It’s the first time the award has been presented to a horticulturist.
During his career, Kerr developed more than 60 named cultivars of greenhouse and field tomatoes, sweet corn and sweet pepper. In addition, more than 90 sweet corn inbreds have been released to other breeders. In the past five years alone, while in his mid-70s, Kerr released eight new cultivars.
The award is given every five years. Kerr is the sixth winner of the laureate.
Software program available
A new computer program allows producers to manage crop rotations based on changes in rail freight rates.
The new program called the Crop Rotation Planner was developed by Saskatchewan Agriculture. It is available on the FBMInet and at all Rural Service Centres.
The program contains estimated yields, prices and costs for all the crops commonly grown in Saskatchewan. Producers using the program can adjust these standard costs and prices to show the effect that increased freight costs will have on crop returns.
The planner will be important because increased freight costs will affect crops differently because crops have different values per unit of weight and different yields per acre. Crops which yield more volume will be affected more than higher value crops because freight costs represent a higher proportion of their return than higher value crops.
Northlands Farmfair renamed
Farmfair International, formerly Northlands Farmfair, is the largest livestock show and sale in Alberta. Its growing global reputation has attracted cattle buyers from 26 countries since 1989 to the purebred cattle industry in auction sales.
This year Farmfair International will feature nine days of agricultural shows, sales and entertainment from Nov. 4-12 at Northlands Park in Edmonton. The Canadian Finals Rodeo, the largest annual indoor event in Western Canada, will be held from Nov. 8-12 at the Edmonton Coliseum.
