Necessity is the mother of invention, so goes the saying. And for two brothers from Manitoba trying to break into rodeo, it couldn’t be more true. Tyrel, 26, and Orin, 24, Larsen of Inglis, caught the rodeo bug from their father, Kevin Larsen, who rode bulls while at Olds College in Olds, Alta. The family […] Read more
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Brothers hit it big in rodeo ring
Brazil farmers want WTO fight
SAO PAULO, Brazil (Reuters) — Brazilian soybean farmers have asked their country to file a complaint against the United States at the World Trade Organization. They allege that U.S. farm subsidies give an unfair advantage to the world’s top soybean producer. Those subsidies might be costing Brazilian farmers $1 billion a year in lost business, […] Read more
Ont. farmer works both sides of street
RIDGETOWN, Ont. — Fiete Suhr farms large in Ontario, both organically and conventionally. Cash flow is greatest with his conventional corn-soybean-wheat rotation: more than $1 million in annual profit on 7,000 acres in Bruce County east of Lake Huron. It added up to an average of $158 per acre over the past three years, but […] Read more
Canola commission finds no net benefit to premium incentives
The Saskatchewan Canola Development Commission will not be pushing the industry to adopt component pricing. It hired New West Partnership to conduct an economic analysis of whether it would be worthwhile to switch to a pricing system that would pay farmers a premium for growing canola with high oil content. Canola is traded based on […] Read more
Last frost dates still solid
Earlier seeding dates haven’t necessarily meant earlier last-frost dates. It means many Manitoba farmers have been enjoying the benefits of a longer growing season, but they might also be facing an even greater risk of frost damage to young crops, says University of Manitoba soil science professor Paul Bullock. Bullock researched last-frost dates in Manitoba […] Read more
California growers switch to water saving irrigation systems
Producers in drought areas are also moving from row crops such as corn and alfalfa, to high profit crops such as almonds and pistachios
MOOSE JAW, Sask. — Farmers in California’s San Joaquin valley, devastated by drought since 2011, are changing the way they irrigate to maximize efficiency, says a former resident. Rae Westersund worked in California for Crop Production Services through the drought until a year ago. She is now with the company’s Loveland Products in Alberta. She […] Read morePMRA takes neonics testing from lab to field
Report finds neonicotinoid insecticide used at the correct time does not compromise bee colony health
Health Canada has decided that laboratory experiments don’t count for much, at least when it comes to bees. In a report released in early January, the Pest Management Regulatory Agency said seeds treated with imidacloprid, a neonicotinoid insecticide, pose no risk to bees. “The residue levels in crop pollen and nectar resulting from seed treatment […] Read more
SaskWheat, SeCan, U of S sign research deal
The University of Saskatchewan’s Crop Development Centre has announced another major funding agreement to support its plant breeding programs. CDC has signed a multi-year funding agreement with the Saskatchewan Wheat Development Commission and SeCan. The deal will see SaskWheat and SeCan commit as much as $3.5 million in cash and in-kind contributions over 10 years. […] Read more
India’s pulse crops under stress, in need of well-timed rain
WINNIPEG — India, the world’s largest producer of pulses, needs moisture before winter crops hit the reproductive cycle at the end of January or existing losses will become amplified, says a weather specialist. The driest areas in India are important pulse production regions in northeastern Andhra Pradesh and neighbouring Uttar Pradesh, said Drew Lerner of […] Read more
Evergraze Holsteins of B.C. named master breeder
Evergraze Holsteins Ltd. of Armstrong, B.C., has been named a 2015 Master Breeder by Holstein Canada. It’s the only farm in Western Canada to earn that designation this year. The dairy farm is operated by Terry Wagner, her son, Marc, and her daughter, Michelle. It is the second time Evergraze has won the master breeder […] Read more
