NOW: It might be hard for farmers who have been coping with flooding for the past few years to imagine dealing with drought, but that day is coming. Scientists just can’t say exactly when. Drought has been a major threat since agricultural production began on the Prairies. The region is typically dry and often affected […] Read more
News
Now: Will 2,4-D overcome its bad publicity?; Then: Reaction of weeds to 2,4-D
NOW: Last spring, the U.S. Department of Agriculture announced a postponement of its decision on whether to approve corn and soybean varieties that are tolerant of 2,4-D. The department said it received more than 8,200 comments on the potential impact of this new technology. It also received petitions signed by more than 400,000 people, mostly […] Read more
Now: Genetic technology transforms beef, dairy sectors; Then: Pine needles cause pregnant cows to abort
NOW: Earlier this year, the McKinsey Global Institute published a list of 12 disruptive technologies it believes could transform life, business and the economy. Included on the list were improved internet and computer capacity as well as genomics. The economics research firm estimated genomics could have a potential value to agriculture and human health of […] Read more
Now: Voices expressed through WP’s Young Co-operators; Then: Tommy
For Pat Katz, seeing her name in print never gets old. The Saskatchewan author of five books credits The Western Producer’s Young Co-operators Club with launching her writing career, inspiring dreams and helping them come true. “Each time one rolls off the press and into my hands, I am just as thrilled as I was […] Read more
Now: Researcher remembers pulse crop heyday; Then: Fababean markets opening up in Man.
NOW: It’s a good thing Al Slinkard isn’t afraid of the cold. It was a bone-chilling – 40 C when the father of Canada’s lentil industry reported to work at the newly formed University of Saskatchewan’s Crop Development Centre Feb. 1, 1972. But he didn’t think twice about his decision to uproot his family from […] Read more
Now: Political, marketing ideology changes wipe out pools; Then: Elections of wheat pool delegates to be rushed with all possible speed
NOW: In its infancy, The Western Producer was the voice of the exploding wheat pool movement on the Prairies. “The Alberta Pool Campaign Now Forging Ahead Rapidly,” screamed an excited front page headline Aug. 27, 1923. “The Saskatchewan Wheat Pool — the biggest thing the farmers of Western Canada have ever undertaken is the wheat […] Read more
Growth promotant advantages led to quick adoption
THEN & NOW: It’s all well and good for cattle to be Ful-o-Pep, as promoted in an advertisement in the May 10, 1956, issue of The Western Producer. But then, as now, beef cattle growth promotants were more about feed efficiency and extra pounds than about animal vigour. And then, as now, some people were […] Read more
WP’s longevity comes down to knowing its readers
THEN & NOW: In the beginning, there was Turner’s Weekly, which begat The Progressive, which begat The Western Producer. With all respect for the Good Book, that’s how the farmers’ bible came into being. The newspaper is now celebrating its 90th year, having provided news to western Canadian farmers ranging from world wars to wheat […] Read more
Now: Grain handling and storage a big, big business; Then: Your support made this possible
NOW: As farmer-controlled facilities go, the grain export terminals that Saskatchewan Pool Elevators Ltd. operated in Port Arthur, Ont., represented a significant group of assets. The date was Oct. 26, 1933, and the item that appeared on Page 24 of The Western Producer was a notice thanking Saskatchewan farmers for their ongoing support and the […] Read more
Now: You’ve come a long way, baby; Then: Must abide by marketing rules
NOW: Rapeseed first hit its stride in the 1940s, helping out Canada’s war effort. “It was cultivated very extensively as a marine lubricant during the middle of the Second World War,” Ag-West Bio Inc. president Wilf Keller said during a recent presentation. The market evaporated abruptly when the war ended in 1945. “The acreage declined […] Read more
