RED DEER – Canada needs a farm policy that encourages producers to earn more money from the marketplace with less reliance on programs, an Alberta government official said recently. “We are trying to put more policy to the fore with less distortion and more opportunities for farmers to derive profit from the marketplace and answer […] Read more
News
Replace distorting farm programs with solid policy: Alta. expert
Ways to avoid vaccine reactions
Vaccine reactions are not uncommon, considering the increased number that are given subcutaneously, especially those using oil-based adjuvants. The adjuvants are designed to protect the vaccine and give a much higher immune response, but reactions in the form of lumps are an expected albeit undesirable result. As many of the pharmaceutical reps say, at least […] Read more
Sask. water levels receding; cleanup begins
The worst of Saskatchewan’s spring floods appear behind it, and a gradual water level decline is underway. Water remains in many fields and levels are high on lakes and rivers, but the Saskatchewan Watershed Authority said May 16 the flooding Qu’Appelle River system was receding and the situation on the Souris River was stable. Unless […] Read more
Farmer sings praises of rubber tracks
Tracks can make the difference between seeding and not seeding, a Saskatchewan farmer found last year. Kent Hanmer of Govan started the year with no rubber tracks. Today, every implement that goes to the field is tracked. Wet conditions last spring prevented Hanmer from seeding 5,000 of his 22,000 acres. He ran a Seed Hawk […] Read more
New technology helps waterlogged farmers get crops seeded
CHICAGO, Ill. (Reuters) – Incessant rain had delayed Iowa farmer Byron Wegner’s planting plans this spring, and prospects of lower yields loomed large if he did not start seeding his corn within a week. But he had an ace in the hole: two state-of-the-art 24-row planters equipped with satellite guidance systems. When clear skies provided […] Read more
Markets yawn at seeding difficulties
Seeding is significantly delayed across much of Western Canada and the Dakotas, but farmers have seen little reaction in the markets. Analysts blame the ho-hum behaviour in the hard red spring wheat and canola markets on a number of factors. “There’s still time (for prairie and great plains crops to be seeded,)” said analyst Greg […] Read more
Farmers’ help sought to solve canola emergence discrepancy
An Agriculture Canada researcher wants to know why only 30 percent of canola seeds emerge when test results show 95 percent germination. Yantai Gan hopes to find the answer in farmers’ fields. “The number of viable plants is very low.” Gan plans to send a master’s student into fields to measure seeding depth, count plants […] Read more
Rural future unclear as Liberals chart new path
Rural Liberal MPs and activists face a stark question in the aftermath of an historic May 2 defeat. What is the future of the party’s rural policy development in the wake of yet another resounding rural rejection? Liberals were shut out of most rural ridings outside of Atlantic Canada. “Oddly enough, I think there is […] Read more
USDA corn supply estimate disputed
Corn analysts say the U.S. Department of Agriculture didn’t reduce American corn supply enough in its latest supply and demand estimates. The USDA’s May 11 World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates report shaved average yields by three bushels an acre from the long-term trend to reflect slow planting progress through early May. Excessively wet weather […] Read more
Fusarium a concern across Prairies
Wet growing conditions last year allowed fusarium head blight to hammer wheat crops across a 1,000 kilometre stretch of the Prairies from Anola, Man., to Biggar, Sask. Canadian Wheat Board agronomist Mike Grenier said that means growers in parts of Saskatchewan will need to take steps to combat the disease this year. “Historically, it’s been […] Read more
