Richard Grosshans thinks he may have discovered a remedy for the declining health of Lake Winnipeg: harvesting cattails from the mouth of the Red River.Grosshans, who’s working on his PhD in biosystems engineering at the University of Manitoba, said it’s a simple idea.Too much phosphorus is flowing into the lake, and cattails have a tremendous […] Read more
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Cattail farming could help save troubled lake
Triffid case raises questions about system
In Canada, new GM crops must receive regulatory approval from the Canadian Food Inspection Agency to confirm that they can safely be used for food and animal feed production and pose no risk to the environment.Herbicide tolerant crops must receive additional approvals from the Pest Management Regulatory Agency before they can be sprayed.Crop developers must […] Read more
Viterra buys U.S. mill
Viterra Inc. has taken another step into grain processing in the United States.It is buying 21st Century Grain Processing, which operates an oat mill in South Sioux City, Nebraska, and a facility that mills wheat near Amarillo, Texas.The deal has a cash price of $90.5 million US, subject to adjustments for debt, cash and working […] Read more
GM testing is a growing business
Leigh Marquess has had plenty of opportunities to perfect his public relations skills over the past six months.Since last November, Marquess’s Quantum Biosciences in Saskatoon has tested 6,500 to 7,000 samples of flax seed, looking for minute traces of genetic material linked to Triffid, an unapproved genetically modified flax variety that has disrupted trade to […] Read more
Manitoba Pork spotlights country in city
For weeks, George Matheson, a hog producer near Stonewall, Man., has heard the same comment from friends and neighbours – I saw you yesterday in Winnipeg.Matheson got used to comments about his face on billboards and buses in the province’s capital as part of a Manitoba Pork Council ad campaign.In early April, the council launched […] Read more
Ag business council forced to reduce program spending
The federal government has asked an organization that distributes farm business management information to producers to find more cost effective ways to fulfill its mandate.Greg Pearce, controller for the Canadian Farm Business Management Council, said four staff positions were recently eliminated at the council’s Ottawa office, including that of executive director Wendell Joyce. Board members […] Read more
Ammonia delays blamed on trucking restrictions
Seeding efforts continue to be stymied by inadequate supply and delayed delivery of anhydrous ammonia, one of the major forms of nitrogen fertilizer used by western Canadian farmers.“It is a common problem,” said Agricultural Producers Association of Saskatchewan president Greg Marshall.Delays have put some growers hundreds of acres behind schedule.The Canadian Fertilizer Institute claims the […] Read more
Bounty program claims 71,000 coyotes in Saskatchewan
The Saskatchewan government paid hunters and landowners $1.5 million to kill 71,000 coyotes during its pilot control program.That number surpassed agriculture minister Bob Bjornerud’s expectations and far exceeded the estimates provided during the program’s November 2009 to March 2010 run.In a typical year, normal hunting and trapping kills about 35,000 coyotes. In late March Bjornerud […] Read more
Monsanto says it has plan to combat weed resistance
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (Reuters) – Monsanto said it will restructure its herbicide products to help combat the spreading environmental woes of herbicide-resistant weeds, also known as “super weeds,” which many critics have blamed on the chemical giant.“We need to get in front of this,” Monsanto chair Hugh Grant said in a conference call with analysts.Grant […] Read more
Western premiers eager to improve Asian trade
The three western premiers attempted to resolve two agricultural trade issues during a recent trip to China and Japan.Saskatchewan premier Brad Wall said canola was a dominant subject of discussion in both countries, particularly concerns about blackleg in Canadian exports.They also addressed restrictions on Canadian beef in Japan.The trade mission was the first by the […] Read more
