Canadian farmers plan to spend less on farm equipment in 2010 than they did last year.A survey by Farm Credit Canada indicates 59 percent of respondents intend to spend the same or less this year.That includes three percent spending significantly less, 11 percent spending less and 45 percent spending the same as last year.On the […] Read more
News
Fewer farmers plan to buy new equipment
Farmers miffed over fertilizer delivery delays
Already feeling rushed, the last thing Zenneth Faye needed was a further seeding delay. But that’s what he was confronted with last week when the anhydrous ammonia he bought in the fall didn’t show up in time for seeding.“It’s unreal. There is going to be hell to pay at the end of this,” said the […] Read more
Hog cycles, high prices thing of the past: producer
SUSSEX, N.B. – Paul Moffett knows the pitfalls of the Canadian hog industry.His father, Stephen, is chair of the Canadian Pork Council safety nets committee, has invested $10 million over the past eight years in their New Brunswick operation and sells pigs at less than it costs to produce them.“The future of livestock in the […] Read more
Former president says food inspection agency too powerful
The Canadian Food Inspection Agency has become too aggressive in charging or threatening to charge food businesses for minor infractions of food law or regulations, says a former CFIA president.”From my perch, perhaps I see it more than most but I do see it increasing,” Ron Doering said May 20. “I think it is used […] Read more
Flax growers oppose market impact assessment
Manitoba flax grower Eric Fridfinnson anticipates a good start to the 2010 growing season.After a few years of excessive moisture, things are drier in Manitoba’s Interlake region and spring planting is progressing nicely on his farm near Arborg, Man.“We had a few pretty wet years here but things are looking very good this spring,” said […] Read more
Sask. bill passes, protected land to go up for sale
Controversial amendments to Saskatchewan’s Wildlife Habitat Protection Act passed on the second last day of the legislative sitting last week, paving the way for lessees to buy protected crown land.The amendments did not sit well with members of conservation and environmental groups who said there hadn’t been enough consultation. They are wary of the computer […] Read more
Letters to the editor – for May. 27, 2010
CWB voter rules I am responding to Barry Wilson’s article “Tories urged to fix CWB voter rules” in the April 15 WP.Unfortunately, Wilson repeats the misleading sentence, “The government has embraced a proposal made by a review commissioned under the previous Liberal government that the CWB voters list be limited to farmers who have delivered […] Read more
Farmers smiling at fine start to new season
It’s been dry for so long in central Alberta that Walter Suntjens says he forgot how to drive around sloughs in the field. But that has all changed this spring.More than 200 millimetres of rain have fallen since last autumn near Hanna, Alta., filling sloughs and creating hidden wet spots in fields.Suntjens must pull a […] Read more
Improved food safety comes with costs, benefits
VICTORIA – The added costs of improved food safety standards have been offset by longer-term benefits, says the manager of a major processing plant.Peter Stein of Piller Sausages and Delicatessens told the Canadian Meat Council’s annual meeting that recent food recalls and outbreaks of listeria, E. coli and salmonella forced his plant to look at […] Read more
Food makers seek buyers for business
Western Canadian food processors have received funding from the federal government to find foreign buyers for their products and businesses.Western Economic Diversification Canada is providing $961,000 to pay for a series of trade missions to and from the Asia-Pacific region to promote trade, attract capital and find future owners for many small-scale food companies.“The combination […] Read more
