A sense of unease has settled on the hog industry as Health Canada contemplates further restrictions on the use of carbadox, an antibiotic no longer used by Canadian hog producers, but still available in the United States. The sale of carbadox ended in Canada several years ago. Health Canada now is proposing a more complete […] Read more
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Antibiotic rules may affect Canada-U.S. swine trade
World trade deal failure may have long legacy
With the prospects of an agricultural settlement at World Trade Organization talks having all but vanished for this year, speculation now is turning to the consequences of the stalemate. For trade liberalization advocates, they aren’t pretty. William Dymond, senior executive fellow at the Centre for Trade Policy and Law in Ottawa, said the negotiations are […] Read more
Seed group defends registration changes
A national seed growers group sees benefit rather than peril in changes proposed to the system for registering new crop varieties. The National Farmers Union went public this month with concerns that proposed changes to the system could allow companies to register candidate varieties with less scrutiny while further limiting farmers’ ability to use common […] Read more
Farm safety event focuses on children
STETTLER, Alta. – Matt McRae and Ian Henderson have more than 60 years experience in the farm machinery business and between the pair there isn’t a piece of equipment that doesn’t have a farm accident story. Henderson of Stettler knows farm machinery dealers who have lost fingers in grain augers. He knows farmers who have […] Read more
Farmers plan ethanol plant for Manitoba
MELITA, Man. – The announcement was made with little fanfare but it carried huge importance to farmers, particularly those in southwestern Manitoba. During a tour of crop variety trials near Melita last week, two area farmers quietly outlined plans for an ethanol venture that potentially will consume 27 million bushels of peas and two-row barley […] Read more
Manure on forages can be risky
RED DEER – Spreading manure on forages is an uneven science. Manure is cheaper than commercial fertilizer if used efficiently and properly, but its nutrient content varies. Relying on animals to do the work of spreading their own manure provides inconsistent results, said Vern Baron of Agriculture Canada and the Western Forage Beef Group based […] Read more
Railways said bullying special crop shippers
Special crop shippers say they are reluctant to complain about railway service for fear of reprisal, an allegation senior executives at the country’s two national railways contend is unfounded. An Alberta pulse crop processor, who requested anonymity, said he wanted to confront the railways about something he heard at the recent Canadian Special Crops Association […] Read more
There’s a trick to obtaining manure samples
RED DEER – Testing manure samples in the laboratory can show the value of a natural resource. Once the manure’s nitrogen, phosphorus, carbon and other mineral levels are measured, it can be applied at rates more useful to a crop. “It depends how you apply it, where you apply it, the rate you use and […] Read more
WTO talks suspended: Lamy
More than four years after they were launched, World Trade Organization negotiations collapsed July 24 in a welter of finger pointing and Canadian warnings that trade wars, more subsidy competition and higher market barriers will be the consequence. WTO observers and players suggest there is little chance the negotiations, launched in 2001 in Doha, Qatar, […] Read more
Flax processor hoping for market breakthrough
A year after opening, a Regina flax seed processor is a long way from operating at full capacity. But CanMar Grain Products Ltd. president Cecil Werner says more people are catching on to the health benefits of eating flax and his company will be there to supply it. CanMar processes and markets roasted yellow flaxseed […] Read more
