Canadian hog producers hope a report released Nov. 20 will help address American unease over the rise of hog exports to the United States this year. Canadian producers were afraid the increased exports, particularly of finished hogs, might prompt American trade action to quell the flow of pigs. American producers were questioning whether market forces […] Read more
News
Hog report may help ease trade tensions
Rules tighten for national ID program
The regulations for Canada’s national identification program for cattle are about to be snugged up. Under existing rules, there are instances where cattle can leave the herd of origin without bearing a national ID tag. Those tagging exemptions leave gaps in the system that could pose challenges if animals need to be traced back to […] Read more
Farmers unhappy with Ottawa: minister
TORONTO – Solicitor general and former farm leader Wayne Easter has some pointed advice for the new Paul Martin Liberal government that will be sworn in Dec. 12. Martin should make sure that sen-ior bureaucrats in natural resource departments like agriculture and fisheries actually understand the economic sector they oversee. “Those portfolios need more than […] Read more
Farms extol rural experience
Entertainment farms that sell rural experiences instead of simply growing food could be the next big trend in agritourism, market gardeners told growers in Saskatoon in November. Allen Schernus, who operates The Garden outside Calgary with his wife Norma, cited Knott’s Berry Farm in California as an example. It began as a simple fruit growing […] Read more
Efficiency no guarantee of survival: NFU
The National Farmer’s Union has released a new report that challenges the notion that the Canadian farm income crisis is the fault of “inefficiencies” of production among small Canadian farmers. Called The Farm Crisis, Big Farms, and the Myths of Competition and Efficiency, the NFU report cites a 2001 Statistics Canada study. It found that […] Read more
Golden German millet glows in grazing trial
LANIGAN, Sask. – Backgrounding newly weaned calves on swath-grazed Golden German millet produced better daily gains than feedlot weaning in a research study that ended for the season last week. At the Termuende Research Farm near Lanigan, Sask., Bart Lardner of the Western Beef Development Centre and his colleagues found that the variety of foxtail […] Read more
Stock Sales
Nov. 21: Diamond D production sale, Bruderheim, Alta., 780-998-0057 Nov. 27: Agribition Charolais Diva sale, Regina, 306-933-4200 Dec. 1: L4 Ranches Red Angus bull sale, Brooks, Alta., 1-866-644-3917 Dec. 3: Brost Land & Cattle Hereford sale, Medicine Hat, Alta., 306-933-4200 Dec. 3: Chinook Classic Angus sale, Lethbridge, 403-625-2130
Ont. may be warming to APF
TORONTO – Ontario’s new Liberal government, one of the key hold-out provinces blocking the national launch of the agricultural policy framework, appears to be edging closer to signing on, perhaps by year’s end. In part, it reflects hints of new flexibility from Ottawa on program design as the federal government tries to get the five-year […] Read more
Timothy hay exports bring in the bacon
EDMONTON – The lucrative timothy hay export market is a well-kept secret in the agricultural world. While other producers struggle to cover their costs of production, timothy growers cover their costs and more. “We make very good money on our hay,” said Kate Whenham of Outlook, Sask., who grows timothy on 640 acres of irrigated […] Read more
Man. group pushing for cull kill plant
With the results of a feasibility study now in his hands, David Reykdal is optimistic about efforts to establish a slaughter plant in Manitoba for cull cows and bulls. Reykdal is one of the people leading the effort to convert a Winnipeg hog processing plant into a cattle slaughter plant under the name Rancher’s Choice […] Read more
