TWIN BUTTE, Alta. — Grizzly bear numbers are growing in Alberta and in the rest of the bears’ range in British Columbia and Montana. That is good news, but higher numbers also mean a higher probability of grizzly bear contact with humans. Nate Webb, carnivore specialist with Alberta Fish and Wildlife, said a 2007 survey […] Read more
Tag Archives Ag Finance
The bear facts: grizzly numbers increasing in ranching areas
Investors keen on Sask. land
Prices up 23 percent | Buyers see farmland as a low risk investment with attractive returns
Tumultuous world markets and the threat of an economic meltdown in Europe have done nothing to dampen interest in Saskatchewan farmland. Bob Lane, founder of one of Saskatchewan’s most successful farm realty companies, says demand for prairie farmland has never been stronger, at least not since he entered the business nearly 40 years ago. Prairie […] Read moreFederal government pledges $349 million to CWB
The federal government has committed up to $349 million to the CWB to help it cover one-time costs associated with restructuring, downsizing and changing into a voluntary wheat marketing agency. Federal agriculture minister Gerry Ritz made the announcement June 28 in Winnipeg, suggesting the money would help the CWB deal with costs stemming from Western […] Read more
Canada claims COOL victory
Appeal upheld | Canadian livestock producers pleased with WTO decision on labelling provisions
Canada’s pork and beef industries are claiming victory in an ongoing trade battle over U.S. country-of-origin labelling. Last week, an appeal body of the World Trade Organization released a report on COOL measures and determined that mandatory labelling provisions discriminate against Canadian livestock producers. Under COOL, meat that originates in Canada but is shipped, fed, […] Read morePublic gets chance to solve Doukhobor train explosion
Political or cultural motive? | Cause of the explosion that took the lives of the Doukhobor leader and eight community members has not been solved
Peter Verigin was 65 when he and eight others were killed in a train explosion on the Kettle Valley Railway near Farron, B.C., in 1924. That much is known, but other questions remain about the incident, which took the life of the man who led thousands of Doukhobors out of Russia and into Western Canada […] Read moreStatsCan mustard area surprises
MONTREAL, Que. — Brenda Tjaden Lepp has a tough time believing Statistics Canada’s mustard acreage estimate. “We were using 15,000 acres for Alberta. They put 105,000 acres into Alberta,” said the chief analyst of FarmLink Marketing Solutions. “What would incentivize those guys to put a bunch of mustard acres in the ground?” So when Tjaden […] Read more
Turkey surplus limits Canadian exports
MONTREAL — Canada’s top lentil customer won’t be an active buyer until it works through a glut of supply, says an industry analyst. Turkey and Syria produced 500,000 to 600,000 tonnes of red lentils this year on top of an estimated 100,000 tonnes of carryout. That is plenty of supply for the Middle East, which […] Read more
Inspect rams from teeth to testicles
OLDS, Alta. — Too few sheep owners test their rams for breeding soundness. “It is not commonly done, but the risks you expose yourself to are very high,” said sheep veterinarian Kathy Parker of Three Hills, Alta. There will be no lambs the following year if the ram fails in the breeding pasture. Every aspect […] Read more
Bureaucracy curbed in new deal
A new agreement aims to reduce red tape for businesses operating in British Columbia, Alberta and Saskatchewan. Businesses will no longer be required to register as a corporation separately in each of the three jurisdictions. The deal comes as a result of the New West Partnership, a 2010 agreement between the three provinces to work […] Read more
Rules benefit B.C. farmers
New farm assessment rules have been implemented in British Columbia that are designed to benefit farmers next year. The new recommendations for the 2013 Assessment Roll are: increase the tax exemption limit on farm outbuilding improvements (excluding the residence) extend farmer’s dwelling and home site farm classification to retired farmers in the Agricultural Land Reserve […] Read more
