My daughters-in-law, Leanne and Lydia, buy butternut squash that has been peeled and cut into cubes. For them, this reduces the preparation time and makes the squash convenient . They have both used the cooked, mashed squash as a first food for their babies. It is easy to digest and the young ones like it […] Read more
Tag Archives Ag Finance
Advocate eager to talk to farmers, ranchers
Alberta’s new farmers’ advocate wants to listen, learn and then take on the challenges of speaking on behalf of Alberta’s farmers and ranchers. Vegreville lawyer Peter Dobbie takes over the role April 2 from Jim Kiss, who left the job last June. It’s the first time a lawyer has held the top job in the […] Read more
Funds to boost internet service
The Alberta government is promising $10.5 million to provide high-speed internet access to an estimated 43,000 rural households. The money is part of the provincial government’s Final Mile Rural Connectivity Initiative to ensure all Albertans have access to high speed internet. About $9.5 million will be used to help internet service providers add infrastructure to […] Read more
Bison commission to disband
Refundable checkoff | Revenue fell short of the $60,000 operating budget
PONOKA, Alta. — Alberta bison producers, frustrated by problems in collecting a refundable $3 per head checkoff, voted to disband their commission and reform under an association with no ability to collect the fee. Marvin Moore, chair of the Bison Producers of Alberta, said the group could not convince many people to help fund the […] Read moreDetermining how family feels about farm transfer no easy task
A strong farm succession plan begins with a discussion about feelings rather than numbers, says a family business consultant. “That’s not where you start,” said John Fast, who spoke at a recent Farm Credit Canada forum in Saskatoon. “Not if you plan to have a happy family left at the end of the day.” Taxes, […] Read more
Time is right to fund RM infrastructure
There was a time when most of the debate in rural Western Canada centred on direct agriculture funding. It’s unclear whether that has quieted down because of better funding, better commodity prices, bigger farms or a combination of these. Increasingly rearing its aging head is rural infrastructure, alongside its cousin, land use policy. In Alberta, […] Read more
Wheat bright in N.D.; durum gloomy
Canola, wheat acres expected to soar | More lucrative crops to keep durum in the dumps
Canola and spring wheat acres are expected to rebound in North Dakota this year following a soggy 2011. However, durum will struggle to regain acres this year because growers are leaning toward other crops, says a North Dakota Wheat Commission representative. “A lot of guys are not overly excited about durum,” said Erica Olson, marketing […] Read moreExtending canola’s success depends on breeding effort
Given a bit of luck with the weather, Canadian farmers could attain a milestone this year that they weren’t expected to meet until 2015. That was the year the Canola Council of Canada targeted for production of 15 million tonnes of the yellow-flowered oilseed. It was an ambitious plan coming off an equally audacious program […] Read more
Choosing leader sometimes comes down to who can beat other parties
TORONTO —The decision by 57 percent of voting New Democrats to elect Thomas Mulcair the party’s seventh leader was perhaps the most calculating decision in the storied history of the party. He was elected last weekend because the majority decided that after making it to second place in national politics in the last election, the […] Read more
Avoid victim mentality and look on the bright side
The “little guy” often feels like he’s under siege. There’s more justification than ever for that feeling, given recent events. Although it’s a publicly traded, multinational business, Viterra is the direct descendent of the prairie co-operative grain movement, involving all three prairie pools and United Grain Growers. With the Glencore takeover, any link to farmer […] Read more
