Unless you are a turkey, autumn is a blessed time in this most blessed of countries. Harvest, Thanksgiving feasts, family are part of the tradition. But that is an overview. Not all Canadians share in those benefits, those good times. He was engaging in some over-the-top political rhetoric but on Oct. 7 as Canadians were […] Read more
Tag Archives Ag Policy — page 2
Widespread hunger unacceptable as a political choice in a food-rich world
Soggy spring tests farm support plans
Governments are responding to agricultural, municipal and homeowner damages caused by heavy rainfall and storms across the Prairies this spring and summer. In this special report, Western Producer reporter Karen Briere surveys the response and digs into the details beyond the announcements. YORKTON, Sask. – Prime minister Stephen Harper received a bird’s-eye view last week […] Read more
WTO delays frustrate New Zealand envoy
The New Zealand farmer who travels the world promoting his country’s free trade, low subsidy policy is worried about what he sees happening in Geneva at world trade talks. More precisely, Alistair Polson is worried about what he does not see happening. World Trade Organization negotiations remain stalled more than eight years after they started […] Read more
Federal government offers carrot to attract young farmers into agriculture
“What I noticed is that if they come from a farm, they remember the bad moments their parents had in the past and not the good times,” he said. “It was negative. I think that is the mentality we have to change.” He said he also discovered that many young people were unaware of help […] Read more
Canada is full of rural voters, maybe it’s time politicians listened to them
When he turns his mind to rural issues, Liberal leader Michael Ignatieff can be eloquent. The rural-urban divide, he said recently in Guelph, Ont., as he has before, is an unacceptable blight on Canada. “This is the undiscussed national unity challenge of our time.” He describes it as a “values discussion” that challenges the very […] Read more
Irrigation allows production of 40 crops
The first homesteaders to settle in what is now southern Alberta realized that irrigation would make the difference to their survival. By the late 19th century, private groups were building canals and water delivery systems, and in 1910 the Canadian Pacific Railway embarked on two projects south of Calgary called the Eastern Block and the […] Read more
Whatcha gonna do when the well runs dry?
What are we going to do when our new well runs dry? Dig a deeper one. What are we going to do when that one runs dry? Drill deeper again and ask why the wells keep running dry. The prairie moisture cycle has been disrupted. Nobody disputes that point. But how badly is it disrupted […] Read more
How to invest in water: a tricky business
San Francisco, California (Reuters) – A global water crisis is looming, but the path to profits is a muddy mess of regulated industries, giant companies with small water operations, and start-up technologies. For Alex Miles, who once ran a water hedge fund and now manages $350 million at Kingfisher Capital, successful investing in water means […] Read more
Pothole drainage: managing wetlands
Potholes have been a major water issue since farmers first arrived on the Prairies in the mid-1800s. Draining potholes was inevitable if the Prairies were to become productive and support a growing population. Seventy percent of potholes have since disappeared, according to the 2008 Canadian Wetland Inventory. Satellite imagery shows that the remaining prairie wetlands […] Read more
Yes, it’s in the ground, but it doesn’t stay there
There is a lot that scientists don’t know about ground water. In Alberta, much of the ground water information that scientists rely on comes from the Alberta Research Council’s (ARC) mapping programs of the 1960s and 1970s. “We really haven’t moved that far from the ’60s,” said Alec Blyth, a research hydrogeologist with the council’s […] Read more
