On Tuesday Statistics Canada found that Western Canadian farmers have less canola and more wheat coming, or at least that was the situation at the end of July when it did its major crop production survey. Nobody is talking about a 20 million tonne canola crop any longer, but the 17 million tonne estimate was […] Read more
Tag Archives Blog — page 4
Churchill: it needs to be owned by a vested interest
Everybody hates vested interests this year, at least in U.S. politics, it seems. Bernie and The Donald have ridden that horse pretty far. But there are times when the vested interest is the only likely saviour for a struggling entity that needs big help. To me, that’s the situation for the port of Churchill, Manitoba, […] Read more
Perilous life on the frontier of the world of grain
It was very sad news last night that OmniTrax is laying off most of the workers at its Churchill, Manitoba, grain elevator and handling facilities. It’s terrible for the people relying on that seasonal job to help them through another year, awful for the vulnerable town and regional economy, and worrying for farmers and people […] Read more
Harvesting Hope and forgetting about the dollars
Farmers talk about themselves and their farms as if it’s all about business. Hardcore business. It’s never really been true, but many farmers believe it and most want to believe it. Being a tough-guy businessman can seem more impressive than being a soft-hearted agriculturalist. However, sometimes the cloak of myth is shrugged off and the […] Read more
Brexit an opportunity for Canadian farmers and food?
Lots of people are shocked by the Brexit vote, which saw citizens of the United Kingdom vote to leave the European Union. I was surprised. I was a Remain supporter. (My parents were born and raised in the UK and all my relatives other than my sister’s family live in England and Wales. I am […] Read more
A pleasant lack of porcine crisis at the World Pork Expo
A challenge I faced while down covering the World Pork Expo (WPX) in early June, and a continuing challenge I’ve had as I’ve been going through my notes, video and recordings since getting home, has been dealing with the lack of crisis within the industry. Often at the WPX there is a crisis consuming industry […] Read more
Wisps of smoke but few fires at the 2016 World Pork Expo
Like the fragrant BBQ smoke that drifts across and through the Iowa State Fairgrounds every year at this time, some theme or set of themes always seems to set an underlying tone to the World Pork Expo. Sometimes it seems thrust into your face and impossible to not recognize. That was the case when Porcine […] Read more
2016 Global Pulse Convention in Cesme, Turkey
The Western Producer’s Sean Pratt is reporting from the 2016 Global Pulse Convention in Cesme, Turkey. Cesme, Turkey – The first day of the 2016 Global Pulse Convention had presentations from senior officials of some of the major players in the pulse industry. Shri Avinash Srivastava, secretary of the Ministry of Food Processing Industries in […] Read more
Reaching a new shore, a better shore, for Manitoba farmers and agriculture
In the last 10 years I’ve learned to back away from direct coverage of provincial politics, something which I once greatly enjoyed. I’m hoping to get back into it with a new Manitoba government that seems more relevant to rural and farming Manitoba. I’ll bet thousands of Manitoba farmers are also eagerly awaiting action from […] Read more
Science-O-Rama, 2016
In the first week of April I attended Murray Hartman’s Science-O-Rama in Edmonton, which was an Alberta Canola production. Alberta’s provincial oilseed specialist, Murray Hartman, hosted the presentations and discussions that focused on the science of canola. Here are a few stories I wrote that are based on a some of the lectures. Video: Do more […] Read more
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