Areas around a beaver pond in Central Manitoba green up in spring. Photo: Alexis Stockford

Drought, farms and The Beaver Manifesto

Beavers have a water management role — especially during drought — book argues, despite the rodents being less than popular with farmers

Despite being less than popular with farmers, beavers have a significant role in water management, especially during droughts, a book by an Alberta professor contends.

Cattle graze on a farm at sunset in Rockport, Texas on December 25, 2023.

U.S. ranchers cautiously rebuild

Consumers have paid record beef prices due to low supply; meat packers want larger cattle herds to reduce cattle prices

Some ranchers have slowly begun taking the first steps to boost cattle production after inventory shrank due to a years-long drought that dried up pastures and hiked feeding costs.






A man in a yellow golf shirt holds a soybean plant upside down, highlighting its root, while speaking to farmers during a farm tour.

Soybeans, peas flag under drought conditions

Manitoba’s lack of rain is stressing crops, fuelling pest pressure and slicing yield potential in soybean and pea fields

Manitoba’s pea and soybean acres are suffering in drought-stricken regions like the Interlake. Dry conditions are stressing crops, fuelling pest pressure and slicing yield potential.



A beekeeper holds their smoke pot over a hive ready to release its smoke to calm the bees while the beekeeper works on the hive.

Manitoba beekeepers battle for survival

Honeybee colony losses have hit 43 per cent, making 2025 the latest in a string of poor bee survival years for Manitoba’s honey producers

Honeybee colony losses have hit 43 per cent, making 2025 the latest in a string of poor bee survival years for Manitoba’s honey producers