Innovative Fleece Assessment, which combines human observation with machine testing, was used for the first time in Canada at the alpaca fleece competition at the Western Canadian Agribition 2024. | Screencap via John Greig

VIDEO: Agribition 2024 debuts innovative fleece assessment

The 53rd annual Canadian Western Agribition kicked off in Regina yesterday, and among the many displays was one featuring a unique method of grading alpaca fleece. Innovative Fleece Assessment combines human observation with machine testing and it was used for the first time in Canada at the alpaca fleece competition here at Agribition this year. […] Read more


Nutrien’s potash mine at Allan, Sask., has been operating since 1968. | Sean Pratt photo

VIDEO: Plant nutrition begins one km underground

Nutrien’s potash mining operations in Sask. are part of a growing effort by suppliers to meet producers’ nutrient needs

ALLAN, Sask. — A lot has changed since Nutrien produced and shipped the first 1,000 tonnes of potash from its Patience Lake mine in 1959. For instance, the price of potash was around US$50 per ton back then. It is six times that value today, and this is a down year for prices. One thing […] Read more


Louise Carduner measures the ears from where the full kernel rows begin rather than the end of the cob because the last few rows are often unfilled. | Ed White photo

VIDEO: Broker stays old school with corn crop estimates

Apps and satellite services have digitalized the job, but many still prefer to estimate crops up close and personal

LETELLIER, Man. — When it comes to estimating corn crops, Louise Carduner knows there’s an app for that. But she isn’t about to use it. “These are the nicest ears I’ve seen,” Carduner burst out enthusiastically while stripping a fat cob of corn in a field bordering the Red River south of Winnipeg. Carduner was […] Read more

University of Manitoba researchers test canola cultivars to identify genetic material that has tolerance to pod shatter. | File photo

VIDEO: Study seeks more information on pod shatter resistance

University of Manitoba researchers test canola cultivars to identify genetic material that has tolerance to pod shatter

WINNIPEG — The pod shatter resistance trait for canola has been on the market for more than a decade. Bayer CropScience released the first commercial canola hybrid with it, InVigor L140P, in 2013. Private and public breeding programs followed Bayer’s lead, introducing their own versions of canola with pods that are less likely to shatter […] Read more


Just last week it looked likely that the conference would either be crippled or its attendees stranded by a labour breakdown at Air Canada, but just a day before many of the almost 400 attendees and organizers began lifting off for Winnipeg, the airline and its pilots agreed on a tenative deal that removed that fear. | Screencap via pulseandspecialcropsconvention.com

VIDEO: Pulse, special crops conference dodges roadblocks

It hasn’t officially started, but the Canadian Pulse and Special Crops Trade Association annual conference has already survived more drama than most commodity industries have seen in ages. Just last week it looked likely that the conference would either be crippled or its attendees stranded by a labour breakdown at Air Canada, but just a […] Read more

Myron Wigness stands with Hi-Hog squeeze unit at Canada’s Outdoor Farm Show. Photo: John Greig

VIDEO: Equipment design for calmer cattle

Limiting sightlines and keeping cows balanced help keep them calm, farm show attendees hear

Glacier FarmMedia – Cattle handling equipment has evolved to take into better account ways to keep cattle calm. Related stories: The Latest News and Stories from Canada’s Outdoor Farm Show Controlling sightlines, incorporating rounded penning and keeping the animal stable on all four feet have driven design improvements in cattle handling systems, says Myron Wigness, […] Read more

Talyia Tober, a University of Manitoba master’s student in animal science, is studying the agronomics of corn-forage intercropping. Seeding forages between corn rows increases the crude protein available for cattle, thus improving the nutritional profile of corn grazing.  |  Robert Arnason photo

VIDEO: Study tackles corn’s protein problem

CARMAN, Man. — Standing on a patch of bare soil and next to a plot of corn in south-central Manitoba, Talyia Tober delivered a two-minute explanation of her research on corn grazing and seeding high-protein forage crops between the rows of corn. Then the questions started. A group of agronomists, scientists and others touring the […] Read more


A recent research project, while in the early stages, has identified four herbicides that could possibly be used in tank mixes to replace glyphosate.  |  File photo

VIDEO: Researchers look for alternatives to glyphosate

The goal is to evaluate different tank mixtures that could do the same job as glyphosate and delay herbicide resistance

WINNIPEG — Fifty-nine weed species around the world have developed some resistance to glyphosate, according to data from the International Survey of Herbicide Resistant Weeds. Countries and regions including Mexico and the European Union have come close to banning its use, based on perceptions or misperceptions of its safety and the risk to human health. […] Read more

As machines are moving faster and faster and getting bigger and bigger, it leads to more soil disturbance. | File photo

VIDEO – Fast farm machines seen as threat to soil

Most farm machinery manufacturers don’t seem to care much about soil health, say a number of soil scientists at the University of Manitoba. That’s a problem because many of them make machines that damage soil and undermine the sustainability of today’s farms. “They’ve doubled the speed and they’ve dramatically increased the (soil) degradation,” said David […] Read more