Reading Time: 2 minutes Russia will return to the Black Sea grain deal ‘the same day’ as Moscow’s conditions for export of its own grain and fertilizers to the global markets are met, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told reporters September 11. Russia quit the deal in July, a year after it was brokered by the United Nations and Turkey, […] Read more
Russia says conditions key to grain deal
Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov says action needed before his country will move
Prairie Forecast: Summer tries to hang on
Issued Sept. 27, covering Sept. 27 to Oct. 4
For being this far into fall, the weather models have been surprisingly accurate. Heck, I didn’t even need to send an update for the last issue! Not sure if I can be as optimistic for this forecast period, as we are moving deeper into fall and starting to see the first hints of winter trying […] Read more
Researchers want producers to plant more peas
Four-year project attempts to eliminate barriers to growing the crop
Reading Time: 3 minutes Peas are a powerhouse. Not only do they sport a low carbon footprint and contain a high amount of protein, they come with their own nitrogen. So why aren’t more producers planting them? The biggest reason is the risk of root rot, a disease of peas that can infect the soil for years. But what […] Read more
High-path avian flu pops back up in Saskatchewan, Alberta
Canada keeps sights on 'country-level freedom' from virus
Even after 21 months of highly pathogenic avian influenza cases in Canada — including three new cases in domestic birds so far this month — Canada’s “stamping out” policy for the virus remains in effect. Canada’s active caseload of the virus now comes down to just eight of the 325 premises affected since December 2021. […] Read more
The climate-friendly cows bred to belch less methane
Research conducted partially at the University of Alberta underpins the effort
Reading Time: 3 minutes Reuters – When dairy farmer Ben Loewith’s calves are born next spring, they will be among the first in the world to be bred with a specific environmental goal: burping less methane. Loewith, a third-generation farmer in Lynden, Ont., in June started artificially inseminating 107 cows and heifers with the first-to-market bull semen with a […] Read more
Ukraine: The second summer of war
As harvest begins, farmers wonder if they should bother
Reading Time: 5 minutes A kamikaze drone flew over our house last night. It fell near our fence and exploded. I looked out the window and saw a red flame. Then I opened my eyes and realized it was a nightmare. In the morning, I called my mother. She said she heard a drone over our town at 3 […] Read more
Prairie Forecast: One last push of summer-like temperatures
Issued Sept. 13, covering Sept. 13-20
As we work our way slowly into fall, we are starting to see a more fall-like pattern beginning to develop — especially when it comes to overnight lows. While the upcoming forecast does not look like we see a big fall cooldown, there is more and more deviation developing between different runs of the forecast […] Read more
Thunder Bay grain shipments up on year
Grain traffic contributes to increase in overall cargo handle
MarketsFarm — Grain shipments through the Port of Thunder Bay are running well ahead of the year-ago level, with 3.747 million tonnes of grain shipped through the port on the northern shores of Lake Superior as of Aug. 31. That was up by 1.1 million tonnes from the previous year’s pace, but slightly behind the […] Read more
How microplastics are making their way into our farmland
Across nine provinces and 22 wastewater treatment plants, the problem was universal
Reading Time: 2 minutes Microplastic pollution is a global environmental problem that is ubiquitous in all environments, including air, water and soil. Microplastics are readily found in treated wastewater sludge, also known as municipal biosolids, that eventually make their way to our agricultural soils. Our recent investigation of microplastic levels in Canadian municipal biosolids found that a single gram […] Read more
OFCAF applications still on hold
Key program provider still battling with applications from early 2023
Reading Time: 3 minutes Those hoping to apply for a popular cost-share program in 2023 must play a waiting game. Results Driven Agriculture Research, one of three Alberta administrators of the On-Farm Climate Action Fund (OFCAF), put new applications on hold May 10. An early news release pegged Aug. 15 as a possible reopening date. A newer guess suggests […] Read more