Reading Time: < 1 minute Anyone spotting wild boars is asked to report the sighting to the Alberta Invasive Species Council, which has launched a campaign called Squeal on Pigs. Anyone who sees the wild pigs or comes across damage they have caused is urged to either call 310-FARM, email [email protected], or use the EDDMaps app (Early Detection and Distribution […] Read more
Albertans urged to squeal on wild pigs
China reports first human case of H10N3 bird flu
Strain 'not a very common virus'
Beijing | Reuters — A 41-year-old man in China’s eastern province of Jiangsu has been confirmed as the first human case of infection with a rare strain of bird flu known as H10N3, Beijing’s National Health Commission (NHC) said on Tuesday. Many different strains of bird flu are present in China and some sporadically infect […] Read more
Feather sector’s on-farm upgrade program underway
Applications now being accepted for funding
The federal free trade compensation program to help Canada’s poultry and egg producers pay for on-farm upgrades, renovations and improvements is now taking applications. The $646.8 million, 10-year Poultry and Egg On-Farm Investment Program (PEFIP) is now formally underway, Agriculture Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau announced Monday. Each eligible Canadian producer is entitled to an amount proportional […] Read more
Eastern drought zones set for livestock tax deferrals
Regions designated in P.E.I., N.S., N.B., Quebec
In a decision that may have come late for some, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island and parts of southeastern Quebec and northwestern Nova Scotia have been declared drought zones for eligible livestock producers’ 2020 tax purposes. The federal government on Monday released its list and map of prescribed drought regions where tax deferral on sales […] Read more
New antimicrobial resistance doc shows the good — and the scary
Video highlights the gains that have been made and reasons why the fight isn’t over
Reading Time: 4 minutes If you’ve ever worried about superbugs and want to scare yourself, check out a new documentary from an unexpected source: the Alberta Veterinary Medical Association. Early in the 28-minute video — a largely upbeat and lushly filmed doc about antimicrobial resistance — is a clip from the Harvard Medical School. It shows an experiment conducted […] Read more
Schoepp: To sustain is one thing, to regenerate is something else
Sustainable agriculture has been a step forward but it is not the end of the journey
Reading Time: 3 minutes For the past decade the focus on food and farming has been on sustainable systems. To be sustainable means to meet production needs without compromising the future, particularly our future natural resources. To farm sustainably is to ‘do no further harm’ or to maintain the current balance and to accept a level of accountability for […] Read more
Ontario’s RMP rolling out ‘later than usual’
Details pending, Agricorp says
Ontario farmers’ coverage under the provincial Risk Management Program (RMP) won’t be affected by ‘a bit later’ rollout this spring, the program’s handlers say. Agricorp, the province’s farm program delivery agency, reiterated in a statement Tuesday that the RMP “will be available in 2021 (and) program details will be shared with customers as soon as […] Read more
Livestock watering system wins innovation award
Reading Time: < 1 minute Consort-area rancher Lee Smith has won the Award of Distinction for Innovation from Alberta Farm Animal Care. The Water Box (thewaterboxltd.com) can be inserted through the ice at shallow depths of water that is flowing. Cattle can access water by lifting a lever with their nose and there’s also a mineral tub insert so it […] Read more
Set-aside funded for Quebec hog, cattle, big game producers
Feds, province pledge $21.8 million AgriRecovery plan
Farmers tending feeder hogs, fed cattle and big game animals such as elk, red deer, bison and wild boar in Quebec can expect $21.8 million in AgriRecovery to compensate for COVID-19’s drag on the province’s slaughter capacity. Federal Agriculture Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau and her Quebec counterpart Andre Lamontagne on Thursday announced their governments’ respective 60-40 […] Read more
Giving credit where it’s due: New front opens in carbon tax debate
Farmers could benefit greatly from a carbon trading market but the devil will be in the details
Reading Time: 3 minutes A new front has opened up in the carbon tax debate: What sort of reward will farmers get for their stewardship efforts? On March 6, the federal Environment Department — now named Environment and Climate Change Canada — issued a draft of the regulatory framework for its new carbon offset market. This sets the stage […] Read more
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