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

Livestock watering system wins innovation award

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

Second activist investor buys into Elanco
Reuters — Hedge fund Starboard Value LP has taken a stake in Elanco Animal Health and nominated three directors to the animal healthcare company’s board, the Wall Street Journal reported Wednesday, citing people familiar with the matter. The WSJ report did not mention the size of Starboard’s stake in Elanco, which makes treatments for pets […] Read more

Canadian feed-grade dairy product class expanded
Buttermilk products now qualify for 4(m) permit price
A dairy product class set up to boost markets for solids non-fat (SNF), by boosting their use in animal feed such as milk replacer, has been expanded to include more products. The Canadian Dairy Commission announced Monday that its 4(m) milk class has been updated to allow dairy processors to get the 4(m) permit price […] Read more

Denmark to compensate mink farmers after nationwide cull
Copenhagen | Reuters — Denmark, the top exporter of mink furs, will compensate its mink farmers with up to 19 billion Danish crowns (C$3.95 billion) following an order last year to cull the country’s entire population. Denmark’s entire herd of some 17 million mink, one of the world’s biggest and highly valued for the quality […] Read more

Grain aflatoxins lead to U.S. pet food recalls, dog deaths
Pet food maker expands recall after more than 70 dogs die, 80 sickened
Reuters — Midwestern Pet Foods is expanding a recall to include several more products sold under its Sportmix brand and other labels after at least 70 dogs died and 80 others are known to have become ill, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration said Tuesday. The food was found to have potentially unsafe levels of […] Read more

Ontario to limit imports, transport of live elk, deer
Moves meant to keep out chronic wasting disease
Moving live captive cervids such as elk, deer, moose and caribou into or within Ontario is set to be banned under new provincial regulations to keep out chronic wasting disease (CWD). The province said Thursday it has amended regulations under its Fish and Wildlife Conservation Act that will ban anyone from importing live, captive cervids […] Read more
Coffee, Cows & Crops podcasts launched
Reading Time: < 1 minute Peace Country Beef and Forage Association is creating podcasts to “share ideas supported by sound science and practical wisdom.” The Coffee, Cows & Crops podcasts can be found at peacecountrybeef.ca. One is on continuous cropping and adaptive management in which Jay Byer (soil conservation analyst, Gateway Research Organization) talks about management systems on marginal land. […] Read more

Minks, staff positive for COVID-19 at B.C. mink farm
Coronavirus found in eight workers, five mink so far
A mink farm in southwestern British Columbia’s Fraser Valley is now under provincial veterinary quarantine and its staff self-isolating after several animals and workers tested positive for COVID-19. Fraser Valley Health, the regional health authority for the area, on Sunday declared an outbreak at the farm after eight workers tested positive for SARS-CoV-2, the virus […] Read more