Reading Time: 3 minutes Working on your farm management skills is like exercising… it pays big benefits, but it’s easy to push it off for another day. Only one-third of producers use business advisors or risk management tools, and fewer still do HR, succession, or strategic planning. To help make your farm more profitable (and your life more enjoyable), […] Read more
Changing with the times: Honey producers successfully shift gears
Planning for Profits: When cheap Chinese imports sent honey prices crashing, Nixon Honey responded by diversifying its business
‘Public trust’ conference aims to find ways to win back consumers
The popularity of campaigns attacking conventional agriculture shows that the industry needs to do more, says organizer
Reading Time: 2 minutes Public trust is eroding in Canada, and farmers — along with others in the value chain — need to fight back, says the head of a new ag organization aimed at winning back confused consumers. “The whole industry needs to know a whole bunch more about consumers,” said Kim McConnell, an Okotoks-based marketing expert and […] Read more
New ag policy aims to sweeten the AgriStability pot
More farmers have been opting out of the farm-income support program after changes in 2013 reduced the potential payout
Reading Time: 4 minutes CAP is a rather fitting acronym for the recently announced Canadian Agricultural Partnership, the latest government ‘policy framework’ that governs its farm support programs. “That’s a very easy way for people to remember the two major changes that have come about here,” said Steve Funk, director of farm income programs at MNP. “They’ve capped the […] Read more
The world has an eating problem — and farming is the solution
Whether it’s obesity or malnutrition, Canadian farmers have an amazing opportunity to be agents of change
Reading Time: 3 minutes “As a farming community we should be the epitome of health.” That was the closing remark of one of the speakers at the Nuffield Triennial Farming Conference in southern England earlier this summer. The speaker had been talking about obesity and food-related health issues, and how farmers could be a solution to this serious problem. […] Read more
Drought-related livestock tax deferral zones widen again
More ranchers in five provinces may now be able to defer some of their taxable income from their livestock sales in 2016 due to drought. The federal government on Aug. 4 announced its final list of drought-designated regions where the livestock tax deferral provision will be allowed for the 2016 tax year, and has included […] Read more
Deal on new ag funding framework
Reading Time: < 1 minute The federal and provincial ag ministers have agreed on the “key elements” of a five-year, $3-billion framework. The Canadian Agricultural Partnership is the successor to Growing Forward 2, which expires at the end of March. Read more: Ministers agree on new ag funding framework Business risk management is one of six focus areas, particularly AgriStability. […] Read more
Ahead of NAFTA talks, Canada says dispute mechanism essential
Ottawa | Reuters — An effective dispute settlement mechanism is essential in any trade agreement, Canada’s foreign affairs minister said on Friday, less than a week before the first round of negotiations on the North American trade pact. Canada’s desire to include a dispute settlement mechanism in a renegotiated North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) […] Read more
More choices than ever at Open Farm Days
Open Farm Days runs Aug. 19-20
Reading Time: < 1 minute Alberta Open Farm Days continues to grow and this year has reached triple digits. More than 100 farms, ranches, and other operations with a connection to agriculture will be opening their doors to the public on Aug. 19-20. Visiting farms is free and a complete list can be found at www.albertafarmdays.com. The website also has […] Read more
Agriculture is my teacher — and I never fall asleep in class
Reading Time: 4 minutes Quinten Albrecht, 12, of Holden, was the junior winner in the Alberta Young Speakers for Agriculture competition at the Calgary Stampede. This year’s topic was: Working in agriculture is more than just farming. Harvesting crops, haying, calving out cows, and riding horses. These are just some of the things that fill up my event calendar […] Read more
U.S. bee numbers growing
CNS Canada – Honeybee populations are rising in the United States, turning around a recent trend of declines attributed to a set of factors know as colony collapse disorder. It’s estimated that 84,430 hives were lost to the disorder in the first quarter this year. That’s down 27 per cent from a year earlier. Year-over-year […] Read more
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