Reading Time: 4 minutes Checking each pen for a sick animal at a feedlot is like the world’s worst game of Where’s Waldo — oftentimes the cattle mostly look the same and if you’re not quick enough to spot the sick one, the consequences could cost you that animal. But a new ultra-high-frequency RFID monitoring system is taking the […] Read more
Algorithms getting ready to saddle up at feedlots
Calgary tech company says its system can track every cow in a pen and know how it’s doing
A side order of software aims to help small-scale producers
Reading Time: 3 minutes A local ag-tech startup wants to make it easier for small-scale farmers to connect with — and sell to — their customers. “We’re empowering farmers to go direct or go to wholesale and giving them more tools to do so because of some of the stuff we’ve seen through COVID,” said Shanika Abeysinghe, co-founder of […] Read more
Mexican judge rejects industry bid to halt GMO corn, glyphosate ban
Farm council warns of lost productivity
Mexico City | Reuters — A Mexican federal judge ruled against a request by the National Farm Council to freeze a government plan to ban genetically modified (GMO) corn and the widely used herbicide glyphosate by 2024, the national science council said on Monday. Judge Martin Adolfo Santos Perez’s ruling allows the executive order issued […] Read more
DOT, AutoCart autonomous equipment lines rebranded
Parent firm Raven Industries' products tied to new brand
U.S. precision agriculture equipment firm Raven Industries has set up a unifying brand for its acquired product lines, including the Canadian-born DOT autonomous field tool system. South Dakota-based Raven on May 12 launched the OMNi brand for its autonomous platform, rebranding DOT as OMNiPower and the AutoCart system as OMNiDrive. All of Raven’s intelligent autonomous […] Read more
Ford wires its electric trucks for business customers
Tesla, GM seen positioning electric pickups as 'lifestyle vehicles'
Detroit | Reuters — Ford Motor Co.’s newly revealed electric version of its best-selling F-150 pickup doubles down on a bet that the company can beat Tesla and other rivals by giving new technology a familiar face and convincing longtime fleet and business customers that going electric saves money. Ford officially unveiled the battery electric […] Read more
Cervus expects chip shortages may continue into fall
Deere dealer chain books increased Q1 profit
The semiconductor chip shortage plaguing automotive and equipment manufacturers may last into the second and even third quarters of the year, farm equipment retailer Cervus Group says. Calgary-based Cervus — which operates 64 dealerships in Canada, Australia and New Zealand, including 38 devoted mainly to Deere farm equipment — expects increased demand to run up […] Read more
Plant processing advocate gets the axe
Ag minister praises Plant Protein Alliance of Alberta but then its funding gets pulled
Reading Time: 4 minutes Blindsided. That’s how Allison Ammeter felt after the province first confirmed — and then cancelled — funding for an agency set up to help attract plant-protein processing to Alberta. And the move comes just weeks after the provincial ag minister held up the Plant Protein Alliance of Alberta as a leading example of his government’s […] Read more
On its way: Seeding canola with corn planter slowly gaining converts
The cost and learning curve are both high, but better results with less seed is a huge draw
Reading Time: 6 minutes Seeding their canola with a corn planter has meant a whole lot of work and a little bit of luck for the Olson family — but they hope this will be the year their work pays off. “This year, we’re doing all of our canola with the corn planter, where we’ve just done a couple […] Read more
Farmers asked to back gene editing
Reading Time: < 1 minute Producers are being asked to urge Health Canada to adopt “fair and reasonable rules” for gene editing. The department is conducting a public consultation on “novel food” guidelines, which could impact use of gene editing by plant breeders. Canada has not kept pace with other countries, says an alliance of national farm groups and industry […] Read more
Schoepp: Ag technology is a marvel but one that should be shared worldwide
There shouldn’t be haves and have-nots when it comes to the amazing advances in ag tech
Reading Time: 3 minutes As farmers, we are exposed to a multitude of choices in agricultural technology. And today, college students in Canada can earn an agricultural technology degree or diploma. What an opportunity for young men and women who want to grow food! I recently participated in the Global Agriculture Technology Summit on the panel for Women in […] Read more
Cyber-Savvy Farmer
