Reading Time: 4 minutes Watching Alzheimer’s steal away a loved one is always painful, but there are additional challenges when you’re living on a farm. Trent, a grain farmer from east-central Alberta, knows this all too well. He farmed with his father, now in his late 70s, until five years ago. “I knew Dad was getting older and getting […] Read more
Alzheimer’s on the farm carries special risks
People living on farms face additional challenges when dealing with Alzheimer’s
Cattle leader says it’s time to rebuild the herd
ABP chair Greg Bowie says there is plenty of opportunity in the beef business, and wants to see the next generation seize it
Reading Time: 3 minutes Good times have finally returned to the beef sector, and now is the time to focus on bringing in the next generation, says the chair of Alberta Beef Producers. The entire industry has gotten greyer during the difficult decade following the discovery of BSE, said Greg Bowie. “Not only is the average producer in the […] Read more
Southern-area farmers hit hard by heavy September snow
The early blast of winter will be ‘devastating’ for many producers in the south, with crops such as wheat being hit especially hard
Reading Time: 3 minutes It looked like a winter wonderland, but no one in southern Alberta was in the holiday spirit when snow arrived in early September. Forecasts called for less than an inch, but Mother Nature delivered six to eight in many areas. At Brandon Gibb’s place near Hillspring, the white stuff started falling around 7:30 a.m. and […] Read more
Police seeking information about tractor filled with canola seed
Reading Time: < 1 minute Whether it was a twisted prank or the work of someone with a grudge, it’s an unusual crime. Sometime on Sept. 11 or 12, a person or persons siphoned off the gas in a tractor in the Willingdon area, and then filled it with canola seed. Other parts of the John Deere 9320 were also […] Read more
Good times gone, farm aid back on the agenda
Alberta farm leaders have been cool to seeking additional aid, but wicked weather and plunging prices may be changing that view
Reading Time: 3 minutes Alberta farm leaders have stayed on the sidelines while their Prairie counterparts have been lobbying for improved farm support programs — but that may soon change. This month’s snowstorm and early frost coupled with the massive American harvest that has “hammered” the futures markets has dramatically changed the outlook in Alberta, said Greg Porozni, president […] Read more
A chance to see how beef is raised down south
The Grey Wooded Forage Association is planning its first trip to Argentina
Reading Time: 2 minutes Members of the Grey Wooded Forage Association are planning a trip to a new continent, and they’re looking for people to join them. The group will be hosting its inaugural tour abroad to Argentina in February 2015. The tour is focused on Argentina’s beef industry, and participants will get to visit farms, research centres, and […] Read more
Canadian Grain Commission looking for CPS Red or Red Winter wheat samples
Program helps marketers, and farmers who participate receive a free grade and protein analysis
Reading Time: 2 minutes If you’re growing Canada Prairie Spring Wheat or Canada Western Red Winter Wheat, then the Canadian Grain Commission wants your samples. “These are minor classes of wheat that not all producers grow,” said Twylla McKendry, program manager for Analytical Services with the Canadian Grain Commission. “We don’t have a lot of people in our database […] Read more
Pot-bellied pigs, Shetland ponies and rabbits, oh my!
Lloydminster Rare and Exotic Fall Sale, Saturday, Sept. 27
Reading Time: 2 minutes Pssst… Do you want to buy a duck? Or sell a goat? How about a donkey? Then the annual Lloydminster Rare and Exotic Fall Sale on Sept. 27 is for you. The sale, which has been running for 31 years, is popular with hobby farmers and attracts about 800 people from Alberta and Saskatchewan each […] Read more
iPhone-based program gives meat processors full traceability
BioLinks software also tracks sales and manages inventory
Reading Time: 3 minutes If you’re a small meat processor, you can now manage your entire operation using your iPhone and a personal computer, thanks to an Alberta-created program called BioLinks. “I wouldn’t want to run our business without BioLinks,” said Tim Hofer, manager of the Pine Haven Colony Meat shop. The meat shop was a participant in the […] Read more
Alberta agricultural producers accept the ice bucket challenge
Reading Time: < 1 minute The ice bucket challenge is hot, and members of Alberta’s farm community aren’t letting it cool off. Rick Taillieu of the Alberta Canola Producers Commission let each of his four daughters dump a bucket of ice water on his head. Farm advocate and blogger Sarah Schultz allowed her brother-in-law to use a front-end loader to […] Read more
Cyber-Savvy Farmer
