Reading Time: 2 minutes In order for McDonald’s to sell “verified sustainable beef,” someone will have to do the verifying — but questions remain about whether the favoured candidate is up to the job. “One of the reasons that McDonald’s chose to do the (pilot) project in Canada was because of the foundations like BIXS, the environmental farm plans, […] Read more
Will BIXS be part of the new sustainable beef system?
The Beef InfoXchange System has struggled to attract producers
EXCLUSIVE: Loblaws jumps on board the sustainable beef initiative
Canada’s largest food retailer has joined McDonald’s, the largest beef buyer, in an undertaking that could reshape the cattle sector
Reading Time: 5 minutes Canada’s largest food retailer has pledged to start selling sustainable beef, joining forces with the country’s largest beef buyer in an initiative that could reshape the industry, Alberta Farmer has learned. Loblaws, which has more than 1,000 stores serving 14 million Canadians weekly, already has a sustainable seafood program and is keen to do the […] Read more
A French adventure for young Alberta shepherd
Reading Time: 2 minutes Adriane Good now has a lifelong distinction — the first Canadian to participate in the World Young Shepherd’s Challenge. The 20-year-old travelled to France this fall to compete against other young shepherds from around the world — although it was friendly competition. “Honestly, the best part of it was meeting all these people from around […] Read more
American soil health guru plants seeds in Alberta
In-demand speaker barnstorms province to talk about building better soil with ‘cocktail’ cover crops and integrated crops/livestock system
Reading Time: 3 minutes Gabe Brown found some fertile Alberta soil for his message that diversity builds soil health and boosts profitability. The North Dakota farmer and soil health guru did a barnstorm tour of the province in the last week of October, starting in the Peace Country community of Grimshaw, swinging through Legal and Vermilion, and then zigging […] Read more
U of A agriculture school celebrates centennial
Faculty has made extensive contributions provincially, nationally and internationally
Reading Time: 2 minutes It’s a big birthday party that will go on all year, and hundreds of people are invited. The University of Alberta’s agriculture faculty will be celebrating its centennial until November 2015. The school opened in 1915 with only 16 students but today, the rechristened faculty of agriculture, life and environmental sciences (ALES) has 1,500 undergraduates, […] Read more
Don’t let this comedian drive your combine
Rick Mercer rolls into Round Hill at harvest time
Reading Time: 2 minutes Most farmers just go about their harvest days combining by themselves, alone in the cab. But that goes out the window when CBC TV star Rick Mercer shows up. “They had about three or four cameras all over the combine, and a drone with a camera on it taking pictures,” said Round Hill producer Humphrey […] Read more
Alberta’s first positive PEDv test means increased vigilance
A positive test for PEDv and a second one for swine delta coronavirus were recorded at handling facilities, not farms
Reading Time: 4 minutes Two positive tests for porcine diseases in the province have experts reminding Alberta producers to enhance their biosecurity. A PCR test found porcine epidemic diarrhea virus (PEDv) in the office at a pig-handling facility — the first time the virus has been found in Alberta. A second test, also at a pig-handling facility, detected a […] Read more
Biobeds a simple way to prevent pesticide contamination
The European innovation can break down pesticide simply and efficiently, but needs to be adapted to the Prairie climate
Reading Time: 2 minutes Up to 80 per cent of pesticide contamination on a farm occurs where a sprayer is washed, filled, handled or rinsed — but there’s a simple and inexpensive way to prevent it. Biobeds, already in use in the U.K., Scandinavia, and South America, are trenches filled with absorbent materials (such as peat moss, compost or […] Read more
Alberta vet’s social media campaign pays off for his Ukrainian friend
Airdrie vet Cody Creelman helps a vet in Ukraine win a bovine ultrasound
Reading Time: 2 minutes Cody Creelman just wanted to see the look on his friend’s face. Vadim Pryadko was trying not to make too much noise. The two veterinarians, one from Airdrie and the other from Ukraine, became friends thanks to a shared love of YouTube videos about bovine veterinary medicine— a friendship which became stronger after Creelman persuaded […] Read more
New book catalogues a ‘century of solutions’ at U of A’s ag department
Department started in 1915 with just 16 students and has gone on to win national and international renown
Reading Time: 2 minutes A hundred years of scientific innovation and agricultural advancements produced by University of Alberta faculty and researchers is being celebrated in a new book entitled A Century of Solutions. The Department of Agriculture — now the faculty of agriculture, life and environmental sciences (ALES) — was established in 1915 and had 16 students that first […] Read more