Reading Time: 3 minutes A modern broiler chicken grows a whopping four times faster than one bred in the 1950s — and packs on those pounds with much less feed. “They’re much more efficient,” said Martin Zuidhof, associate professor poultry systems at the University of Alberta. “It takes half the feed to grow a bird.” Zuidhof has been getting […] Read more
The tale of how chickens got so big
Today’s strain of chickens are four times bigger than the broilers of 60 years ago, and they need only half the feed
Cover crops and soil health guru winning converts in Alberta
Gabe Brown’s methods of using a ‘cocktail’ of cover crops to rebuild soil, lower input costs and boost yields are attracting serious attention
Reading Time: 4 minutes Like many farmers, Gabe Brown hates the term “sustainable agriculture.” But his beef is that it doesn’t go far enough. “For us to have the resources that will be truly sustainable for future generations, we have to regenerate our degraded soil,” said the North Dakota rancher and farmer, an internationally renowned speaker who has toured […] Read more
Garlic festival a joyous (and odorous) celebration
Andrew festival showcases garlic and celebrates the village’s Ukrainian heritage
Reading Time: 2 minutes For 16 years, residents of the town of Andrew have gathered to celebrate the stinking rose — and every year, more and more visitors join them. “It’s just grown tremendously,” said Carri Hrehorets, president of the Andrew Agricultural Society in the village of 400 located an hour’s drive northeast of Edmonton. “We get about 1,000 […] Read more
Alberta beekeepers oppose Ontario neonic lawsuit
Beekeepers here are speaking out against lawsuit, saying it’s better to work with chemical companies
Reading Time: 2 minutes Alberta beekeepers are taking a stand and speaking out against a lawsuit filed by their Ontario counterparts against the makers of the controversial neonic pesticide. “We’re not being impacted by neonics. If we are, it’s very subtly,” said Grant Hicks, president of the Alberta Beekeepers Commission. “We’re not seeing any damage to our hives.” While […] Read more
Only in the digital age — Alberta and Ukrainian cattle vets a YouTube sensation
A shared passion for veterinary medicine and YouTube has Albertan Cody Creelman helping a Ukrainian colleague in his bid to win a bovine ultrasound
Reading Time: 4 minutes It started with an online friendship between two cattle veterinarians, and blossomed into a worldwide, viral campaign. Even though he doesn’t speak a word of Ukrainian, Airdrie vet Cody Creelman, was drawn to the online videos of Vadim Pryadko, who lives in a town called Khmelnitsky near the Polish border. “We developed a relationship,” said […] Read more
Pork producers urged to remain vigilant for PED virus over the fall and winter
New cases of porcine epidemic diarrhea in Manitoba have Alberta producers being warned not to drop their guard
Reading Time: 4 minutes Alberta pork producers are being warned to remain vigilant about a deadly pig virus, but may face another threat — falling prices if the U.S. herd rebounds from the PEDv crisis. The province’s pork sector has been successful in keeping porcine epidemic diarrhea out of Alberta, but new cases in Manitoba in the past month […] Read more
The Big Three “to-do’s”: Experts offer their post-harvest advice
Whether it’s in the office or the field, there are some jobs that should be at the top of your to-do list
Reading Time: 9 minutes For many producers, this harvest is going to seem to drag on forever. But, of course, it won’t. The combine will be parked, the farm meetings and shows will get underway, Christmas will come and go, and before you know it, you’re in the shed getting the seeding rig ready. So with that in mind, […] Read more
Alzheimer’s on the farm carries special risks
People living on farms face additional challenges when dealing with Alzheimer’s
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
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