Reading Time: 4 minutes The mental health of farmers is getting more attention these days, but the situation in Alberta isn’t well understood and there are big gaps in support, says a provincial researcher. A landmark study done by the University of Guelph six years ago revealed that many farmers suffer mental-health issues, said Rebecca Purc-Stephenson, a research associate […] Read more
UNDER PRESSURE: Group boosts aid for farmers hit by stress
Goodbye and good riddance — 2022 was not kind to cattle feeders
The COVID hangover, more cattle on feed, and lots of labour woes all contributed to a year to forget
Reading Time: 4 minutes The fed cattle sector couldn’t catch a break in 2022 and it wasn’t any one thing that created the problem. “This has been going on for sure since February/March,” said Jacob Bueckert, who operates Driland Feeders near Warner and is chair of the Alberta Cattle Feeders Association. “I don’t know if we ever fully caught […] Read more
LIFE ON THE EDGE: Three farmers share their experiences with precision ag
It’s not just the tech, but finding a way to make the farm more efficient and the decisions better
Reading Time: 5 minutes There were undoubtedly a lot of double takes when folks drove by Rob Stone’s farm last summer when he was out scouting. That’s because the Saskatchewan producer was accompanied by a robot that wouldn’t look out of place on a lunar expedition, although it’s also been described as looking like a “glorified card table” on […] Read more
At this sold-out conference, it’s the attendees who are the big draw
Networking is the first order of business for the 500 soil health devotees at the highly popular event
Reading Time: 5 minutes Shorty Fensky first found his passion for soil health when he went to the 2015 Western Canada Conference on Soil Health. Seven years later, he was back – sharing that passion on a producer panel. “At the 2015 conference, the very first presenter was Dr. Yamily Zavala and her presentation was called ‘What is Soil […] Read more
Renewable diesel demand expected to soar in next two years
Canola production poised to jump as new facilities come on stream in next two years
Reading Time: 4 minutes Renewable diesel production is poised to take off in the next five years and the coming boom is great news for canola growers, says the Canadian Oilseeds Processors Association. “For canola crush, in terms of possible capacity growth in the years to come, we could see almost six million tonnes of increased capacity based on […] Read more
Consumers look to their wallets – and social media – when it comes to food
Local, sustainable and whipped coffee is trendy, but it’s more complicated when it comes to meat
Reading Time: 3 minutes Local food is still a hot trend and consumers are moving to the middle ground when it comes to eating meat. Those are two takeaways for farmers from the latest Nourish Trend Report from Toronto food and beverage marketing agency Nourish Food Marketing. The food sector is on the brink of great change, said company […] Read more
Trial examines plant growth regulators under real-life conditions
There was a reduction in lodging but PGR effectiveness depends on the product, variety and location
Reading Time: 4 minutes Do plant growth regulators reduce lodging in wheat? They had an impact, but not a huge one, in an on-farm field trial done under the Plot2Farm program this year. “What we’ve seen is that they are not a silver bullet when it comes to lodging,” said Jeremy Boychyn, agronomy research extension manager for Alberta Barley […] Read more
Once again, supporters of growing projects are making a difference
Reading Time: 4 minutes Just keeping track of the offers of help would likely keep the eight members of the Taber Foodgrains Project’s organizing committee busy. “There’s probably close to 100 organizations that help out in some way, shape or form,” said Jeremy Wind, the group’s chair. “We had no challenges getting people to help out. There’s always a […] Read more
Climate mitigation grants a huge hit on Alberta farms
More than 700 applications came in this year and a second, bigger surge is expected in February
Reading Time: 4 minutes Hundreds of Alberta producers have completed climate mitigation projects on their farms and the administrator of the On-Farm Climate Action Fund is expecting another wave of applications when the program reopens in February. “We’re swamped but that’s good,” said Fiona Briody, program manager for RDAR (Results Driven Agriculture Research), which is administering the bulk of […] Read more
Alberta cattleman right at home at UN climate change conference
Many anti-meat critics have no idea how cattle are raised, but Bob Lowe is always willing to explain
Reading Time: 4 minutes Bob Lowe, a cattle feeder from Nanton, isn’t afraid to enter a conference hall full of vegans — and there was a sizeable contingent of people opposed to meat production at this year’s global climate conference. As part of his trip to COP27 in Egypt last month, the veteran cattle producer paid a visit to […] Read more
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