Fruit growers in the southern Okanagan Valley of British Columbia are expecting over $5 million in insurance payouts after “significant” losses to a harsh growing season, CBC reported Thursday. Officials with the province told CBC that about 100 growers in the Osoyoos area were hit with heavy frost in April, then with hail and storms […] Read more
S. Okanagan orchards face major losses: CBC
Payouts per hail claim beat Sask. average
Hail insurers in Saskatchewan report a far higher average payout per claim this year, with six-figure claim payouts “not unusual,” an insurers’ group reports. In its latest Prairie hail report, the Canadian Crop Hail Association reported over 2,000 new hail claims filed in Saskatchewan in the past two weeks, bringing total claims for this crop […] Read more
Project to hunt for more benefits from canola
“Lesser known” benefits of canola oil are the target of a new research project that will extract antioxidants from canola for use in functional foods. The project at the University of Manitoba in Winnipeg will be funded by a Collaborative Research and Development grant from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC), […] Read more
Workers’ comp. mandated for Man. farms
Manitoba farms and farm-related industries will soon have to carry workers’ compensation coverage for their employees. Following the recommendations of the provincial Workers Compensation Board in a report released in June, the province will extend mandatory WCB coverage to an additional 7,500 employers and 30,000 workers, starting January 1, 2009. In the ag sector, this […] Read more
Man. college plans GPS, GIS training for farmers
A new partnership between Assiniboine Community College (ACC) and the Manitoba Zero Tillage Research Association (MZTRA) is designed to expand farmers’ understanding of precision agriculture technology through a two-year research project conducted at the MZTRA farm. The $137,000 project is supported by the Agri-Food Research and Development Initiative (ARDI), MZTRA and Brandon-based ACC through cash […] Read more
N.B. farmers invited to apply for board
New Brunswick’s new pilot project to open the public board appointment process to applications from the public will now include the provincial Farm Products Commission. The province announced Tuesday it is accepting “expressions of interest” from people who are “committed to the sustainability of the province’s agriculture industry,” Agriculture Minister Ron Ouellette said in a […] Read more
Talks wrap up on Canada/Jordan FTA
The federal government says it’s concluded its negotiations toward a free trade agreement (FTA) with Jordan that would benefit Canadian pulse growers among other sectors. International Trade Minister Michael Fortier announced Tuesday that the talks had concluded during their third round in Amman on Monday. “This bilateral free trade agreement will open up significant opportunities […] Read more
Yukon moves to thin elk herd
Yukon farmers are expected to be among the beneficiaries of a proposed “limited harvest” of elk in the territory in 2009, the government said Monday. The Yukon government, which adopted a new elk management plan in June, said Monday it will begin work with First Nations and other stakeholders on some more of the plan’s […] Read more
Editors’ Picks: Cows line up by longitude
A new European study suggests your cattle may be among the animal species that have a built-in compass. Quoted Tuesday in an Associated Press report by Randolph Schmid, a joint German/Czech study led by biologists Hynek Burda and Sabine Begall of the University of Duisburg-Essen found that cattle at rest or grazing show a statistical […] Read more
N.B. tops up milk prices
New Brunswick’s dairy consumers will pay 3.5 cents per litre more for milk beginning Sept. 1, the New Brunswick Farm Products Commission announced Tuesday. “The price adjustment is wholly based on the effects of the rise of fuel costs throughout the supply chain,” chairman Hazen Myers said in a provincial release. “Rising fuel costs not […] Read more
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