Reading Time: 2 minutes Despite job losses in other sectors, Canada’s pork industry is still struggling to build a sustainable workforce. “For us in Western Canada, it really comes down to availability of labour,” said Darcy Fitzgerald, executive director at Alberta Pork. “We need to have workers available for us, and often, they’re not Canadian, only because we don’t […] Read more
Meat packers desperate for workers despite jump in jobless rate
Farm Vote: There are 1,000 job vacancies at slaughter plants, but Canadians shun them
Alberta Beef: Keep up country-of-origin labelling battle
Farm Vote: Rich Smith says next government must maintain the pressure on Washington in long-running dispute
Reading Time: 2 minutes Country-of-origin labelling — a.k.a. COOL — isn’t cool for Alberta’s beef producers. “We’re an exporting industry, and trade issues like country-of-origin labelling are probably our top priority,” said Rich Smith, executive director of Alberta Beef Producers. “In terms of the negative impact of COOL, it continues to have an impact of close to $1 billion […] Read more
Without reliable grain transport, trade deals won’t pay off
Farm Vote: A Trans-Pacific trade deal would be great, but better rail transport is needed, says Alberta Wheat
Reading Time: 2 minutes Canada needs to be part of the Trans-Pacific Partnership agreement, says the general manager of Alberta Wheat. “We think it’s a critical issue for the Canadian wheat industry to maintain and enhance access to key wheat markets,” said Tom Steve. “If we look at the member countries of the TPP, those 12 countries represent over […] Read more
Canola hailed as a model for value-added processing
Farm Vote: Canola Producers chair says processing of commodities should top Ottawa’s to-do list
Reading Time: 2 minutes Value-added processing has created a stronger canola industry in Canada — and there’s nothing to say it couldn’t work in other commodities as well. “We’ve seen a lot of infrastructure put together in Western Canada to lengthen our value chain here domestically,” said Lee Markert, chair of the Alberta Canola Producers Commission. “For a long […] Read more
Protect supply management, says Alberta Milk chair
Farm Vote: Tom Kootstra says critics of supply management don’t understand there’s no free market in milk
Reading Time: 2 minutes Alberta’s dairy industry needs Ottawa to fight for supply management, says the chair of Alberta Milk. “The biggest issue is continued support for our unique production model — supply management — and the potential impact that a trade deal could have on our system,” said Tom Kootstra. That means going to bat for supply management […] Read more
Rail transport still needs fixing, says farm leader
Farm Vote: Mike Ammeter says Ottawa needs to fix broken system
Reading Time: 2 minutes A poor crop means rail transport might not be an issue for grain growers this year but “the challenge is still there,” says the chair of Alberta Barley. “What we went through a couple of years ago, with not being able to get our product off the Prairies to port and to our customers, was […] Read more
Poisonous weed found in Alberta canola fields
Devil’s trumpet is highly poisonous, but poses little risk when processed into canola meal or oil
Reading Time: 4 minutes There’s still more questions than answers after a highly toxic prohibited weed was found in canola fields in three counties in north-central Alberta. Devil’s trumpet — also called jimsonweed — has been confirmed in Barrhead, Leduc, and Westlock counties, but how it got there and how widespread the problem is remains a mystery. “It would […] Read more
Farm family weathers Mother Nature’s worst through diversification
Bowden farm has branched out from grain, cattle, and seed potatoes into agri-tourism and community-supported agriculture
Reading Time: 3 minutes In a bad year, the Great White Combine does a good chunk of the harvesting in Hailstorm Alley — a little pocket of central Alberta that sees more than its fair share of hail. And there have been more bad years than good in John Mills’ farming career. “I’ve been back on the farm for […] Read more
When storing grain, remember to SLAM
Paying attention to sanitation, loading, aeration, and monitoring is key to avoiding storage problems
Reading Time: 3 minutes This fall when you’re preparing your grain for storage, all you need to do is remember to SLAM. That’s short for sanitation, loading, aeration, and monitoring. The first step — removing any dust or debris from your bins before harvest — is “obviously important,” said Ryan Braun, Canadian sales manager for OPI, a grain storage […] Read more
Three things to watch for when reading your grain contract
Two-part contracts, delivery terms, and extended delivery periods can cause problems down the road if you don’t read your grain contract carefully
Reading Time: 3 minutes Do you read your grain contracts from front to back? If so, you’re one of the few who do. A University of Manitoba study found only 17 per cent of Canadian farmers read their whole grain contracts — and that’s a mistake, says a grain industry expert. “For every grain buyer out there, the terms […] Read more
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