Reading Time: < 1 minute The Australian Broadcasting Corporation reports that a pair of shears used by legendary Australian sheep shearer Jackie Howe has sold for $38,000 at auction. The mechanical shears, used by Howe for many years, were listed for auction on Oct. 29 by Sotheby’s Australia. The auction house put an estimate on the shears of $15,000 to […] Read more
Pricey pair of sheep shears
Vitamin E supplements may improve beef
Reading Time: < 1 minute Vitamin E supplements in cattle feed can improve the shelf life of ground beef and may provide human health benefits, says Mike Dugan of Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada. In a research project funded by the Alberta Livestock and Meat Agency (ALMA), Dugan’s initial findings show that supplementing vitamin E in cattle diets improves the colour […] Read more
Richardson Pioneer donates $300,000 to three Prairie communities
Reading Time: < 1 minute Falher is one of three Prairie communities selected to receive a $100,000 grant from the Richardson Pioneer Century Gifts Program. The Peace-area town will use the funds for renovation of the Falher Honey Capital Playground. It joins Minnedosa, Man. and Whitewood, Sask., as the applicants chosen from the 145 proposals received since the program was […] Read more
Luring corn rootworm beetles to a bad end
Reading Time: < 1 minute Purdue and University of Illinois researchers say they may have identified a unique way of combatting corn rootworm beetles — planting a corn variety that is especially attractive to them. The researchers have discovered a novel corn mutant which lacks the normal defence mechanism against the beetles. This could allow a “push-pull” strategy of luring […] Read more
AAFC scientist receives CFGA award
Reading Time: < 1 minute The Canadian Forage and Grassland Association (CFGA) has announced that Gilles Bélanger is recipient of the 2013 CFGA Leadership Award. Bélanger is a Quebec-based research scientist with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada in the area of physiology and agronomy of forage crops. “Dr. Bélanger’s contribution to improving the productivity and adaptation of forages in Eastern Canada […] Read more
Safe deposit box with a view
Reading Time: < 1 minute Land remains a “safe deposit box with a view” for the ultra-wealthy, according to the publication 2013 Land Report 100, an annual survey and ranking of the largest private landowners in the United States. It says that in 2012, the country’s top 100 landowners cumulatively increased their private holdings by 700,000 acres to a total […] Read more
New foundation supports agriculture students
Reading Time: < 1 minute A new national foundation will promote post-secondary agricultural education to Canadian high school students. The Canadian Agri-Business Education Foundation (CABEF) will award six $2,500 scholarships annually to students enrolling in a post-secondary agricultural degree or diploma program. They will be awarded in Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario and Quebec, with an additional scholarship available for students […] Read more
Alberta to repurpose CWB-related trust fund
Reading Time: 2 minutes A scholarship trust formed in Alberta using surplus money from the original 1919 Canadian Wheat Board will shift to oversight by the province’s Heritage Scholarship Fund. The provincial government announced the move as part of a list of obsolete legislation it plans to repeal. Among that legislation is the Wheat Board Money Trust Act, which […] Read more
New charitable foundation launched by SeedMaster
Reading Time: < 1 minute Saskatchewan manufacturer SeedMaster is establishing a philanthropic foundation to mark its 10th anniversary. The foundation, Social Entrepreneurship by Design (SED), invites community fundraising groups in Saskatchewan, Manitoba and Alberta and the U.S. Midwest to apply for grants ranging from $1,000 to $10,000. “Instead of just applying SED money to a fundraiser’s bottom line, the funds […] Read more
Probiotics could serve as alternative to antibiotics in pig feed
Reading Time: < 1 minute German researchers have found that piglets fed probiotic Enterococcus faecium showed reduced numbers of potentially pathogenic Escherichia coli strains in their intestines, the American Society for Microbiology says in a release. Researchers were looking for alternatives to antibiotics for reducing pathogens in the intestines of young pigs following the EU’s ban on using antibiotics as […] Read more
Cyber-Savvy Farmer
