Reading Time: 2 minutes The Recycling Council of Alberta has created a guide for farmers and rural landowners who might be interested in composting organic waste material from municipalities and businesses. Nationwide, about 2.2 million tonnes of organic waste are sent to landfills annually and it could be composted and spread on fields, the organization said. “We have traditionally […] Read more
Producers urged to consider commercial-scale composting
Giving it the old college try has a new meaning these days
Reading Time: 2 minutes Lakeland College and Lethbridge College have each received a major funding boost and the pair has also joined five of their provincial counterparts to create a new research alliance. Lakeland is getting $1 million in federal funding for smart agriculture technology. It will be used to construct a new Livestock Reproductive Technology Laboratory and boost […] Read more
Weed-free forage program relaunched
Some counties are now offering inspections to ensure invasive weeds are not present in hay
Reading Time: 2 minutes A program aimed at preventing the spread of invasive and noxious weeds via hay is getting a second shot. Alberta’s first go-round with a Certified Weed Free Forage program a decade ago never fully took off but the Alberta Invasive Species Council has revived the initiative. “Use of certified weed-free forage is a best management […] Read more
Livestock affected by wildfire smoke, too
Reading Time: < 1 minute The extensive smoke from this year’s wildfires has prompted the American Veterinary Medical Association to put out an advisory for pets and livestock. “If you can see or feel the effects of smoke yourself, you also should take precautions to keep your animals — both pets and livestock — safe.” It urges animal owners to […] Read more
Livestock tax deferral program kicks in early
Program is aimed at helping producers rebuild their herds
Reading Time: < 1 minute Ottawa has started up its Livestock Tax Deferral months ahead of normal to give producers who have to sell cattle a better economic route to rebuilding their herds next year. Alberta Beef Producers and other cattle groups had requested the earlier-than-usual start to the program. Some also want an expansion of the deferral provision beyond just […] Read more
Alarms raised after African swine fever crosses the Atlantic
Positive cases in the Dominican Republic have officials in Canada on high alert
Reading Time: 2 minutes The arrival of African swine fever in the Caribbean has alarm bells ringing here. “An outbreak of ASF in Canada could devastate the Canadian pig herd, placing farm families and tens of thousands of jobs along the entire value chain at risk,” the Canadian Pork Council said in a release. “A single, positive case could […] Read more
Crop quality has been a steep, fast downward plunge
Reading Time: 2 minutes The crop report from Alberta Agriculture in late July was — not surprisingly — dismal. But the speed of the deterioration of crop quality was nevertheless noteworthy. “Only 20 per cent of the annual crops (are) good or excellent,” it said in its end-of-July report. “This represents a 17-point drop in the last two weeks […] Read more
Some safety days to start this fall
Reading Time: < 1 minute A nationwide event that has helped hundreds of thousands of kids learn how to say safe while working and playing on the farm won’t be fully back in action until next year. Most Farm Safety Days — there are usually 75 to 90 in a normal year — have been cancelled this year, said Robin […] Read more
Forage research gets long-awaited boost
Reading Time: < 1 minute Forage research will get a much-needed boost with the creation of a new research position at the University of Saskatchewan. “A 2012 assessment concluded lack of research and development investment in the Canadian forage industry meant advances in forage had not kept pace with developments in other crops,” the Beef Cattle Research Council said in […] Read more
Take a walk thru on the dairy farm
Walk thru event being held Aug. 7
Reading Time: < 1 minute It’s too soon to hold Breakfast on the Dairy Farm again. But a version of it — Walk thru on the Dairy Farm — is being held on Aug. 7 at Happy Cow Dairy in Red Deer County. “Organizers have worked with Alberta Health Services to follow all COVID-19 safety protocols while still offering a […] Read more
Cyber-Savvy Farmer
