Livestock

Sheep producers have until June 30 to apply for annual coverage under the Canadian Sheep Federation’s national bluetongue insurance program for 2009. The voluntary program provides coverage for mortality, business interruption and consequential losses due to bluetongue, an insect-borne viral disease of sheep and other livestock. The coverage, which was made available for the first […] Read more

Manitoba wants input from the public on changes to its land-use policies, Intergovernmental Affairs Minister Steve Ashton announced Friday. The province says it was the first in Canada to adopt provincial land-use policies, in 1980. Manitoba’s policies were last reviewed and rewritten in 1994, to “incorporate the principles of sustainable development,” the province said. In […] Read more

Prince Edward Island’s cash-losing Atlantic Beef Products plant has lost its president after just four months, CBC reported Friday. John Thompson told the public broadcaster Friday that his decision to return to his former job in Moncton is strictly for personal reasons and not a reflection on the viability of Atlantic Canada’s only federally-inspected beef […] Read more

Manitoba farmers will see more limits on use of both man-made and animal-made fertilizers as the province further tightens rules meant to reduce Lake Winnipeg’s phosphorus load. “The (provincial) Clean Environment Commission (CEC) has sent a clear message that excessive phosphorus is enemy number one when it comes to restoring the health of Lake Winnipeg,” […] Read more

The U.S. vice-president for international sales with meat packing giant JBS warns the U.S. will have to carefully manage its NAFTA trading relationships on beef and pork. Speaking in a weekly audio feature at the U.S. Meat Export Federation’s website, Dan Halstrom, who’s also a former USMEF chair, described the beef trade relationship between the […] Read more

A “virtual fence” system for cattle herds, developed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Agricultural Research Service (USDA/ARS), will be marketed to cattle producers by a Nova Scotia tech firm. Krimar Enterprises, based at Lower Sackville, about 15 km north of Halifax, gets an exclusive license to market ARS’s directional virtual fencing (DVF) system as […] Read more

Students and graduates of the land agents’ diploma program at Alberta’s Olds College now have an option to put their diploma credits toward a bachelor of management degree. Olds College graduates about 50 students from its land agent diploma program per year. About 1,500 land agents are registered in Alberta, working for energy companies as […] Read more

Ontario’s livestock producers, by the end of this week, are to have a longer list of allowable options for disposing of deadstock, but remain on the hook for the disposal costs. Pending approval from Lt.-Gov. David Onley, a Disposal of Dead Farm Animals regulation under the provincial Nutrient Management Act and a Disposal of Deadstock […] Read more

A grab bag of enhanced, expanded and/or newly-entrenched ag-related tax credits lead the line items on offer for farmers in Manitoba’s latest provincial budget. Finance Minister Greg Selinger delivered the province’s budget Wednesday in Winnipeg, pledging a summary budget surplus of $48 million and that Manitoba’s planned tax cuts for 2009 would be reached without […] Read more