Reading Time: 2 minutes Don Lobb, a farmer from Huron County, Ontario was recently awarded the L.B. Thomson award for his long-standing commitment to soil and water conservation in Canada. An early adopter of no-till farming, Lobb has been widely recognized as both an innovator and a leader in soil and water conservation locally, nationally and internationally. L.B. Thomson […] Read more
Can we justify our soil-management practices?
Alberta Agriculture meetings underline value of the CWB
Reading Time: 2 minutes Although the Government of Alberta is putting forth a celebratory mood regarding the end of the Canadian Wheat Board’s (CWB) single desk, its public meetings being held in January and February across the province are taking place in an increasingly negative context for farmers who must deal with the fallout from the government’s long ideological […] Read more
Policies give lie to farmers’ mantra
Reading Time: 2 minutes Some people believe in tillage, others in no till. Some people believe in planning, others in fate. Ask an American farmer if he believes a big part of his destiny includes feeding the world and he’ll likely say, “Yep.” The answer is quick and sincere because somewhere in every farmer and rancher’s makeup is a […] Read more
Do Calgarians need a study to find where their food comes from?
Reading Time: 3 minutes Some of us in the agriculture and food business like to amuse ourselves about the naiveté of city folks who have no clue where their food comes from. We chortle when they seem to assume that food magically appears at the local grocery store. As amusing as that may seem, those assumptions may be close […] Read more
LETTERS – for Dec. 5, 2011
Reading Time: < 1 minute Trapping Not The Answer Iam totally disgusted with your cover article on trappers (Nov. 7). This practice should have gone the way of the caveman a long time ago. Any person who gets a thrill out of injuring an animal and creates suffering of any sort should be charged. This is a despicable practice and […] Read more
R-CALF Not Happy With WTO
Reading Time: 2 minutes Excerpts from a press release issued by the U.S. Ranchers-Cattlemen Action Legal Fund (R-CALF) following the announcement of a WTO panel upholding a Canadian complaint on the U.S. country-of-origin labelling (COOL) legislation Today, a panel of three foreign diplomats seated by the United Nation s World Trade Organization (WTO) issued a decision regarding complaints filed […] Read more
Is Corn Production The Sleeping Giant In Alberta?
Reading Time: 3 minutes Corn is one of those crops that has somewhat befuddled agriculture in this province for many years. It always seems to be just on the threshold of breaking out of its minor crop status to something more mainstream in crop production. It would seem that we have some ideal conditions for major grain-corn production, particularly […] Read more
Learning To Live On And Off The Land
Reading Time: 3 minutes Recently, my two sons and I.moved out of town and into the countryside, the fulfillment of a dream for me. We re renting a ranch house northeast of Pincher Creek and there s even some pasture available. But perhaps the most exciting part so far has been the pretty little black Drolet wood stove in […] Read more
Remember The Adage About The Cure For High Prices
Reading Time: 4 minutes It s nice to see lamb prices are on the way up. There is more optimism and there is a level of confidence among producers not seen for some time. I remember a time back in the mid- 90s when we saw similar prices. That was when a dollar bought considerably more than it does […] Read more
Political Decisions Are Coming Home To Roost
Reading Time: 3 minutes It has been a couple of unusually busy months in regard to issues that affect producers and landowners in Alberta. I expect that many are somewhat relieved that some of these long-standing concerns are being resolved. But then resolution is in the eyes of those affected and it s not always positive or sincere. The […] Read more