COVID-19 Archives | Alberta Farmer Express

(Canada Border Services Agency video screengrab)

Canada taking first step toward lifting border restrictions

U.S. border restrictions still in place until at least June 21

By David Ljunggren, Steve Scherer, GFM Network News 3 days ago

Ottawa | Reuters — Canada on Wednesday took a cautious first step toward easing COVID-19 border restrictions, saying it was prepared to relax quarantine protocols for fully vaccinated citizens returning home starting in early July. Canada’s air and land borders have allowed for only essential travel since March of last year, and Canadians coming home […] Read more

News

Pandemic didn’t slow recycling efforts

By CleanFarms 3 days ago

Reading Time: < 1 minute Despite the challenges of a year restrained by the pandemic, Canadian producers returned more than 5.5 million pesticide and fertilizer jugs 23 litres and smaller in 2020. That’s on par with 2019 numbers. Last year’s collection brought the total number of jugs recovered for recycling since the beginning of the program in 1989 to more […] Read more

The pandemic started out with fear – including empty supermarket shelves in rich countries like France due to hoarding (at top), and brought many tragedies – including outbreaks in Alberta’s meatpacking plants (at bottom).

News

Agriculture’s big challenges won’t end when the pandemic does

Longstanding problems are still there but we’ve learned lessons that can be applied, say senior officials

By Jennifer Blair June 2, 2021

Reading Time: 4 minutes The ag sector will require some fresh approaches to old problems if Canadian producers hope to remain competitive in a post-pandemic world. “All of the things we were worried about post-pandemic are exactly the same things we were worried about pre-pandemic,” said Simon Kennedy, deputy minister of Innovation, Science, and Economic Development Canada. Trade conflicts, […] Read more

Shanika Abeysinghe co-founded Bessie with university friends Spencer Kerber (middle) and Alex Leakos as a way to get naturally raised meat delivered directly to customers’ front doors. Now, they want to make it easier for other producers to do the same.

Heartland, News

A side order of software aims to help small-scale producers

By Jennifer Blair May 25, 2021

Reading Time: 3 minutes A local ag-tech startup wants to make it easier for small-scale farmers to connect with — and sell to — their customers. “We’re empowering farmers to go direct or go to wholesale and giving them more tools to do so because of some of the stuff we’ve seen through COVID,” said Shanika Abeysinghe, co-founder of […] Read more

Livestock, Markets, Reuters

JBS able to pass on higher grain costs in North America

By Reuters, GFM Network News May 13, 2021

Sao Paulo | Reuters — JBS SA, the world’s largest meatpacker, has been able to pass higher grain costs on to consumer prices because food demand is strong in markets such as the U.S. and Canada, executives said in an earnings call Thursday. In Brazil, where higher feed prices have dented margins of the company’s […] Read more

People can buy flowers anywhere but the experience of visiting Birchwood Meadows and picking their own is something special, says Cory Christopher.

Heartland, News

New enterprise blooms on former grain farm and tree nursery

By Alexis Kienlen May 10, 2021

Reading Time: 3 minutes After grain farming and tree farming, Ron and Debbie Cherdarchuk and son Cory Christopher turned to flower farming. And guess how popular you are these days when you have a landscape full of flowers that you’re willing to share? “The internet, and in particular Pinterest, have created digital envy,” said Cory (who uses Christopher for […] Read more

(Sollio Co-operative Group video screengrab via YouTube)

Hogs, Livestock, Markets

Workers call strike at Olymel hog plant in Quebec

Producers urged to prioritize heavier hogs when shipping

By Dave Bedard, GFM Network News May 1, 2021

Talks toward a new contract for unionized employees at meat packer Olymel’s hog slaughter and processing plant in Quebec’s Beauce region have ended in a strike. The Syndicat des travailleurs d’Olymel Vallee-Jonction-CSN, which represents over 1,000 staff at Vallee-Jonction, about 60 km southeast of Quebec City, called an “indefinite” strike effective Wednesday morning, the union […] Read more

The ag industry has become a lot safer in recent decades, but farm accidents are still occurring in numbers that demand our attention.

Opinion

Opinion: You say safety is a priority, but the stats tell a different story

Farm accidents will spike in these hectic and stressful months so please give safety more attention

By Jody Wacowich April 21, 2021

Reading Time: 2 minutes I am sure I am not alone in saying that COVID-19 has dominated my thoughts, conversations, plans, work and social life for the past year. We all hoped we would have moved past this point by now — and while we are getting closer, we are not there yet. With all the (rightful) attention being […] Read more

Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland arrives to a news conference prior to delivering the budget in the House of Commons in Ottawa on April 19, 2021. (Photo: Reuters/Blair Gable)

General, Machinery & Shop, Weather

Federal budget to offer direct payments to farmers for carbon pricing

Other new 'green growth' funding also on deck

By D.C. Fraser, GFM Network News April 19, 2021

The federal government’s 2021 budget offers up new spending to support farmers combatting climate change through targeted investments — and, in some cases, direct payments. Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland released the budget Monday, showing the majority of new spending will take place over three years and be largely focused on “green growth.” “Budget 2021 announces […] Read more

CME August 2021 feeder cattle with Bollinger (20,2) bands. (Barchart)

Livestock, Markets, Reuters

U.S. livestock: Cattle, hogs down on demand concerns

'We got a little bit ahead of ourselves'

By Mark Weinraub, GFM Network News April 16, 2021

Chicago | Reuters — CME Group hog futures fell sharply for the second day in a row on Friday, with the most-active June contract sinking 2.9 per cent to its lowest since March 23. Cattle futures also were weaker, with the June live cattle contract notching its seventh straight losing session. The market was correcting […] Read more

U.S. grains: Corn, soy drop; soyoil limit-down

U.S. livestock: Cattle gain on strong packer margins

U.S. livestock: Lean hogs end mostly higher

GFM Network News