Reading Time: 3 minutes The direct contact between veterinarians and producers and pharmaceutical reps and technical services veterinarians has begun to open up again. Each pharmaceutical company had different restrictions on travel and rules on in-person contact and, of course, are fully abiding by the local health rules of the different provinces. The good news is that during the […] Read more
The pandemic taught us many lessons in the animal health field
The supply chain stayed strong and co-operation made it stronger, and that’s very important
Britain facing mass cull of pigs due to butcher shortage
London | Reuters — Britain’s farming industry has warned that hundreds of thousands of pigs may have to be culled within weeks unless the government issues visas to allow more butchers into the country. An acute shortage of butchers and slaughterers in the meat processing industry has been exacerbated by COVID-19 and Britain’s post-Brexit immigration […] Read more
Canada’s CPPIB to buy major U.S. port terminal operator
Canada Pension Plan's play furthers its infrastructure push
Reuters — Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB) said on Wednesday it had agreed to buy Ports America, one of the largest marine terminal operators in the U.S., from investment firm Oaktree Capital Management. While no valuation was given in the announcement, the deal values Ports America at over US$4 billion, according to two sources […] Read more
CBOT oats climb on supply woes
Prairie drought eats at availability
Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Board of Trade December oats futures climbed their daily maximum of 25 cents per bushel on Wednesday, nearing a 7-1/2 hear high, after drought slashed supplies from top global supplier Canada at a time of robust demand for the grain, traders said. The December oats contract surged 25 cents to […] Read more
Would you like fries with that? Potato acres up after pandemic drop
It’s a few years off but irrigation expansion should usher in another production leap in the province
Reading Time: 3 minutes Alberta’s potato industry has bounced right back from its dip in acres during the pandemic. “We’re back to the 2019 acres,” said Terence Hochstein, executive director of the Potato Growers of Alberta. “We’ve added a few more acres, but there’s really no new farms and no huge increases on any particular farm. It’s just getting […] Read more
U.S. extends travel restrictions at Canada, Mexico borders
Washington | Reuters — The United States on Monday extended restrictions at its land borders with Canada and Mexico through Oct. 21 that bar nonessential travel such as tourism by foreigners despite Ottawa’s decision to open its border to vaccinated Americans. Canada on Aug. 9 began allowing fully vaccinated U.S. visitors for nonessential travel. The […] Read more
The pandemic brought profound, and lasting, changes to our farms
Reading Time: 4 minutes Alyson Katerenchuk, 20, is the senior winner in this year’s Alberta Young Speakers for Agriculture competition. She grew up on a grain operation in Smoky Lake County and is currently obtaining her B.Sc. in mechanical engineering at the University of Alberta. Here is her slightly abridged presentation on how the pandemic changed Canadian agriculture. Almost […] Read more
Health Canada warns people not to take livestock dewormers
No evidence that drug is effective against COVID-19
“Concerning reports” of people in Canada seeking out veterinary-grade dewormers for personal use have led Health Canada to formally advise against doing so. News reports in Western Canada in the past week have described increased demand from non-farming consumers for veterinary-grade ivermectin, whether at livestock supply retailers or online. While ivermectin is an antiparasitic drug […] Read more
U.S. reports world’s first deer with COVID-19
Chicago | Reuters — The U.S. government said Friday it had confirmed the world’s first cases of COVID-19 in deer, expanding the list of animals known to have tested positive for the disease. The U.S. Department of Agriculture reported infections of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, in wild white-tailed deer in the state of […] Read more
Afghanistan ‘marching towards starvation,’ UN food chief says
Doha | Reuters — Millions of Afghans could soon face starvation due to a combination of conflict, drought and the coronavirus pandemic, the executive director of the World Food Programme said on Tuesday, calling on political leaders to act fast. “There’s a perfect storm coming because of several years of drought, conflict, economic deterioration, compounded […] Read more
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