Reading Time: < 1 minute This spring has experienced low precipitation rates and windy conditions in many parts of the province that may be contributing to poor forage growth. Some Agriculture Financial Services Corporation clients may wish to pasture insured hayfields prior to haying being general in the area. Clients wishing to pasture their insured hay acres prior to haying being […] Read more
Pasturing cattle on insured hayfields
Things not going as hoped? That’s normal, says crop specialist
Whether it’s production conditions or markets, producers need to have a Plan B
Reading Time: 2 minutes Preparation is key when dealing with the unexpected, says provincial crop specialist Harry Brook. “There’s always a lot of talk about ‘normal’ when talking about cropping and agriculture,” said Brook. “Advanced planning and adjustments are needed to avoid possible devastating results when ‘normal’ doesn’t occur. Whether it applies to spring weather conditions or markets or […] Read more
Manitoba corn crops likely unscathed
CNS Canada — Manitoba’s corn crop was nearly fully seeded ahead of crop insurance deadlines in late May, but frost events in Manitoba during the same time frame didn’t likely cause any damage. Parts of southwestern Manitoba saw a significant frost event on May 29 and 30, which killed off many canola crops and sparked […] Read more
Flood simulation model promises a big payback
Insurers won’t issue flood insurance until they have a better way to calculate risks — and the flood simulation model does that
Reading Time: 3 minutes Agriculture is leading the charge into research which could ultimately mean flood insurance being available for all Albertans. As the massive flooding of 2013 highlighted, there is no insurance for such disasters. In fact, Canada is the only one of the G-8 nations without such coverage. ‘Why not?’ is the question that always arises when […] Read more
Farmers seeing “incremental” changes to risk management funding
Election 2015: Pulse Growers chair cites tightened eligibility qualifications
Reading Time: 2 minutes Maintaining Alberta’s risk management funding is “critical” for farmers who are facing “extreme uncertainty,” said the chair of Alberta Pulse Growers. “Money has been steadily reduced in a lot of the risk management programs at AFSC,” said Allison Ammeter. “Farmers need that if we’re going to be able to stay in the industry and keep […] Read more
Updated CropChoiCe$ available
Software tool allows users to choose from 40 different crops
Reading Time: < 1 minute Alberta Agriculture and Rural Development has released the 2015 version of Cropchoice$. The software tool allows users to choose from 40 different crops and evaluate eight different scenarios. Each scenario can accommodate 32 fields. Users can either use their own costs and land rents to build their crop plan or use the AgriProfit$ costs already […] Read more
No hill of beans — soybeans get a boost with expanded insurance plan
The New Crops Insurance Initiative, which also covers forages and other special crops, will give coverage for soybeans in specified areas
Reading Time: 2 minutes Soybeans are here to stay in Alberta and the announcement they now qualify for Agricultural Financial Services Crop insurance coverage is expected to boost acreage. “There were a number of people who were waiting for that program to be in place before growing soybeans, so I see it as a positive step for expanding the […] Read more
Small farm ‘toys’ pack a mighty punch
Drones are getting off the ground in Alberta, in no small part thanks to their practical applications on livestock and grain farms
Reading Time: 3 minutes Drones may seem like a fun toy — but on the farm, these fancy fliers mean business. “At the end of the day, you want better information to make better decisions, and that’s what they give you,” said Steve Myshak, owner of Ventus Geospatial in Lethbridge. “That’s the bottom line on why you want to […] Read more
Manitoba seeks more climate-responsive risk management
A Manitoba provincial task force has been set up to seek ways in which farm risk management programs could be “more comprehensive and sustainable” in handling “climate-related challenges” such as floods. “Manitoba’s farmers have told us existing agricultural programs can’t adequately address these climate-related challenges, especially as they become more common,” Agriculture Minister Ron Kostyshyn […] Read more
Manitoba to boost insurance coverage on pedigreed soybeans
Increased coverage for pedigreed soybeans is among the changes planned for Manitoba’s provincial crop insurance program for the 2015 growing season. Soybeans are expected to be the largest pedigreed seed crop in Manitoba this year, the province said in a release, and the increased coverage is expected to reflect the “additional cost” of producing the […] Read more
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