Reading Time: 2 minutes Glacier FarmMedia – A new review in the journal Advances in Dairy Research indicates canola meal provides numerous dairy ration benefits. The international journal review examined 20 years of canola meal studies in dairy rations, revealing it’s a high-quality protein feed capable of boosting milk production and reducing dairy herd methane emissions. “It’s rare to […] Read more
Canola meal shows benefits for milk production, lower emissions
New study reviewed 20 years of nutrition research, finds high inclusion rate works well
Methane breeding tool’s developers look to long-term
Uptake has been slow among producers, but the discussion on methane efficiency has begun
Reading Time: 3 minutes Glacier FarmMedia – Uptake by Canadian dairy producers of a new breeding tool aimed at decreasing their herd’s methane emissions hasn’t been overwhelming, representatives of Semex Alliance admitted recently. However, given the potential long-term interest, neither Semex nor the organization with which it partnered on developing the tool is concerned. Semex, which markets semen as […] Read more
Analyzing milk to prevent ruminal acidosis
Research shows disease can be detected by testing milk
Reading Time: 2 minutes Tasnime Touil, a doctoral student at Laval University in Quebec, is developing an artificial intelligence tool using infrared spectroscopy to predict ruminal pH and subclinical acidosis in dairy cows. “Ruminal pH can be an indicator of the cow’s rumen health and performance,” she said. “When it drops below 5.8 for 300 minutes or more, it […] Read more
Alberta dairy producers fight food insecurity
Reading Time: < 1 minute Alberta Milk has launched phase two of a campaign in which it encourages Albertans to help it reach a $100,000 donation target to support people facing food insecurity through a partnership with Food Banks Alberta. Until Aug. 1, Alberta Milk will match donations made to foodbanksalberta.ca/abdairyfarmers to a maximum aggregate amount of $50,000, which will […] Read more
Continuous tie-stall housing to be phased out in new dairy code of practice
Producer, animal welfare groups praise new code; some drawbacks were noted
New guidelines for dairy cattle care will improve animal welfare while also potentially increasing farm productivity, Dairy Farmers of Canada says. “I think that we’ve come to a very solid revised code,” David Wiens, DFC’s vice-president, said in an interview. The National Farm Animal Care Council (NFACC) on Thursday released its revised Code of Practice […] Read more
Quebec ag ministry, UPA organize to round up rogue dairy herd
Spooked cattle on run since July
Quebec’s provincial ag ministry and the Mauricie regional arm of the Union des producteurs agricoles (UPA) are asking for the public’s patience as they organize a new effort to capture a herd of dairy cattle on the loose since the summer. Quebec media quoting dairy farmer Pierre Lapointe, the animals’ owner, have said the cattle […] Read more
Opinion: Synthetic milk is no longer a sci-fi fantasy, it’s here already
Backers of this alternative milk say their product is indistinguishable from the real thing
Reading Time: 3 minutes The global dairy industry is changing and among the disruptions is competition from alternatives not produced using animals, including potential challenges posed by synthetic milk. Synthetic milk is produced without animals. It can have the same biochemical makeup as animal milk, but is grown using an emerging biotechnology technique known as “precision fermentation” that produces […] Read more
Dairy Farmers of Canada embraces goal of achieving net zero
Producers who back the ambitious goal say it’s both attainable and a good business move
Reading Time: 4 minutes Dairy Farmers of Canada has set a target for the sector to be net zero by 2050 — and is accompanying the pledge with a publicity blitz on billboards, radio, YouTube, TikTok and the internet. But how it will reach that ambitious emissions-reduction goal is still to be worked out. “We said that net zero […] Read more
Dairy’s gap in the map toward net zero
Canadian dairy has a carbon emissions goal but is still hammering out the way to get there
Reading Time: 4 minutes Glacier FarmMedia – The Dairy Farmers of Canada (DFC) has a goal to reach net zero on carbon emissions but admits the plan to get there doesn’t exist. Not yet, at least. “It kind of reminds me of JFK saying, ‘By 1969, we’ll have a man on the moon’ and they hadn’t invented rockets yet,” […] Read more
There’s a lesson in ‘buttergate’ for all farmers, says food writer
Julie Van Rosendaal’s tweet ignited a controversy but the issue shows ‘people are paying attention’
Reading Time: 5 minutes Julie Van Rosendaal spent a lot of time last year thinking about butter. And then she got a lot of people talking about it. Last February, the Calgary-based cook and food writer found herself wondering why butter she was using was firmer than expected at room temperature and harder to spread. “I started buying butter […] Read more
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