It’s an honour for the family, said Rob Taylor, who owns and operates the ranch with his wife Audrey and their children.

Rob, Audrey, and their two youngest children, Courtney and Clayton, live along the Milk River Ridge southwest of Warner. Two older children, Kyza and Katrina, work off farm.

The Taylors manage about 850 commercial cows and more than 15,000 acres of land. Their cattle run on deeded land, Crown grazing land and an allotment with the Waldron Grazing Co-operative. They calve in May and June and background the calves. Most are sold in February.

The family grows most of their own feed, putting up about 800 acres of silage and greenfeed and a similar amount of hay at the home place.

“We try to run a low-cost operation with low input. That would be one of our big things,” said Taylor.

• RELATED: Wray family honoured for environmental stewardship

They also practice rotational grazing and move the cows every three weeks to a different field. They run cattle in groups of 250 in the summer.

“We find if we run in bigger bunches, they’re harder to water and harder to move,” he said.

About 200 cows are shipped to Milo in the summer and graze there until October. Other groups go to the Waldron Grazing Co-operative north of Pincher Creek.

“Out there, there’s a lot of big, open, south facing slopes. We winter a lot of cows up there. We’ll take cows there now, and then we’ll take some more cows there in November, after we wean here and we’ll graze out on those big open slopes right through to the end of March,” Taylor said.

Audrey’s parents bought some of the land now owned by the Taylors in 1983. After additional land purchases, they took over the operation and have been there for 23 years.

The family is conscious about preserving wildlife and they collaborate with the Alberta Conservation Association, Ducks Unlimited and Multiple Species at Risk. Their land is home to many species at risk, including small birds, ferruginous hawks and northern leopard frogs.

The Taylors worked with the Alberta Conservation Association and Ducks Unlimited to install water troughs; more than 70 in total. This keeps cattle out of dugouts, improves water quality and results in better herd health.

“We used to have horrible runs of calves getting sick in August. As soon as we troughed the water, it just stopped.”

Taylor said one of the secrets to being efficient is having good cattle.

“Your cattle work for you. They’re like employees of the ranch. They all bring in a calf that brings cash flow or they are cash flow.”

Family members also work well together, he added.

“We’re all pretty much cross-trained.”

He and Clayton do more work with feed and silage, and Clayton does most of the seeding. Audrey and Courtney run balers and other equipment. Clayton and Courtney both manage the calving, and Clayton does a lot of feeding for the backgrounder calves while Audrey takes care of the banking.

Courtney and Audrey both walk pens, and Audrey has probably put 4,000 kilometres on her quad checking cattle this year, said Taylor.

His two youngest children are devoted to the ranch, and this is important to him.

“It’s a dream come true. If we didn’t have support from the previous generation and the upcoming generations, we wouldn’t be where we are. We wouldn’t be in this position.”

Working with nature is a key principle.

“It’s been a commonsense thing to do, especially with more cattle and less help. I think one of the things people do is they make ranching hard. It doesn’t have to be hard,” because working with Mother Nature is more efficient and more profitable.

All the Taylors love animals, which play an integral role in their ranch. They use horses and dogs, mostly border collies, for many ranch duties.

“They’re like having 300 men,” said Taylor.

The post Taylor Ranches win 2024 Environmental Stewardship Award appeared first on Alberta Farmer Express.

Along its craggy cliffsides, golden eagles and peregrine falcons nest, while moose and deer leave their own marks on the native grassland that surrounds the river’s edge.

But these lands are home to more than just the wildlife. On top of the river valley lie cultivated fields — and the farmers who own that land have taken the first steps to protect the scenic valley forever.

“If you’ve ever seen the Rosebud River Valley, it’s quite nice. We’ve got cultivated land all around these unique little river valleys with lots of wild spaces, and I just think they need to be conserved,” said Rick Skibsted, who owns a grain farm along the valley near Drumheller.

“What’s missing from the Prairies now is the prairie.”

Skibsted has been exploring putting a conservation easement on his land for “many, many years.” About five years ago, with support from his neighbours, he started putting the wheels in motion by contacting Western Sky Land Trust, a Calgary-based conservancy that focuses on watersheds and natural areas in southern Alberta.

“We could easily fit what we wanted to do in their program, and they were so excited about it that, after reviewing everything else, that’s where we decided to go,” said Skibsted.

“It’s kind of invigorating when someone else is excited about the same thing you’re excited about.”

And after much back and forth — including successful applications to the provincial Land Trust Grant Program and the federal Ecological Gifts Program — more than 4,000 acres along the river valley will be preserved in perpetuity.

“Basically what we’re doing is saying we’re not going to develop or subdivide it or put any industry on it. We’re not going to break up any more grassland,” he said. “It’s just going to remain as agricultural land. And if we farm sustainably, we can farm the way we always have been.”

That was a key part of the reason that Wendy and Richard Clark joined Skibsted in signing the easement toward the end of last year.

“We were faced with some threat of urban sprawl coming from Calgary, and we felt we wanted a way to make sure that, that didn’t happen to our land,” said Wendy Clark.

But perhaps more importantly, the group wanted to maintain an unbroken area of farmland and grassland along the river, and the easement protects these lands on top of the river valley where the Skibsteds and the Clarks farm.

“We felt that if anybody could inappropriately develop on top of the valley, that would be a detriment to the river valley,” said Clark. “Having this cultivated land included is a really big deal.”

The agreement has put their mind at ease, she added.

“It’s a wonderful way to maintain private ownership and yet feel like you’re preserving the legacy of your farm,” said Clark. “I really believe that, going forward, lots of farmers and ranchers might be interested in considering this as an opportunity to protect agriculture and our natural spaces.

“We can’t always count on our politicians to do it for us.”

Landowners sometimes have misconceptions about conservation easements that turn them off the idea for their own lands, but depending on the easement, very little need change in how the land is being managed, said Max Fritz, executive director of the Western Sky Land Trust.

“The farmers never really lose control of the land and how it’s run,” he said. “They always manage the land the way they’ve managed it before, according to the conservation easement. They’re always in the driver’s seat. They just have a new partner beside them.”

Clark agreed.

“A conservation easement typically changes very little about how you’re currently managing your land,” she said. “We’re only stopping the things we never would have allowed on our land in the first place.”

Most farmers already have a conservation mindset, said Fritz, the formal agreement just ensures that the land is managed that way in perpetuity.

“Farmers are great stewards of the land, and they’re always exploring other opportunities and options for the land into the future,” he said. “They’re thinking about their legacy — how the land can tell that great story of generations of farming and ranching.”

And the farmers behind this easement take that legacy seriously.

“We’re just stewards here,” said Richard Clark. “We’re just here for a little blip of time, and we’ve been given a tremendous opportunity to carry on this tradition. We’d like to see it continue on into the future.”

“Our families gave us the opportunity to farm this land,” added Wendy Clark. “The idea wasn’t that they gave us the opportunity so that we could sell it for a windfall and walk away from it.

“So this is our promise to our neighbours — you don’t have to worry about the land next door to you. And our hope would be that our neighbours will do the same.”

In fact, some landowners in the area are already pursuing easements of their own to preserve their own little piece of paradise. And Skibsted couldn’t be happier.

“We’ve sort of got a movement going on in the river valley here,” said Skibsted. “Most farmers appreciate these native spaces. They really do. It’s the exception that doesn’t.”

The post Saving a jewel — and the setting it’s placed in appeared first on Alberta Farmer Express.

A coalition of Alberta commodity groups as well as the Grain Farmers of Ontario sent requests directly to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau because the issue is so critical to their members they couldn’t wait until an agriculture minister is named.

The Prime Minister’s Office redirected the requests to Agriculture Canada but the government knows the challenges farmers are facing right now, said spokeswoman Justine Lesage.

A review of the business risk management programs will be undertaken early in the new year “focused on competitiveness issues in trade exposed industries, such as agriculture,” she said.

President Marcus Hearle of Grain Farmers of Ontario, said the added costs were the last thing farmers need after a hard year.

“Markets, prices and weather have combined to create a combination of stressors for farmers that some farms won’t be able to manage,” he said. “Prices are depressed from the U.S.-China trade war, China’s refusal to buy soybeans, extreme weather events that created a difficult growing season and a harvest delayed across the province.”

The government should immediately revoke the carbon tax farmers are forced to pay when drying grain, he said. Farmers across the country can’t afford the extra cost “when markets and harvest conditions are so challenging.”

Paying the tax leaves farmers unable to invest in technologies that can combat climate change, he said.

Alberta crop groups have dubbed 2019 as the “Harvest from Hell” and they want “aggressive action from governments on serious economic hardships facing farmers.”

Heavy snow has trapped a big portion of the Prairie crop in the fields. On top of that ongoing, major trade disruptions are still blocking farm exports into important global markets, the existing business risk management programs are ill equipped to mitigate these issues and the federal carbon tax will be imposed on Jan. 1.

“This is the kind of uncertainty that’s bigger than farm business cash flow,” said Gary Stanford, chair of Alberta Wheat. “The weight of these combined challenges starts to threaten farmers’ mental health.”

Keith Currie, vice-president of the Canadian Federation of Agriculture, said, “While the concern regarding the need for an exemption of farm fuels for drying isn’t new, the difficult weather and challenging market conditions are putting significant financial stress on farms across Canada.

“When coupled with the myriad of trade disruptions beyond producers’ control, an exemption on fuels for heating and drying presents an opportunity to help at least slightly reduce the overall financial challenges farmers are trying to manage their way through.”

The Alberta groups want immediate adjustments to the AgriStability program to cover losses starting at 85 per cent of reference margins and to remove Reference Margin Limits in time for the 2020 harvest.

They also want the federal government to exempt farmers from the carbon tax on all farm fuels used for irrigating and grain drying, which has added extensive costs during this difficult harvest. Marked farm fuel is already exempt.

The post Lift carbon tax on grain drying, say farm groups appeared first on Alberta Farmer Express.

“We went into the winter in very dry conditions. We have had some rains as of late, but with perennial forage crops, their production is pre-set from the year before,” said Ed Shaw, president and chief executive officer of IQ Forage and Feed in Olds.

Last year’s forage crops were set during last August, which was dry and smoky due to forest fires.

“We’re kind of compounded with several things in the forage industry that have got me a little bit worried,” said Shaw, a director with the Alberta Forage Industry Network, who runs a small farm near Carstairs.

Last year, forage yields in Alberta were lower than normal, and the impact of that still lingers.

“There was no carry-over crop to start with, so forage was very scarce last year,” said Shaw. “We had a very warm winter up until January, which helped alleviate it, but February was very cold.”

With supplies tight, prices have soared. That’s put pressure on pastures.

“Pastures are just starting to kick in now, but people will be grazing pastures down because it will be short,” Shaw said in late May. “My personal feeling this year is that the drought is going to affect our pastures and our forages, our supply of hay and our production is going to be lower than normal. Feed is going to be very tight again, I think.”

About 75 per cent of the province is in “severe moisture deficiency,” provincial beef and forage specialist Barry Yaremcio told CBC.

Because of the shortage, Shaw estimates most hay is priced higher than $200 a bale.

“Hay is very expensive right now and in short supply,” he said.

Opportunities to bring in hay from other regions, always an expensive proposition, are limited because so much of the Prairies are suffering.

Rancher Graeme Finn travels around the province in his role as president of Union Forage. There are a lot of patchy, dry areas, he said.

“Forages are really struggling right now because we didn’t have enough moisture last year, so we’re running on reserves this year,” he said. “And not much reserves, either.”

He said he’s been telling many producers who want to improve pastures by putting more legumes into their perennial stands to hold off this year.

“What I’ve been suggesting this year for a lot of guys is to put a lot of sweet clover and oats in as a greenfeed or for swath grazing,” said Finn. “Keep it cheap for this year, then if we get more rain next year, we’ll seed perennials next year.

“We are working on the caution side more than anything else.”

Finn has already received phone calls from producers looking for pasture.

“It’s still early. I hope we get rain and I hope we get some moisture here, but they’re saying that we’re going to have a carbon copy of last year,” said Finn, who ranches near Madden.

He’s got a couple of management strategies that can help producers feeling the pinch.

One is to cull older cows.

“It’s a good year to save the feed for the replacements and the younger cow side of the herd,” he said.

Prices are decent for cow-calf pairs, so it might be a good idea to sell right now, he added.

Another strategy producers can use is to avoid seeding a nurse crop with perennials.

“Just put perennial grass and the legume stand in by itself,” he said, adding the nurse crop will take the moisture away from the perennials and leave a weakened perennial stand.

Producers might have to face the facts this year.

“Everything is leading to you’re not going to make as much money this year,” said Finn. “The proper line is the bottom line, not the top line. The further you can push that bottom line down, the more money you can make.

“Don’t go chasing the high-priced calves — go chasing the more efficient way of feeding cattle through the winter.”

Some pastures will suffer more than others during dry spells and there are always three reasons, he said — “overstocking, overstocking, overstocking.”

Too many cows result in overgrazing and even in good moisture years, that degrades pastures.

“It really helps not to pressure your land or soil too much,” he said. “You have to be practising every year for drought.

“Drought management doesn’t start today. It starts two or three years ago. It’s always something that is part of your management strategy on your farm.”

The post Double whammy: Second dry year hits forages hard appeared first on Alberta Farmer Express.

But the Soil Your Undies campaign has a very serious purpose: To show people that microbes are critical to soil health and, more importantly, that not all soils are healthy.

“People have found that a more biologically active soil will do a lot more damage to cotton shorts than one that has been tilled and had its microbial communities and structure shattered,” said Greg Sekulic, a Canola Council of Canada agronomist and a director with the Soil Conservation Council of Canada.

“We’ve got producers and agronomists showing off their soil health by their demolished undies.”

It’s impossible to say how many pairs of whitey tighties are being buried, but the annual event gets a lot of attention on social media, and the soil conservation council estimates 1,000 or more people participated this spring.

“This is important to us and to our industry because it’s the biggest chance we have every year to talk to all Canadians about the need for soil health and soil conservation,” said Jim Tokarchuk, the council’s executive director. “These are not issues that generally capture a lot of attention with the general population of Canada because they are so removed from the ag business. It’s a real opportunity for us.”

The council wants the public to understand that soils are living, breathing entities — and that they need protection.

“The real interesting thing is the interest we’re getting from urban audiences, which is really important to the whole cause of soil health,” said Tokarchuk.“We are definitely seeing growth in people outside the ag industry who are taking an interest in this.”

For more on the campaign, see the Programs section of www.soilcc.ca.

The post Underwear campaign fun with a serious purpose appeared first on Alberta Farmer Express.

But some are also looking to the past and measuring the impact that forest fires have on the quantity and quality of run-off — two factors that could have major implications for Alberta’s irrigation districts.

“If you’ve got climate change broadening out the fire season and maybe melting your snowpacks a little earlier to begin with, and on top of it you’ve got a fire-affected landscape where it melts even sooner, you could have effects that are just exacerbated by one another,” said Chris Williams, a research hydrologist and PhD student with the Southern Rockies Watershed Project with the University of Alberta.

“It’s easy to see that the effects could make it as far as the irrigation providers, but the scales are large, so there’s a lot of variability there.”

Williams has been involved with a long-term study of the effects of the Lost Creek Fire in the Crowsnest Pass area in 2003.

“Every year since 2005, around the time of peak snow water equivalent, we’ve gone out and we’ve measured snow courses,” said Williams. “We set up five snow courses in a reference stand — a subalpine forest that was still healthy and then we set up five in a burned area. The big roll-up number from those 10 years of work is 78 per cent more snow water equivalent in the burn stand than in the reference stand.”

More water may sound like a good thing, but when that water runs off — and in what volume — are key factors, and the research is not reassuring on that score.

Snow water equivalent is the amount of water you’d be left with if you melted all the snow. The 78 per cent increase equates to 152 millimetres of more snow water equivalent in the burn compared to the healthy forest. (Each snow course is a 100-metre-long transect in the forest where depth measurements and snow core samples are taken.)

The main reason for the difference, is that a subalpine canopy (mostly fir and spruce with some lodgepole pine) is dense and a lot of snow lands on branches. Much of the intercepted snow is sublimated (that is, goes from snow to water vapour without melting) and so never makes it to the ground.

On the other hand, once fire destroys that subalpine canopy, a lot more snow comes to rest on the forest floor.

Then comes spring

Not surprisingly, snow melts faster when there aren’t any trees to shade it. As well, dark ash and char mixed in with the snow accelerates the melt even more, said Williams. In the April to October ice-free months from 2005 to 2014, researchers measured the average run-offs of three burned and two unburned watersheds in the Crowsnest Pass. The preliminary results show a clear difference.

“Fifty per cent of the water yield in the burned streams was arriving at our gauging stations by about June 10,” said Williams. “In the reference watersheds only about 20 per cent of the run-off was arriving by that date.

“So in the reference watersheds, it was taking an extra nine to 10 days to basically have an equivalent amount of water yield pass our gauging stations.”

Researchers have also taken thousands of water samples since 2004. A study encompassing 2004 to 2007 showed significant increases in sediment in burned catchments than in reference catchments.

“Total suspended sediment concentration and yields were eight times greater in the burn catchments than in the reference catchments,” said Williams.

These levels change throughout the year, with less sediment in the winter when flows are low, and more in spring or during storm floods. During a storm, sediment loads from the burned areas were up to 100 times larger.

This effect persists for a long time after a forest fire.

“We never really saw a lot of recovery,” said Williams. “We were still getting quite high sediment loads even after a decade of research there in the burned streams.”

What lies ahead

“Most of the literature is showing fairly steady increases in fires since the 1980s in terms of area burned and also the severity — the intensity of the wildfires,” said Williams.

In 2017, British Columbia set a new record for the total area burned by fire — breaking one that dated back to the 1950s. That record lasted just a year as a new one was set in 2018.

“If you put the two years together, more area was burned in B.C. in 2017 and 2018 than there was over the last 30 years combined,” said Williams. “It seems to be a problem that’s certainly not getting better.”

In 2017, the Kenow Wildfire burned more than 38,000 hec­tares, half of them in Waterton Lakes National Park. In that case, lakes and reservoirs buffered the St. Mary River Irrigation District from the effects of fire, said manager Terrence Lazarus. But it was a reminder that more wildfires are one of the challenges resulting from climate change, he added.

“The bigger picture for us is how to manage these changes because coupled with that is changes in the climate and changes in the seeding patterns and changes in when the crop grows in the ground, that sort of thing,” said Lazarus. “I think it just talks to adaptability. We’ve always had to be adaptable.”

The difference will be the scale and speed of change, he added.

“The fire’s one symptom of the disease,” said Lazarus. “Once you add it up, the adaptability piece is going to be huge as the basin characteristics change. I believe it’s all part of the same story about our changing climate. We are seeing the symptoms of that particular disease.

“Alberta’s always been unpredictable, but those unpredictable parameters are definitely widening.”

The post More wildfires and changes in run-off a challenge for irrigation district appeared first on Alberta Farmer Express.

The new program will support technologies that help them reduce greenhouse gas emissions and facility operating cost, including improving lighting, heating, ventilation and rink/arena equipment.

An estimated 260 agriculture societies that operate facilities will be eligible for the funding to help them with the more than 3,000 community activities they’re involved in each year, such as rodeos, fairs, farmers’ markets, 4-H activities, agriculture and farm safety education, and scholarships.

“Alberta’s agricultural sector wants to do its part to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. This one-time investment will allow our agricultural societies to demonstrate environmental leadership, while continuing to enhance the quality of life in communities they serve,” Minister of Agriculture and Forestry Oneil Carlier said in a release.

“Many of Alberta’s agricultural facilities are aging, and this grant will provide an opportunity to update buildings, improve energy efficiency and reduce increasing operating costs in the long term. Our ag societies, and these facilities, are essential to a high quality of life for Albertans, and this support helps relieve some of the rising financial pressure on societies so they can continue to do important work in their communities,” said Tim Carson, CEO, Alberta Association of Agricultural Societies

The program will be paid for through 2018-19 Climate Leadership Plan funds. Eligible initiatives under the grant program include retroactive and future activities that are measurable, increase energy efficiency and reduce greenhouse gas emissions, with results being reportable to the Alberta Climate Change Office.

The post Grant to reduce ag societies’ energy costs appeared first on Alberta Farmer Express.

The Arctic is governed by eight nations: Canada, Russia, Denmark, Finland, Norway, Sweden, U.S. and Iceland. This group, known as the Arctic Council, manages issues that need international co-operation, such as spills. The Americans conduct air surveillance over the area and wish to control the Northwest Passage.

The U.S., Russia, Denmark, Norway, and Canada all lay claim to resources in the Arctic, which include an estimated 13 per cent of the global oil supply and 30 per cent of natural gas. For the four million people living there, 400,000 of which are Indigenous, the future of the Arctic Circle is never certain. That’s not because of the politics between the eight nations or America’s rejection of Canada’s claim to the North or its antagonizing behaviour in the Northwest Passage — although these are irritants for sure.

The real issue though is the warming of the area and the shrinking of polar ice.

The Arctic is one of the best predictors of climate change and shrinking polar ice, melting of permafrost, and reduction of snow all have an effect on Canadian agriculture.

• More with Brenda Schoepp: I have been blessed in the company of rural women

There are ecological implications as the ice retracts and the possibility of an open passage because of the lack of summer ice becomes a reality. One is the potential for northern farming. In the Northwest Territories, Yukon, northern Peace, and northern Ontario, land has been slowly opening up for agricultural production in places that have historically been a block of ice. Subarctic farming is moving ahead because of warmer temperatures (coupled with long summer days).

Some farm groups suggest this is a good sign and will contribute to Canada’s food security, especially as the temperature increases in the southern parts of the nation. But rising temperatures tamper with permafrost, which is an ecosystem to itself, and what is unknown is the consequence of the big thaw in terms of releasing large amounts of carbon that had been captured by southern permafrost.

As this new carbon is released, it contributes to the warming of the atmosphere. This has an impact on both freezing and on snow. With 80 per cent of fresh water derived from snow in the Arctic and Subarctic areas of Canada, this is the critical piece for the future of both northern farming and, in fact, for much of Canada when it comes to fresh water for all food production.

For fishermen, there are additional challenges. The 865,711 tonnes of sea and freshwater fish produced in Canada in 2015 also included Arctic waters. Coho, sockeye, and Atlantic salmon have now been found in the Far North.

Just to put this into perspective, scientists estimate that if the ice melt continues at the same rate, the area will be free of summer ice by the year 2040. How will the Arctic Council and in particular Canada, govern this area if it becomes a viable trans-polar shipping and food route? What does that mean if the U.S. positions itself above and below us? Who owns the salmon? Who controls the fresh water? And what are the opportunities for the export of agricultural products through that route?

In many respects, the rise in temperature in the Arctic is history repeating itself. The Vikings went out looking for land during a period of warm temperatures between the years 800 and 1300, even growing barley in Greenland. Today however, temperatures in the region are increasing at twice the speed of anywhere else on the planet. In Iceland and Greenland, the increased temperatures may be offset by drought and pest conditions.

The rise of the sea as the ice melts also impacts our most productive farmland in Canada, those rich deltas near warm-water ports. Areas flooded by sea water create salinity wastelands of these precious flats and threaten the freshwater life within waterways and lakes.

Food insecurity in Canada’s Arctic and Subarctic is already astonishingly high, with 70 per cent of preschool children food insecure. Reliance on boats and planes has become a way of life but the huge resource camps and the need to feed miners and explorers have left some local shelves empty.

I can’t support the train of thought that believes climate change and the consequential melting of ice and permafrost in opening up northern farms is going to be the solution for food insecurity issues for Canada, particularly if there remains a shortage of fresh water.

The post What happens up north also affects southern Canada appeared first on Alberta Farmer Express.

If you are reading this column from your farm table, you may already be an expert at the preservation of food and the use of leftovers. Typically, we eat all we grow on the farm.

In the store however, one tomato looks like the next as does one apple and one onion. Imperfection is not tolerated. What happens to the unlovely in the field and greenhouse?

According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, global losses of those fruits and veggies (including root crops) from imperfection, rot, or trim is 40 to 50 per cent of the total grown. We lose 30 per cent of all cereals; 20 per cent of all oilseeds, dairy and meat; and 35 per cent of all fish (the largest protein source on Earth).

The nutritional loss is staggering.

I recall on one world tour having a photo of barrels of apples from a farm stand in New Zealand. In most of the countries we travelled in, folks would marvel at ‘all that food.’ You and I know the whole barrel would not sell, but that would not stop the marginalized from partaking — if they could.

Trouble is they can’t.

Corruption, broken infrastructure, political interference, and financial restraints keep much of developed and developing world’s food in the garbage bin. So how do we initiate change — if not in other areas of the world, at least in our own backyard?

• More with Brenda Schoepp: We need to do more to attract women to agriculture

At this fall’s food waste summit held in New York City, several panels discussed the possibility of shifting the conversation from the social spectrum to the economic one.

We should ask: What can people afford?

The ATM (Any Time Milk) machines in Kenya offer a local solution for farmers who need to sell milk and customers who need to buy it but have only a few coins. Allowing for the customer to buy only what they can afford and take it home in their own container saves a lot of dignity. We need creative and innovative ways such as these ATM machines to deliver food where and when it is needed.

In the field, what can we do?

My favourite painting from the 1800s is The Gleaners by Jean-François Millet. Women are stooped in the harvested fields picking up spare kernels. I know our potato-growing friends allow for it and on the island, it is a little more common. But it may be something to think about again. One man’s spoil is another’s treasure, and communities can be fortified around activities such as gleaning.

Rescuing food is big business and there are now several apps that you can download to know who is throwing out what and when. It is not uncommon to rescue food from food banks as well. Dad did this for years, taking home truckloads of unsold baking for the cattle rather than have it all go to the dump. We can officially say that calves love cream pies, and rattling a loaf of bread is better than calling the cows home. The cattle industry has become adept at feeding many food products, are there other uses as well?

Fuel from waste is going great guns and a super example is initiatives in Calgary where restaurants are committed to keeping waste out of landfills for the creation of biofuel.

At the heart of the discussion on food waste is change. It is clear that solutions do not reside in viewing food waste, rescue, redistribution, and recycling strictly as a responsibility of charity, but as a business challenge.

Would tax breaks for companies reducing food waste be feasible? Could we divert more investment into research and innovation to counter the problem? What business models do we need? And after business addresses the issue of food waste, and even profits from it, do consumers even care?

Certainly new business models are needed as is greater education. In total, 15 per cent of global food waste is at the farm, which is alarming, but 40 per cent is at the plate. Are we eating too much, buying too much, expecting too much, and just too darn picky when it comes to food?

I don’t know. I do know that the greatest thing Mom taught me was to never waste food and how to be creative with leftovers.

But we are just two in the crowd. Does what we do and what you do make a difference?

I would think so because unless we correct the food waste problem, we are not going to profit but pay for it in land degradation, climate, and landfill issues; losses at the farm and in store; health issues from nutritional loss; and food cost.

We know what this broken system looks like and now need to ask from a social and business perspective what it could be. We no longer can afford a prolonged insensitivity to all that is possible.

The post When it comes to food waste, the system is broken appeared first on Alberta Farmer Express.

The grants will support projects by the Alberta Conservation Association, Ducks Unlimited Canada, the Legacy Land Trust Society, the Nature Conservancy of Canada, the Southern Alberta Land Trust Society (SALTS), and Western Sky Land Trust.

SALTS received approximately $2.6 million for five different projects, including one that will protect 1,247 acres at the WineGlass Ranch near Cochrane.

Ducks Unlimited Canada will receive nearly $450,000 to enhance protection of six parcels of land in central and southern Alberta. These parcels are made up of key prairie landscapes, including native grassland, wetland, and parkland habitats.

Two large parcels of native grassland in southern Alberta will be conserved for future generations with a grant of more than $1.7 million for Nature Conservancy of Canada.

The provincially funded Alberta Land Trust Grant Program, established in 2011, supports projects that conserve ecologically important areas to prevent habitat fragmentation, maintain biodiversity, and preserve native landscapes. This is accomplished through legally binding conservation easements that ensure good stewardship of private land and safeguard against most types of development.

To date, more than $55.7 million worth of grants have helped support the conservation of almost 111,000 acres of land in Alberta.

The post Grants preserve grasslands and wildlife habitats appeared first on Alberta Farmer Express.