A new federal climate plan which further cranks up taxes on carbon emissions also includes pledges of new programs to help sink more carbon into farmland. The government on Friday released the sequel to its 2016 Pan-Canadian Framework on Clean Growth and Climate Change — a “strengthened” climate plan, titled A Healthy Environment and a […] Read more
New greening programs planned for ag alongside carbon tax hike
Carbon price to hit $170 per tonne by 2030
Bayer launches carbon capture pilot for U.S., Brazilian farmers
Chem and seed firm expects to expand plan to other countries
Chicago | Reuters — Bayer launched a pilot program in the United States and Brazil on Tuesday that will pay farmers for capturing carbon in cropland soils, making it the latest agriculture company to capitalize on environmental initiatives. The company seeks to enroll about 1,200 row crop growers in its Bayer Carbon Initiative in the […] Read more
UN report on livestock and climate change gets lost in translation
Panel of climate change experts say meat production must be sustainable — but few noted that distinction
Reading Time: 3 minutes “Eat less meat” was the phrase of choice for describing a new report from the United Nations’ climate change panel. Those three words appeared in headlines in publications such as Time magazine, the National Post, and the Times of London. But the report itself said something different, said the science director of the Beef Cattle […] Read more
Beef sector sees place in UN report’s lower-emission vision
While a new United Nations report on climate change and land calls for “rebalancing diets,” the policy paths it seeks are a good fit for beef cattle ranching as Canadians know it, the Canadian Cattlemen’s Association says. Responding Thursday to the report from the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the CCA said Canada’s […] Read more
U.S. government report says climate change will batter economy
Reuters — Climate change will cost the U.S. economy hundreds of billions of dollars by the end of the century, hitting everything from health to infrastructure, according to a government report issued on Friday that the White House called inaccurate. The congressionally mandated report, written with the help of more than a dozen U.S. government […] Read more
McDonald’s raises the bar — but Canada’s beef industry already there
Fast-food giant wants to slash its carbon footprint, and Canada's beef sector is a model
Reading Time: 2 minutes McDonald’s plan to cut greenhouse gas emissions by one-third over the next dozen years is actually good news for Canadian beef producers, says the chair of the Canadian Roundtable for Sustainable Beef. “We’re far exceeding their expectations now and even into the future, so even for the 2030 goals, we’re well under it,” said Cherie […] Read more
McDonald’s sets greenhouse gas reduction targets
Reuters — McDonald’s Corp. on Tuesday announced what it describes as an approved, science-based target to cut greenhouse gas emissions and battle climate change, saying it is the first restaurant company to do so. Under a plan several years in the making, the fast-food company — along with its franchisees and suppliers — aims to […] Read more
Cattle aren’t actually killing the planet, says vegetarian rancher
Livestock’s environmental impact is complicated but done right, it’s good for the planet, says author
Reading Time: 4 minutes It’s become accepted wisdom that cattle production is worse for the environment than gas-guzzling SUVs — but it’s not true. “We’re told over and over again that cattle are bad for the environment and, therefore, everybody should eat less beef,” said Nicolette Hahn Niman, author of Defending Beef: The Case for Sustainable Meat Production. “We’re […] Read more
The groupthink on CO2 levels ignores some basic science
Views will change as atmospheric CO2 continues to rise with little or no significant change in global temperatures
Reading Time: 3 minutes As an agricultural producer, a former science teacher, and someone who is involved in the delivery of agricultural extension, I would like to submit some comments in relation to Daniel Bezte’s article in the Feb. 13 edition, “Articles on climate change provoke some readers“. The article’s title is entirely fitting because articles on climate change […] Read more
California to limit pollutants from diesel exhaust to cow gas
Reuters — California on Monday moved to restrict air pollutants from sources as diverse as diesel trucks and cow flatulence, the latest of several efforts in the most populous U.S. state to reduce emissions leading to climate change. Under a bill signed Monday by Democratic Governor Jerry Brown, the state will cut emissions of methane […] Read more
Cyber-Savvy Farmer
