Reading Time: 3 minutes Under a perfect fall sky, my grandson and I zigzagged the streets and zipped down back alleys of Montreal to the skate park. As I watched my grandson, his seven-year-old bravado struck me. It was a side of this sensitive boy that I had not seen so boldly displayed before. Confident and courageous, he jumped, […] Read more
Does your farm have a ‘safety helmet?’ It should
Taking a few simple steps can create an awareness of safety that is vital on every farm
New provincial safety grant gives farm employers a ‘helping hand’
Grant can offset costs for meeting new workplace safety regulations, which come into effect Dec.1
Reading Time: 3 minutes A new provincial safety grant will make it easier — or at least cheaper — for farmers to comply with upcoming occupational health and safety requirements. “The province recognized that by putting those rules in place, many farms with employees were going to have to do some upgrading or some training to meet those new […] Read more
Stalled farm bill could move fast after Democrat House win
Washington | Reuters – Congress may swiftly resolve a drawn-out impasse on the U.S. Farm Bill now that Democrats are poised to retake control of the legislative body, the top Democrat on the House Agriculture Committee said on Wednesday. Collin Peterson, ranking member and presumptive new chair of committee, said passing the crucial agricultural legislation was going […] Read more
Louis Dreyfus top shareholder gets finance to buy out minorities
Paris | Reuters – Margarita Louis-Dreyfus, top shareholder of commodity giant Louis Dreyfus Company (LDC), said she had secured financing for a deal that requires her to buy out family minorities, a move that has created uncertainty over the firm’s funding. Minority family shareholders asked in 2015 to sell 16.6 percent of LDC’s holding company […] Read more
The brave new world of blockchain
Digital traceability has suddenly been thrust into the food sector
Reading Time: 5 minutes If there was ever any doubt that agriculture would someday run headlong into the blockchain space, it was quashed on Sept. 24. That was the day Walmart announced its leafy green suppliers would be required (in a year’s time) to participate in a blockchain-driven system providing full-chain traceability of their produce. In recent years, Bitcoin […] Read more
Tight supplies could see diesel prices rise
CNS Canada – As supply tightens, farmers should consider stocking up on diesel before it’s too late, according to an analyst. “We think the market’s getting kind of overdone down here and this might be your best chance…if we do get a cold winter I think we’ll see these prices really pop,” said Phil Flynn […] Read more
ADM profit tops estimates on export sales, oilseeds
Reuters – Archer Daniels Midland Co reported a bigger-than-expected quarterly profit on Tuesday, as the U.S. grain merchant made export sales to buyers in countries other than China during an escalating trade war between Washington and Beijing. Strong margins for oilseeds crushing also boosted earnings. The United States and China have imposed tariffs on hundreds […] Read more
Fertilizer maker Nutrien’s profit beats on strong potash demand
Reuters – Canadian fertilizer and farm supplies dealer Nutrien Ltd reported a better-than-expected quarterly profit and raised its full-year adjusted profit forecast, driven by strong demand for its potash fertilizers. The world’s largest fertilizer company by capacity raised its full-year adjusted profit forecast to the range of $2.60-$2.80 per share, from its prior estimate of […] Read more
There’s a magic number when cooking beef — and it’s 71 C
Doubts had been raised on the safe temperature for cooked beef, but new research has settled the question
Reading Time: 2 minutes Your burger is still done at 71 C. New research has concluded that all E. coli pathogens are killed at that temperature. “The last time people wrote articles about this in 2016, there was work that referenced the implication that 71 C was not safe,” said Mark Klassen, director of technical services with the Canadian Cattlemen’s […] Read more
Fast internet? An urban reality but a rural myth
The CRTC has cut its rural internet speed targets in half — calling it ‘a significant first step’
Reading Time: 3 minutes It’s an issue that big-city bureaucrats can’t seem to wrap their heads around — an internet connection spread so thin that it’s nearly unusable during peak hours. But in rural Alberta, it’s an all-too-common problem. “The connection gets weaker and weaker the further you get away from the main corridor,” said Al Kemmere, president of […] Read more
Cyber-Savvy Farmer
