Reading Time: < 1 minute The Canadian Cattlemen’s Association, the Canadian Federation of Agriculture and other groups have launched a new advocacy campaign aimed at raising public awareness of the support farmers require because of the pandemic. Called “Food for Thought,” the campaign focuses on the rising cost of food, the number of jobs that agriculture employs and how the […] Read more
Campaign seeks public support for farmers
Hot, dry weather is what’s needed now
Reading Time: < 1 minute While there’s been too much precipitation in many parts of the province, rainfall in June “is replenishing the low subsoil moisture reserves experienced in the South and parts of Central region this past year,” Alberta Agriculture said in its June 29 crop report. But most of the province needs a good stretch of hot, dry […] Read more
U.S. forecaster says La Nina expected to develop in fall 2020
Reuters — A U.S. government weather forecaster on Thursday forecast the development of a La Nina pattern during the August-October season, which is expected to persist through the remainder of 2020. There is about 50-55 per cent chance of La Nina developing during the Northern Hemisphere fall, with a 50 per cent chance it will […] Read more
Grants available for community projects
Reading Time: < 1 minute Applications are now being accepted for $100,000 in grants from the UFA Rural Communities Foundation. The foundation announced last year it would be giving away $500,000 over five years for educational, recreational and cultural facilities and programs in rural Alberta. The 2019 recipients were the Onoway and District Historical Guild ($50,000 for its Heritage Village […] Read more
Alberta company hoping to drive a lab-grown meat sector
Meat ‘cultured’ in a lab is hugely expensive, but an Edmonton company working to change that
Reading Time: 3 minutes You’ve been hearing about lab-grown meat for years, but an Edmonton-based company is one step closer to making cultivated meat a reality. Future Fields has been working to create food products grown from cells for three years. “Most people know this industry as lab-grown meat, but it’s now known as cellular agriculture or cultivated products,” […] Read more
Prairie summer weather patterns to hold for now
MarketsFarm — No major changes in the current weather patterns on the Prairies are expected at this time, according to a pair of weather experts. So far this summer, the region’s weather has been highlighted by warmer and generally drier conditions in the eastern Prairies, while the western portion has been cooler with a great […] Read more
Landowners can ‘nominate’ oil and gas sites for cleanup
Website allows owners to put a site on their property onto a list for potential cleanup
Reading Time: < 1 minute The province is now accepting “nominations” from landowners who have inactive oil and gas sites on their properties. The nomination program is the latest phase of the $1-billion Site Rehabilitation Program announced in spring. The program provides grants to oilfield service contractors to perform well, pipeline, and oil and gas site reclamation work. To nominate […] Read more
G4 swine flu virus not new, China says
Ag ministry says virus does not infect or sicken humans, animals easily
Shanghai/Beijing | Reuters — China’s ministry of agriculture and rural affairs said Saturday that the so-called “G4” strain of swine flu virus is not new and does not infect or sicken humans and animals easily, rebuffing a study published last week. That study, by a team of Chinese scientists and published by the U.S. journal […] Read more
Ontario pledges farm recruiter crackdown as COVID-19 outbreaks grow
Ford rips 'fly-by-nighters just trying to make a quick buck'
Toronto | Reuters –– Ontario will crack down on “fly-by-night” recruitment agencies sending workers on to farms, the premier said on Monday, after a testing blitz identified a major coronavirus outbreak on a farm in southwestern Ontario. “We’re reaching out to all the farmers, we’re getting a list of these recruitment agencies. We found out […] Read more
Health minister calls treatment of some farm workers a ‘national disgrace’
Ministers discussing changes to Canada's TFW program
Ottawa | Reuters — The treatment of migrant workers in Canada by some farmers is disgraceful and the federal government is seeking to fix the problem, the country’s health minister told a parliamentary committee on Friday, as farms battle COVID-19 outbreaks among their employees. Outbreaks of coronavirus infections have killed three people and infected hundreds […] Read more
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