Reading Time: 3 minutes Government’s definition of high-speed internet for rural areas isn’t all that high, especially for farmers taking advantage of new technology. The problem is that the provincial government’s minimum standard (50 megabits per second for downloads and 10 mbps for uploads) is the same baseline Ottawa set seven years ago, and a lot has changed since […] Read more
‘High-speed’ internet is coming to rural areas — but the yardsticks have moved
Basic high speed will be fine for many, but farming is increasingly a business that needs serious bandwidth
LIFE ON THE EDGE: Three farmers share their experiences with precision ag
It’s not just the tech, but finding a way to make the farm more efficient and the decisions better
Reading Time: 5 minutes There were undoubtedly a lot of double takes when folks drove by Rob Stone’s farm last summer when he was out scouting. That’s because the Saskatchewan producer was accompanied by a robot that wouldn’t look out of place on a lunar expedition, although it’s also been described as looking like a “glorified card table” on […] Read more
China must raise self-reliance in ag tech, Xi says
Seed industry seen as weak link in food chain
Beijing | Reuters — President Xi Jinping wants China to accelerate efforts to achieve self-reliance in agricultural technology, identifying seed development and core equipment among areas to focus on, state media reported. The central leadership had said in 2020 that the country’s seed industry was a weak link in the food chain and needed to […] Read more
Drones are ready to go spraying but regs haven’t kept up
Larger drones now a viable alternative but federal rules don’t allow spraying crop protection products
Reading Time: 4 minutes A single drone can fly into rough terrain and spray herbicide on hard-to-reach patches of weeds. Fly three of the largest in tandem and they have the airborne equivalent of a 100-foot spray boom, say proponents, with a cost one-quarter to one-third that of a 100-foot boom. Welcome to the world of drones that can […] Read more
Opinion: It’s time to shine a light on the dark side of social media
Farmers should know better than most how quickly misinformation spreads in online echo chambers
Reading Time: 3 minutes Glacier FarmMedia – Social media is undermining our shared reality, and those of us in the agriculture sector need to take better note of the trend. Why? Because not doing so could result in a continued separation between rural and urban Canada, as well as one another. Social media is a drug of sorts, in […] Read more
No shortage of innovative ag products at Agri-Trade
Equipment expo has a ‘tough job’ in picking just five finalists for its AgInnovations showdown
Reading Time: 4 minutes Technology continues to change one of the oldest professions – farming. Showcasing some of the latest agricultural technology is at the heart of the AgInnovation contest at Agri-Trade, the annual ag equipment expo in Red Deer. This is the 14th year for the competition, which culminates with five finalists making five-minute pitches before a live […] 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
Virtual fence systems could be the next breakthrough in ranching
Though this technology is taking off in Europe and being studied here, it’s still early days
Reading Time: 4 minutes Research on virtual fences for livestock is gaining momentum in Western Canada. One technology being studied uses collars on animals that emit a series of audio warnings and, if need be, an electric pulse, when livestock approach an invisible boundary set with GPS coordinates. “The animals are actually able to get trained with the collars […] Read more
B.C. to back Indigenous food system projects
New program taking applications starting Monday
A new British Columbia program will provide up to $80,000 each for projects in agriculture, food processing or other sectors to improve food security in that province’s Indigenous communities. The province on Wednesday rolled out a new Indigenous Food Systems and Agriculture Partnership Program, which is set up to take applications starting Monday (Sept. 26) […] Read more
Third edition of AgSmart attracts big – and curious – crowds
Reading Time: 2 minutes With innovations ranging from drones that recognize and spray weeds on the fly, to the latest in worm dung, AgSmart is securing its reputation as one of Canada’s top agriculture events. Nearly 3,000 people attended the latest event Aug. 9-10 that highlights work being done at Olds College’s Smart Farm. It focused on agriculture technology […] Read more
Cyber-Savvy Farmer
