If there’s one thing the agriculture industry knows how to do, it’s hold a conference. Agronomy updates, grower group meetings and local get-togethers aren’t just about learning, they’re also about catching up with friends and breaking bread together. Have you ever wondered what it takes to get all those meals ready to roll, hot and… Read More
Month: January 2015
Grain markets ended the month of January well below where they started, despite volatile currencies, weather, and geo-political risk keeping prices off the lows. Managed money continue to drop their net long positions in the agricultural complex recently to its lowest levels since October, mainly thanks to the strength of the U.S. dollar. Investors in… Read More
A joint federal-provincial funding announcement has pledged $250,000 in research funding and $969,000 for equipment for a Manitoba lab aimed at identifying and addressing problems caused by canola diseases and pests. Research funding is provided under Growing Forward 2 – Growing Actions and will be used to take samples from across the province to determine… Read More
These aren’t your daddy’s corn hybrids. If you think modern corn hybrids are leaps and bounds more productive than what you were planting 15 or years ago, you’re right. But thinking so and knowing so (and how) are two different things, and for that you need research. Tony Vyn, of Purdue University, has looked at… Read More
It was a hectic week at FarmTech, with the RealAg crew filming all kinds of video for “Behind the Scenes” summaries of how an audio-visual crew sets up for an event of that calibre, and how the chefs manage to feed over 1700 people every day (stay tuned). As I was behind the camera for a lot… Read More
The Alberta Wheat Commission (AWC) has teamed up with FARMCo, a grain marketing consulting firm, to head up a large-scale project designed to “improve farmers’ ability to make well-informed marketing decisions and maximize the value of their crops.” The Crop Data and Price Reporting project will lead to the development of a web-based tool that… Read More
Recently, I was asked to speak at the Alberta Ag Services Board’s 70th annual meeting. The theme centered around change and all that agriculture had evolved through in the last 70 years. From horse-drawn implements, to variable rate, sectional control-equipped seeding equipment, the last 70 years has literally been a technological revolution in producing food…. Read More
Sometimes it’s the little things that go unnoticed that actually have a big impact. Who hasn’t been waylaid by one tiny little part that breaks or goes missing? Big-picture considerations are important too, but the devil, as they say, is in the details. When it comes to spraying, details can easily be overlooked. When’s the… Read More
Agriculture’s global profile got a boost last year thanks to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization deeming 2014 the International Year of Family Farming. Journalists wrote enlightening stories about the fact that nearly all Canadian farms are family owned. Politicians spoke in glowing terms about the economic, social and cultural contributions made by family… Read More
Dan Mazier, a grains and oilseeds farmer from near Justice, Man., was acclaimed as president of Keystone Agricultural Producers at the organization’s annual meeting held this week. Mazier replaces Doug Chorney, who has reached his four-year term limit. Mazier served as KAP vice-president for the last four years, and is also chair of the workplace… Read More
Mark Wales, a horticulture farmer from Elgin County, Ontario, has been named as the chairperson for the Agriculture and Agri-Food Labour Task Force (LTF). The LTF is moving forward with recommendations set out in its Agriculture and Agri-Food Labour Action Plan to address agricultural industry worker shortages. Wales is also the Canadian Agricultural Human Resource… Read More
Consistent droplet size and canopy penetration are two key points of getting the most out of your spray application (assuming you’re after leaf coverage, of course). Sending spray droplets where you actually want them to go is much harder than it sounds — part of the reason for that is air movement and turbulence as… Read More
In late January, over 1,700 people descend on Edmonton’s Northlands Park to learn, network and learn some more at the conference that is The FarmTech Event. A show of that size requires an incredible amount of prep time and an entire team of audio/visual specialists to make sure the keynote and concurrent sessions go off… Read More
Farmers looking to pick up the Bluetooth-controlled CX-6 SMART Seeder can now talk to Rocky Mountain Equipment dealerships. Clean Seed Capital Group Ltd., the company that developed the SMART Seeder, has announced a three-year distribution partnership with RME, one of Canada’s largest agriculture and construction equipment dealership networks with branches located throughout Alberta, Saskatchewan, and… Read More
In about a month, Real Agriculture with tour partner Dow AgroSciences is hosting is hosting five, one-day events across Western Canada. A combination workshop and panel, the TechTour Live event is all about finding efficiency in your existing farm operation. Efficiency may mean a clear succession plan with strong farm leadership (that’s what Donald Cooper… Read More