While running their last venture, Farm At Hand, Kim Keller and business partner Himanshu Singh started a mental health initiative called “Here for Farmers,” a t-shirt fundraising campaign focused on supporting mental wellness in the agriculture community. Outside of the campaign, however, the calls kept coming in, asking for help finding mental health resources in… Read More
Month: March 2018
Despite armies of well-meaning accountants, bankers and consultants urging them to do so, many Canadian farm families don’t have a plan in place to transfer ownership between generations. It could be the word succession that’s getting in the way. This can imply an abrupt change, when the older generation is booted out to pasture and… Read More
February 2018 will go down in history as the month that Argentina’s soybean crop hit a new crisis level. Ongoing drought across the region coupled with delays in Brazil’s harvest has unleashed speculations across the soybean complex. For the month, the May contract in Chicago closed at 5.5%, continuing the frantic surge caused by short-term… Read More
Host Shaun Haney is broadcasting from Las Vegas for today’s episode of the show, covering: Grain-by-rail – “It’s a crisis right now. The levels are astronomically bad. Farmers are banding together and we’re trying to get something done…” Daryl Fransoo, director for the Western Canadian Wheat Growers Association, and Jeff Nielsen, president of Grain Growers of… Read More
With NAFTA negotiations underway, talk of new tariffs, and the relationship between Canada and the U.S. at a critical juncture in its history, the U.S. capital was an appropriate setting for the Western Canadian Wheat Growers’ 48th annual convention this week. The current trade and transportation issues, which are tied together in driving the export-based… Read More
Nestlé is spending over $51 million on upgrades to its ice cream factory in London, Ontario that supplies all of Canada with Haagen-Dazs, Parlour and Drumstick products. Groundwork has started on an expansion that will increase the plant’s footprint by 9,000 square feet, while adding 12 new jobs and shifting 45 seasonal part-time positions to… Read More
Alberta has a unique part of the seed value chain in its Alberta Seed Processors organization. For many towns, the seed plant has been an integral part of the town’s economy and, in some cases, even helped build the town. As Monica Klaas, with the Alberta Seed Processors, explains, though, the role of the seed… Read More
Deere & Company says it has signed a deal to buy the company that makes carbon fibre booms for John Deere sprayers. The agreement will see Deere acquire King Agro, a privately-held manufacturer of carbon fibre products with headquarters in Valencia, Spain and a production facility in Campana, Argentina. Deere and King Agro agreed to… Read More
Just this week, U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer released the Trump Administration’s Trade Policy Agenda and Annual Report, saying “We are already seeing the results of President Trump’s agenda pay off for American workers, farmers, ranchers, and businesses.” But not every American would agree with that statement, and some farm grower organizations are anxious to see… Read More
Today’s show comes to us all the way from the Farmer’s Edge booth at Commodity Classic in Anaheim, CA, where host Shaun Haney is “escaping Canadian weather.” Shaun starts off the show posing the question: “what do we expect from agricultural leadership?” What do you think? Should politicians who tote an ag portfolio represent the… Read More
As the volume of grain backed up on farms in Western Canada grows, proposed transportation legislation that could help grain shippers address poor rail service remains stalled in the Senate. As it’s written right now, Bill C-49 — originally introduced in the House of Commons last spring — would give grain shippers the right to… Read More
It’s a question people grapple with daily — is it better to be a generalist, with a knowledge on a great number of topics, or a specialist, who can talk with gumption about a specific field? The Canola Council of Canada has found a way to get the best of both worlds, with a group… Read More
What do Canadian speed skater Kim Boutin and your soil have in common? They both prosper and succeed when you treat them like an Olympic athlete. Boutin’s Olympic training earned her three medals at the recently-concluded Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea. What would happen if farmers treated their soil like an Olympic athlete? Soil… Read More
If drought concerns, disease pressure, or low commodity prices have you scratching your head on crop rotation tweaks, Alberta farmers have access to two, free crop planning and profitability programs offered by the provincial agriculture department. The first program, Crop Choice$, allows farmers to input their own costs and yield expectations, and is also fully… Read More
How important is the number of rows on a corn cob? When row numbers shrink from 20 to 18 you could be looking at a 20-bushel per acre yield loss, says Illinois-based BASF agronomist Jeremy Hogan. On this edition of RealAgriculture’s Corn School, Hogan breaks down four components of yield – protecting row numbers, maximizing ear… Read More