We have no shortage of farmer led groups in Canada. Almost every crop has a growers association that represents their interests in Ottawa, tries to create demand for the commodity with end users and consumers, supports the agronomics of the crop and provides services to the members. Many times this can feel disjointed and does… Read More
Category: Ag Policy
Last week the Alberta government released the information on a new age verification incentive program. Outside of Quebec, Alberta is the only province to have mandatory age verification. The data shows that even though the process is mandatory below 70% are actually getting RFID tagged. This is concerning to the province and required a response…. Read More
The federal government is proposing to change who is eligible to vote in the upcoming Canadian Wheat Board Election. My understanding is currently that if you have or had a permit book you could vote. The proposed change would require a farmer to at least deliver 40MT of production from one of the seven major… Read More
The one thing that stays consistent is that if you are in the cattle feeding business your really need to be able to stomach volatility and adverse affects that are outside of your realm of control as a producer. The snow storm has had a real impact on the cattle in the yards along with… Read More
Have you heard of CIGI? Do you know what CIGI does? Does the Canadian International Grain Institute make a difference for Canadian farmers and industry? You bet!!! I recently stopped at CIGI’s office in Winnipeg and had a great time learning about what CIGI is and what they do. I had what I thought was… Read More
This week I attended the Canada Grains Council Meeting and listened to a very interesting day of reports on the market access issues that Canada is facing. Unless you have been in Phoenix all winter I am sure that you have not missed the whole Triffid flax issue that has thrown a real wrench in… Read More
At the recent Canada Grains council meeting a listened to a full day of discussions around Canada’s market access issues across all the main crop types. The recent market access issues with canola are well documented and continue to challenge the countries trade attempts. With 85-95% of Canada’s canola crop getting exported, trade is very… Read More
What does it mean to farm? Why do it? For many, it is a question of passion. Passion for the lifestyle €“ the satisfaction of working the land; the freedom to be your own boss in a world that€™s not constricted by office walls and collared shirts; the day-to-day enjoyment of hard work and fresh… Read More
While in London Ontario for the Innovative Farmers of Ontario meeting I listened to a keynote speech given by Dennis DesRosiers. Dennis is a highly respected automobile industry analyst and he gave a breakdown of what has put the auto sector behind the financial eight ball. The purpose was for farmers in attendance to draw… Read More
In early January, I was fortunate to be invited to be involved in a panel discussion on AgVisonTV hosted by Kevin Stewart. The topic was farm debt and was it was a great experience. I was joined on the panel by Dr. George Brinkman, a retired agricultural economist at Guelph University and Dina Cover, an Economist at… Read More
When I knew that I had a chance to interview Mayo Schmidt I knew right a way a question that I needed to ask him. “What do you say to the people that think they have seen this story before?” The rise and fall of Sask Pool is well documented. From fish farms to… Read More
By most accounts the 2010 NCBA convention in San Antonio was a huge success. This was my first NCBA meeting so it is fitting that we talked to Anne Dunford a wily veteran of the NCBA festivities. Anne wrapped up the week and talked about what she thought were the major things to be pulled… Read More
Canada and Mexico have taken the issue of country of origin labelling (COOL) to the World Trade Organization (WTO). We are basically one year into the implementation of COOL and the financial impact is severe. The impact on the Canada and Mexico livestock markets has been very hurtful. The interesting thing that I found at… Read More
Being someone that has served on boards for a couple different agricultural associations, I respect people that commit the time necessary to make a difference. Whatever your beef politics are it is important to understand the work that happens behind the scenes. Trying to run your own business and also commit the time to cattle… Read More
With the losses that have been suffered in the feeding industry in 2010 it is no surprise that there is a very keen interest in what the analysts are saying about the cattle market in 2010. Before I attended the NCBA convention many people told me that the highlight of the show is the Cattlefax… Read More