Ahh, the wonders of healthy soil. From water-holding capacity, pest and disease regulation, to nutrient cycling and physical stability, a robust and resilient soil gives farmers a huge advantage in crop production. But what makes a healthy soil? How can we measure its fitness and whether it’s in top farming shape? That’s a question soil… Read More
Category: audio
Can governments protect valuable farmland while at the same time build housing needed for ever-expanding cities and urban cities? That question is being asked throughout Ontario agriculture this week after the provincial government passed the More Homes Built Faster Act, Bill 23. The legislation has drawn the ire of critics, as Premier Doug Ford moves… Read More
The cost of food, fuelled by inflation levels not seen in decades, is the top “life” issue concerning Canadians. That’s the headline emerging from the Canadian Centre for Food Integrity (CCFI) 2022 public trust research report, released during the organization’s annual summit in Toronto this week. The 2022 findings illustrate that the cost of food… Read More
Nitrogen has been a hot topic, not only in Canada when it comes to emissions reductions, but worldwide as Europe faces steep increases on natural gas prices, which may have crop rotations shifting in the coming years for those producers, creating a domino effect for North American growers. In Europe, they’ve see a 3600 per… Read More
The 2021 growing season affords many farmers an opportunity, perhaps unlike any they’ve experienced before — sky high prices and for some, a decent start to the planting season. Western Canada’s drought will take some of the wind out of the sails of those looking to generate record profit, but for many farmers, this year… Read More
With the expansion of domestic canola crush capacity in Western Canada, the term “renewable diesel” is being mentioned much more frequently. Many growers are familiar with biodiesel, but the two are different and not interchangeable. Although they can come from the same feedstocks, such as vegetable oil, the process of making them is different. Ian… Read More
What do hot air balloons, rodeos, and role models have in common? The answer is agricultural communications specialist Karen Lewis. As part of our series featuring women in agriculture in honour of International Women’s Day, we spoke with Lewis about how strong women in her life have helped shape her career in agriculture. Lewis makes… Read More
The post-COVID situation for the food industry may be a concern for the average consumer. The impacts might be most felt by the grocery and restaurant sectors and one has to wonder what the business might look like when we emerge from the pandemic. “It depends which country you’re in,” says Dr. David Hughes, emeritus… Read More
“It is hot!” says Peter “Wheat Pete” Johnson in this episode of the Wheat School. And that heat is taking a bite out of wheat yields. Wheat is a cool season crop and does not like heat, so when temperatures start to climb yield can be impacted. The most critical stage is at filling. It… Read More
COVID-19 has really thrown a lot of the economic forecasting out the window for the Canadian economy. The big question is, how quickly we can get back to normal? Glen Hodgson, fellow-in-residence at the C.D. Howe Institute at Toronto, Ont., joined Shaun Haney for a chat about our country’s economic forecast. The economy rode a… Read More
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau visited Winnipeg, Man,. on Tuesday and took questions from reporters about what’s happening with Canada’s trade relations with China. Questions centred on canola, as earlier that morning it was announced China banned Viterra from exporting canola seed due to “hazardous pests.” Trudeau said, “We’re continuing to work very hard to try… Read More
It was billed as an invitation to celebrate the coming into force of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement For Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), as Canadian Minister of International Trade Diversification Jim Carr made the final stop of a cross-Canada tour with trade commissioners from Global Affairs Canada at Saskatoon. The event was meant to convey a… Read More
Should I or shouldn’t I plant soybeans this spring? This is a question on the minds of many farmers as we head into spring of 2019. For a few years, it looked like soybeans were going to take over many acres across the southern Prairies, but a couple of bad years for soybeans have caused… Read More
Things are looking up for the barley market. That’s the message from the SaskBarley annual general meeting held recently during CropSphere at Saskatoon, Sask. “I think the industry has never been stronger. We’re seeing huge exports on the feed side going into China, we’re strengthening in the malt side, both domestically and globally, and we’ve… Read More
The flax industry has had some tough years. Still recovering acres from the Triffid issue from a few years ago, this past year’s drought in the southern half of the Prairies also limited production. SaskFlax, however, has continued to move forward and plan for success. After the annual general meeting at CropSphere recently, Wayne Thompson,… Read More