The following article was published on Farms.com and Truthabouttrade.org. It was written by Dean Kleckner, an Iowa farmer, who chairs Truth About Trade & Technology Norman Borlaug once told me that he would trade away all of his life’s accomplishments just for the chance to play second base for the Chicago Cubs.Thank goodness he couldn’t… Read More
One of the great things about living in North America is that you can share your opinion freely. Whether you read this blog or others that share the counter point, you can provide opinion without fear of being burned at the stake or put on a firing line. This morning I was on Twitter and… Read More
Ross McKenzie, PhD of the Lethbridge Research Station talks about the agronomic considerations for winter wheat. Ross explains seeding dates, plant populations, nutrient requirements, specific variety considerations and seeding depth. Winter wheat is a great crop with many benefits. Planting winter wheat is a great way to lower the amount of workload in the spring… Read More
At the International Livestock Congress I talked to Dr. Alastair Cribb, Dean. Faculty of Veterinary Medicine University of Calgary about the balance between making decisions based on science versus emotion. Sometimes this can be a very grey area and will continue to be in the future as both scientific advancement and emotions increase. See more ILC… Read More
Last week I attended the Lacombe Research Station Field Day in Lacombe Alberta. I thought that it was a great time and I picked up some things about a couple varieties that I was unaware of. This is the first time that I have attended this event but based on my experience I will definitely… Read More
I firmly believe that the food system and farmers will always adjust to changes in eating patterns in the world. Dr. Bruce German of the University of California, Davis describes one of these changes. He believes that the notion that there is an ideal diet for everyone is nonsense. Dr. German feels that creating technologies on and off… Read More
In case you have not been following the story very closely, the debate over biotech wheat is about to restart again. Cereal breeding in North America has been on the downtrend. The past three months have brought wheat breeding investments by Dow Agro, Monsanto and Bayer. These strategic moves are quite obviously being executed so… Read More
This afternoon I talked to Richard Phillips, Executive Director of the Grain Growers of Canada about the possible introduction of biotech wheat to the agricultural system. The Grain Growers of Canada were members of the Biotech Wheat Coalition that is trying to push the international community to support biotech wheat. Shaun: Why is the Grain… Read More
Canadian, Australian and American wheat organizations have formed the Biotech Wheat Coalition “in support for more efficient, sustainable and profitable production of wheat around the world”. See the Joint Statment Here As RealAgriculture.com has discussed before the need for biotech wheat is rising and the usual roadblocks are presenting themselves as discussed by the Canadian… Read More
There is an over abundance of research that is done every year and presented to you to prove which product your farm needs to ensure success. Whether it is seed, chemical, agronomic enhancement or a miracle herbal additive, the amount of information is monstrous. There are many private research trials and public trials for all… Read More
There has been a lot of confusion amongst some people regarding Monsanto‘s application for GM drought tolerant corn for feed and food use in Canada and the United States. The application has been made and could be ready if approved fro commercialization in 2012 or 2013. This gene will provide farmers with the ability to… Read More
Last week while I was in Edmonton I listened to Stan Blade, Executive Director of the Alberta Agricultural Research Institute (AARI), talk about where Alberta is focusing cereal research in the long term. Currently in Alberta the three biggest products in terms of value are beef (3.104 billion), canola (1.216 billion) and wheat ( 1.251… Read More
Several years ago, farmers debated the possible benefits that Round up Ready wheat would or would not bring to the market place. Based on the result of the industry debate at the time the idea was shelved. One of the negative fall outs from this has been that transgenic wheat in general has been held… Read More
IBM has developed a system to fully track a steaks movement through the supply chain. This really is the ultimate in providing information to the customer. Whether or not someone is willing to pay for that sort of information I think is still in question. I still think that this sort of information is more… Read More
Lately there has been alot of focus on the increased need for more money to go into feed grain research in Canada. With provincial and federal funding decreasing over the past 10 years it is imperative that this change. Probably the most pressing concern is that the corn industry is focused on continuing to push… Read More