Like with human health, maintaining or creating healthy soil is more about doing lots of things right vs. adding one product. And, just as with human health, there’s no magic pill to solve a problem — anyone who tells you there is, is probably selling something. Dr. Don Flaten, soil scientist at the University of… Read More
News of Cargill spinning off its malting business was first announced last December. The deal to sell the global malt business to Axreal’s subsidary, Boortmalt, has officially closed, as of October 31. Boortmalt’s parent company, Axreal, is France’s largest grain cooperative. Cargill had one lone malting company in Canada — Prairie Malt, based at Biggar,… Read More
Visual damage to wheat kernels might look cringe-worthy, but it’s the damage you can’t see that’s causing downgrading this harvest season. Jeremy Boychyn, agronomist with the Alberta Wheat and Barley Commissions, says wet harvest weather even before the late September snow storm is negatively impacting falling number — a key measure of milling quality. Some… Read More
Western Canada got absolutely hammered by snow this last week, which brings up questions on lifters, stripper headers, and more. For Ontario, soybean harvest is late but rolling, and that means the questions about winter wheat seeding are also rolling in to Wheat Pete’s Word host, Peter Johnson’s mailbox! From when to bump seeding rates,… Read More
A university vice-president has removed herself from the post-secondary institution due to an advertisement that raised many eyebrows throughout Edmonton. As part of its Truth Matters campaign, the University of Alberta launched a wide range of ads that tackled everything from the effects of sexting in a relationship, storing solar energy, climate change, and more…. Read More
Concerns surrounding this year’s crop have been across the board — from a lack of moisture, to major storms and hail, to late rain, challenges from the growing season have translated into harvest quality concerns. RealAg Radio host Shaun Haney brought on Wendy White, grain marketing manger with Viterra on Thursday’s show to provide an… Read More
Most farmers intuitively understand that manure applications are good for soil health and building soil nutrients, but many grain growers use fertilizer vs. manure for many reasons — availability and ease of use topping the list. Sask Pork is hoping to convince farmers that there is real value to cropping systems in adding hog manure… Read More
August marks the beginning of the crop year, and for many farmers in Western Canada, it marks a significant anniversary — the removal of the Canadian Wheat Board monopoly in 2012. The Conservatives had two minority governments leading up to eventually winning a majority in 2011. As Gerry Ritz, then federal minister of Agriculture and… Read More
With two potential new models for collecting seed royalties on the horizon, farm groups across the Prairies are wanting to hear from producers as to what their preference would be. Currently, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) have put their consultation process on hold with farmers. This comes after… Read More
Is 2019 the year of the weird? Maybe, says host Peter ‘Wheat Pete’ Johnson in this episode of Wheat Pete’s Word. From planting conditions, to strange looking plants, and on to excessive and strange insect and creepy crawlies — this growing season is nothing short of odd. Johnson tackles what’s going on with things like… Read More
The Barley Council of Canada has announced it will be realigning its services and operations to collaborate with Cereals Canada, the Canadian Malting Barley Technical Centre (CMBTC), and the Brewing and Malting Barley Research Institute (BMBRI). “Over the past few months, we have engaged in a comprehensive review of the roles and responsibilities of our… Read More
Statistics Canada is out with its first results of this year’s Field Crop Survey to gauge how much of each principal field crop is currently stored on-farm. The survey was conducted from the beginning until the end of March. According to the report, farmers were asked to report the amounts of grain, oilseeds, and special… Read More
At a time when farmers are hammering out final crop plans, ranchers and feedlot operators are also looking ahead to ration formulations ahead of the first new-crop harvests. To get a sense of western feed markets, RealAg Radio host Shaun Haney invited Jim Beusekom, president of Market Place Commodities Ltd., on stage at the recent TechTourLIVE… Read More
Where is wheat number one? Do you have a planter plate that’s going to work for soys (maybe not!)? Plus, do you know which spring-seeded cereal gets the biggest bump from early planting? If you’re looking for the answers to these questions and so much more, you don’t want to miss this week’s Wheat Pete’s… Read More
The integration between Alberta Wheat and Alberta Barley has been extremely successful, says Tom Steve, executive director with the now one-year-old Alberta Wheat and Barley Commission. “We’ve realized cost savings of about $350,000 a year,” Steve says. “A lot is related to salaries for sure, but we have a stronger management team now that’s focussed… Read More