There’s no way to get around putting up feed for wintering livestock, but there are several ways to minimize the amount of hay fed, the cost of feed delivery, and the cost of hauling away and spreading manure. Steve Kenyon of Greener Pastures Ranching at Busby, Alta., says that planning for winter grazing and feeding… Read More
As the holiday season approaches, you may be stocking up on libations, goodies, groceries, and more. Well, this year, if you live in Ontario, the cream liquor you so admire for your coffee or over ice, will have the Dairy Farmers of Canada blue cow logo. Dairy Distillery, the creators of Vodkow Superior spirits made… Read More
If hay has seemed in shorter supply over the last few years, it’s because it has been. In a recent webinar series exploring grazing cover crops and annual forage, Ontario forage specialist Christine O’Reilly shared a nearly 40 year trend line of both hay production and livestock numbers for the province. Since the early 90s,… Read More
Can we eat our way out of climate change? If we all became vegans could we eliminate livestock and put a big dent in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions? Those are just some of the questions Dr. Sara Place tackles daily in her job as Elanco Animal Health’s chief sustainability officer. Earlier this week, Place joined… Read More
Starting this month, the Peterborough, Ontario, fairlife* plant will begin using 100 per cent Canadian milk for its ultrafiltered milk offerings. The lower sugar, higher protein fairlife milk is offered in 1.5-litre bottles of 2% white, 2% chocolate, whole and skim milk. Consumers will now see the Canadian maple leaf and the Dairy Farmers of… Read More
If I want it done right, I’ll do it myself. Is that a phrase that you often say or think as a farmer? Delegation is a learned skill and one that doesn’t always come easily, especially if you’re used to working independently. On a recent Farmer Rapid Fire segment over on RealAg Radio, host Shaun… Read More
A first-of-its-kind partnership between Ontario’s TVO and the Dairy Farmers of Ontario has not received the warmest welcome by some of its viewers and readers. TVO is a publicly-funded educational television network and media organization operated by the Ontario Educational Communications Authority, a Crown corporation owned by the Government of Ontario. Dairy Farmers of Ontario… Read More
Most of us learned early that you need to keep your promises if you want to be trusted. In politics, however, promises are rarely kept; instead, they’re wiggled out of, often after an election, giving politicians a terrible reputation in the trust department. In the last several years, supply management has not prevented Canada negotiating… Read More
The Dairy Farmers of Canada (DFC) is calling on the federal government to keep its promise on compensation for dairy farmers, stemming from international trade deals that allowed for dairy product access into Canada’s supply managed value chain. “When a dairy farmer makes a commitment, his or her word is gold. We hold our government… Read More
Fifty years ago, supply management was formed to “save the family farm” and today, the reason for such a system to exist is becoming less clear to some researchers and analysts. A report was recently released on the future of supply management, titled Supply Management 2.0, A Possible Roadmap for the Canadian Dairy Industry. Dr…. Read More
Those opposed to supply management of dairy in Canada often point to other countries that have moved away from the system as success stories. But delving deeper into some of these systems shows that not all dairy value chains can be compared apples to apples (carton to carton?), but that like it or not, the… Read More
Originally set to be released in early 2020, but delayed because of the COVID-19 shutdown, a joint report between University of Guelph and Dalhousie University sets a path forward for Canada’s “ailing” dairy sector. Co-authored by Sylvain Charlebois, director of the Agri-Food Analytics Lab at Dalhousie University, Jean-Luc Lemieux, and Simon Somogyi, Arrell Chair in… Read More
Lactanet Canada has launched DairyTrace, the new national dairy cattle traceability program for dairy farmers in Canada. Lactanet Canada was recognized in June by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) as the nationally responsible administrator for traceability of dairy bovine animals. Under federal regulations and/or proAction requirements, everyone who owns or has the possession, care… Read More
A team of researchers at the University of Guelph are studying why Canadian baristas sometimes have problems foaming milk for their customers’ lattes, and it starts with on-farm milk handling. Dr. David Kelton, Dairy Farmers of Ontario Dairy Cattle Health Research Chair, graduate student Hannah Woodhouse, and animal bioscience undergraduate student Mikayla Ringelberg are studying… Read More
Farmers are taking a closer look at their soil’s health lately, and measuring the impact of cover crops or different types of strip-tillage. In this episode of Soil School, we’re talking about overall soil health and nutrition and we’ve got a great example of what you can achieve when you combine soil health and balanced… Read More
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