Since closing its borders to beef from animals over thirty months (OTM) of age following the 2003 BSE finding in Canada, Japan has announced it will now import beef from animals of all ages. The ban, instituted in 2005, will be lifted for all importing countries, including Canada and the U.S. Japan is an important… Read More
Ontario sheep and cattle producers who work with many of the province’s independent meat processors could soon find themselves fully responsible for their livestock’s hides. In April, one of the few processing companies in the province that collects hides from small and medium-sized abattoirs, announced it was ceasing operations. It had been serving Ontario abattoirs… Read More
Time is running out for prairie producers to sign up for this year’s calf price insurance program. The sign up period began in early February and closes May 30, 2019. Bill Hoar, product owner with Western LPIP (livestock price insurance program), says that livestock producers can sign up over the phone, at a financial services… Read More
The May long weekend is the official kick off to the summer barbecue season, but the wet, cool weather trend doesn’t look like it’s going to let up for much of the country. Will this deter beef consumption? Will African swine fever’s impact on the hog markets boost beef retail sales through competitive pricing? Not… Read More
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has announced it will be implementing a surveillance plan in an effort to be prepared when it comes to African swine fever (ASF). The program will function in full force spring of 2019. ASF is a highly contagious and deadly disease affecting both domestic and feral (wild) pigs. It… Read More
Saskatchewan Agriculture Minister David Marit has announced the winners for this year’s Agriculture Student Scholarship Program. The top prize winner receives a $4,000 scholarship towards agriculture-related post-secondary studies, while three runners up receive a $2,000 scholarship. This year’s grand prize winner is Caylee Dorval of Glaslyn. Dorval created a three-minute long video describing and showing… Read More
Quebec’s farmer union and its beef producers are calling on the Canadian Food Inspection Agency to stop Beyond Meat from using the word “meat” when referring to its plant-based products, such as burgers and sausages, Quebec’s TVA Nouvelles reports. Beyond Meat launched its meat-alternative product line in Canada on May 1, 2019. L’Union des producteurs… Read More
Federated Co-operatives Limited (FCL) is consolidating its six feed production facilities in the Prairies into three. The three that are on the chopping block are the plants located in Brandon, Man., Melfort, Sask., and Edmonton, Alta. “While we don’t make these decisions lightly, by consolidating manufacturing and taking measures to refocus our resources in the… Read More
Turkey Farmers of Canada have launched a five-year advertising and PR campaign encouraging consumers to #ThinkTurkey (#PensezDindon). The campaign will focus on engaging primary meal planners to raise awareness of the benefits of turkey, drive year-round demand, and increase overall consumption and retail availability of the protein. Launched May 6, the campaign includes billboards, transit… Read More
Farm animals — we love them and we care for them, putting in long hours to keep them fed and safe. Sometimes they also do the most ridiculous things and make us laugh. In their honour, we’ve compiled a list of some of the ridiculous things our community’s animals have gotten up to around the… Read More
For those who handle the grocery shopping in the household, you might be surprised to hear that recent run ups in grocery store prices are somewhat of an anomaly. As Kevin Grier, with KG Market Analysis and Consulting explains, price inflation of grocery items has actually been low to negative in the past few years,… Read More
The Saskatchewan Stock Growers Association (SSGA), along with the South of the Divide Conservation Action Program Inc. (SODCAP), has received US$250,000 from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF). The money will be used to implement results-based conservation agreements with beef producers. “This NFWF grant demonstrates that our beef producers in Saskatchewan are actively engaged… Read More
Corn, wheat, barley — you know starch is an essential component of cattle diets, but do you know why? Is wheat an easy swap out for barley in a ration? Is it worth buying steam-flaked corn? In this episode of the Beef School, Karen Beauchemin, with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada at Lethbridge, lays out what… Read More
Canadian tech start up company Transport Genie Ltd., along with researchers at the University of Saskatchewan (U of S), have received funding to move forward with phase three of a multi-year research project aimed at improving biosecurity within swine transport, including transport trailers. The funding, not disclosed in the news release, comes from the Swine… Read More
The Ontario Federation of Agriculture and its members are calling on farmers and allies to contact their government representative over the increase in animal rights activists’ activities and the lack of prosecution of charges. There has been a marked increase in activist activity on farms and roadsides in Ontario over the past few months. At… Read More