It wasn’t that long ago that just about everyone said if you are looking to diversify or get out of cows, you should get into goats. The market for these little milk makers, seemingly, had no where to go but up: major processors were expanding or adding product lines, consumption trends positive, and prices were… Read More
On Friday, Alberta Beef Producers (ABP) will have their plebiscite vote available to its members. Ranchers are being asked if their provincial check-off dollars should be refundable or non-refundable. Voting will take place at various ABP fall meetings across the province from October 19th until November 13th. There’s also the option to vote at any of the… Read More
Looking to cut your hay close, clean, and quick while conditioning it for faster dry down and nutrient preservation? If that’s the plan, it may be time to take a closer look at New Hollands’s new Discbine 209 and 210 disc mower-conditioners. The side-pull mowers were rolled out at the recent Farm Progress Show at Boone, Iowa…. Read More
It was an exciting day for trade between Canada and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) region. Today, the Canadian government announced new market access for live cattle exports to the Philippines, along with sheep and goat genetics exports to Indonesia and the Philippines. “Increasing trade with fast-growing and dynamic markets such as those in… Read More
There was a tremendous amount of relief, and some consternation, when the new United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) was finally struck. Cleary, many industries are simply happy that things did not get worse. The dairy industry, though, feels that things did get worse for them. Dr. Richard Barichello, professor, food and resource economics at the University… Read More
Moving forward with its plan of having all sows in an open housing system, Maple Leaf Foods confirms as of now, 40,000 sows, or roughly 50 per cent of the herd, have moved over to the new system. When fully complete, Maple Leaf will become the first large-scale producer to have all of its female… Read More
This week marks the official opening of theLivestock and Forage Centre of Excellence (LFCE), located southeast of Saskatoon. Leadership of the LFCE say that this isn’t just a world-class facility, but it is designed to be world-leading in forage and beef production research. RealAgriculture’s Dale Leftwich attended the grand opening of the LFCE and met… Read More
Can robots effectively milk cows on large U.S. dairy farms? That’s a question Plymouth, Indiana farmer Brian Houin is determined to answer at his family-owned Homestead Dairy operation. Canadian farmers have had tremendous success using robot milkers in smaller dairy operations, but Houin is putting the milking machines to the test on a whole new level. In… Read More
The University of Saskatchewan opened its new $38 million Livestock and Forage Centre of Excellence (LFCE) just South of Clavet, Sask., Tuesday. The new facility has been many years in the making, and a wide range of people in the value chain and academics came together to make it a reality. The LFCE is both… Read More
With more than 20 cases of African Swine Fever (ASF) reported overseas, Canadian hog producers are taking note of this serious disease. Stewart Skinner, a hog producer from near Listowel, Ont., says he’s worried it will come to Canada through person-to-person, or rather, farm-to-farm contact. “Without sounding alarmist, if we did have a case in… Read More
A family succession plan for a lasting impression on the cattle industry is one of the reasons J.C. (Jack) Anderson and his daughter, Wynne Chisholm, have donated a 19,000-acre cattle ranch operation worth more than $44 million dollars to the University of Calgary’s Faculty of Veterinary Medicine (UCVM). The university calls the gift “transforming,” and will… Read More
What a week in Wisconsin. When I arrived at the annual World Dairy Expo in Madison, Wisconsin, early last week, farmers across the U.S. were still trying to understand the potential impact that the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) could have on their farms. Early television reports featured emotional farmers sharing tearful thanks for a new… Read More
Let’s face it — when it comes to food marketing and advertising, companies get it so very wrong most of the time. Every now and again, though, companies get it so very right. In case you haven’t seen it, American dairy co-op Land O’Lakes recently released its fresh take on the Old McDonald nursery rhyme,… Read More
The fall calf run is rolling and prices have been steady, and sometimes steady is really good. For five months or more, prices have held strong bucking the trend of somewhere during the calf run we stub our toe, either because of weather or logistics or some other issue. What’s more, says Anne Wasko, of… Read More
During a recent trip to Washington, D.C., Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland wore a t-shirt that read: “Keep calm and negotiate NAFTA.” To farmers looking at the result, the shirt could just as easily have read “I renegotiated NAFTA, and all I got was this lousy t-shirt.” Canada came to the table with very little… Read More