With the overall goal to benchmark the sustainability of Canada’s beef industry, the Canadian Roundtable for Sustainable Beef (CRSB) is currently looking for producer participation. “Verifiable sustainability is a ‘want’ of our major customers, and we are being given the opportunity to define what that looks like,” said Cherie Copithorne Barnes, CRSB chair, in the Canadian Cattlemen’s… Read More
Category: Podcasts
Grain and oilseed markets showed little reaction to the latest stocks estimates from Statistics Canada released on Wednesday. The agency’s December 31st, 2014 stocks numbers were generally in line with trade expectations, with all-wheat pegged at 24.8 million tonnes and canola at 11.1 million (see all the numbers here.) Traders were expecting 25 million tonnes of… Read More
Soil moisture observations collected by a new NASA satellite will be used for a number of agricultural applications in Canada. The space agency launched the SMAP (Soil Moisture Active Passive) satellite on Saturday, January 31st — it’s the first satellite dedicated to monitoring soil moisture levels around the globe. Jarrett Powers, manager of Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada’s Knowledge… Read More
Not only are there environmental benefits to improved soil biology, but there are economic incentives as well, says a farmer from Ohio who spoke about cover crops and a systems approach to microbiology at the SoilSmart conference in Waterloo, Ont., in late January. Jeff Rasawehr joined Bernard Tobin to discuss six steps for establishing healthy soil, which… Read More
Paul Hetherington, CEO of the Baking Association of Canada says we need a better understanding of the public acceptance of genetically engineered wheat. Hetherington spoke at the Western Association of Wheat Growers’ AGM in early January, with a presentation entitled The world as it is, not as we may want it to be. In the presentation, he identified… Read More
Who makes the best equipment salesperson — a former mechanic? How great is your local equipment dealer at trouble-shooting all the new tech and equipment in the tractor and combine cab? For this very special FarmTech edition of the Kickin’ Tires podcast, co-hosts Shaun Haney and Jim Hale are joined by spray application specialist and… Read More
Despite the tumble in wheat futures over the last month, there are still reasons for growers to be optimistic about where wheat prices are headed, according to the president of LeftField Commodity Research. Chuck Penner shares his take on what’s happening in the grain markets in this video filmed at FarmTech in Edmonton. “I’m friendliest… Read More
Between 2010 and 2013, Transport Canada issued 1,527 approvals for unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) operations, with the number growing every year. Last fall, the organization announced exemptions to the Special Flight Operations Certificate, once mandatory for all non-recreational use of UAVs. Find out if you need permission to fly a UAV. The exemptions could pave the way… Read More
Last week, the U.S. released its cattle inventory numbers for January 1, and, as expected, there was some growth of the cattle herd. The numbers were slightly higher than anticipated, but still make for a historically small cattle herd. What does it mean for cattle supplies going forward? And will the Canadian numbers follow the… Read More
While the Groundhog Day forecasters across Canada are sending mixed messages about what kind of weather to anticipate for the next six weeks, the senior meteorologist with World Weather Inc. says farmers in Western Canada should expect more of what they’ve been getting. For the eastern side of the prairies, that means surges of cold… Read More
This week’s edition of TWORA is tardy, and for that I offer my sincerest apologies. Between a full week of FarmTech (check out our growing coverage of the event), weekend bull sales and a luddite with some technical issues, getting TWORA published was a bit of a challenge. So, we offer it as your Sunday morning… Read More
These aren’t your daddy’s corn hybrids. If you think modern corn hybrids are leaps and bounds more productive than what you were planting 15 or years ago, you’re right. But thinking so and knowing so (and how) are two different things, and for that you need research. Tony Vyn, of Purdue University, has looked at… Read More
In late January, over 1,700 people descend on Edmonton’s Northlands Park to learn, network and learn some more at the conference that is The FarmTech Event. A show of that size requires an incredible amount of prep time and an entire team of audio/visual specialists to make sure the keynote and concurrent sessions go off… Read More
The Saskatchewan Forage Council (SFC) recently completed a study to investigate the status of trace mineral across the province. Pastures were sampled in 2012 and 2013, looking at four soil zones and various forage species in spring and fall. In general, the study found copper and zinc decreased from spring to fall, while iron, manganese… Read More
This week, TWORA‘s guest host with the gruff voice, Debra Murphy, gives highlights of some of the news from the Alberta Beef Producers and a recent funding announcement at the Saskatchewan Beef Industry Conference. She also hears from Lyndsey and Shaun, who were out of the office this week on adventures to tropical Alberta and the state… Read More