Grain markets dealt with a sideway 3rd week of April thanks to weather concerns, acreage estimates, and planting progress owning headlines. Canola was the biggest winner for the week, up 1.4%, while conversely, oats was the sorest loser, down 0.8%. Corn and wheat were slightly lower, down 0.35% and 0.2% respectively, whereas soybeans gained 0.4%… Read More
First generation market garden farmers from New Brunswick and third generation dairy and field crop farmers from Quebec have been named Canada’s Outstanding Young Farmers for 2016. Dominic Drapeau & Celia Neault of Ste-Francoise-de-Lotbinière, QC and Andrew & Jennifer Lovell of Keswick Ridge, NB were selected at the national OYF event held in Niagara Falls,… Read More
Fuel theft is unfortunately an all-too-common problem on farms. As operations grow larger, and with more uninhabited farm yards, thieves may find fuel tanks unsupervised and unprotected. To keep fuel where it’s supposed to be, Kenneth Johnson and Jace Ericson of Estevan, Saskatchewan came up with their own solution: a steel cabinet for fuel transfer pumps on tanks. Their creation — the Defender… Read More
The lumberjack show has become a tradition at Canada’s Farm Progress Show in Regina. West Coast Lumberjack Shows has returned to the show this year, hosting three shows daily just outside Hall 12. Our hard ag news-only journalist duo of Kelvin Heppner and videographer Jason Stroeve caught up with Darren and Lauren for a Facebook behind-the-scenes… Read More
After four years in development, AGCO rolled out its new 3300 Command Series corn head at the Farm Progress Show earlier this month in Decatur, Illinois. AGCO brand manager Kevin Bien told Real Agriculture the new corn head has been totally redesigned. “We call it the Command Series because it allows our customers to take… Read More
Jeff and Ebony Prosko of Rose Valley were named Saskatchewan’s Outstanding Young Farmers for 2015 during the OYF luncheon at Canada’s Farm Progress Show in Regina on Friday. They operate a 4,500 acre grain and oilseed farm — part of a larger 15,000 acre family operation in northeast Saskatchewan. The Proskos also opened an ag retail business at Rose Valley called… Read More
North America’s largest food retailer, Walmart, unveiled its positions on animal welfare and the use of antibiotics in farm animals on Friday. Strangely enough, farm groups and animal rights organizations alike applauded the company’s animal care guidelines. While both sides are welcoming Walmart’s positions, if you dig a bit deeper, there are conflicting views on what the implications… Read More
What a week! Seeding continues in Canada and the United States well ahead of schedule, creating bearish implications. That being said, freezing temperatures are in the forecast for a few areas and so the percentage complete could be lower than what officials are predicting. The lower U.S. dollar has also provided support to all commodity… Read More
Things have changed quickly in society, maybe faster than ever. For example, I don’t know about you, but when I was growing up, science was definitely not cool. One of my contemporaries (age-wise), a top-notch, internationally respected environmental toxicologist, reiterated that for me recently during a discussion about occupational choices. “I didn’t become a scientist… Read More
By Dave McEachren, McEachren Seeds, Glencoe, Ont. It was 1945, and my grandfather was purchasing his first farm. The 100 acres of southwestern Ontario clay-loam soil was much like the land his father before him had farmed. The man he bought the farm from warned of the trouble with modern tractors. “Don’t go buying a… Read More
The last few weeks of the year would not be complete without a Top 10 or two. While Shaun Haney and Lyndsey Smith have already weighed in with their thoughts on the top news stories of the year, we thought we’d also offer up what our viewers and readers watched most in 2012. Without further… Read More
I’ll be the first to admit that the U.S. political system with its two houses, governors and senators and congressmen sets my head spinning. I also find it fascinating, as wrangling rules and regulations for so many people just seems like an overly daunting task. It would appear that our friends to the south also… Read More
Each year, the Canadian Farm Writers’ Federation holds an annual conference that brings together over 100 agriculture journalists to offer an up close and personal look at agriculture. The conference is held in a different province each year in order to highlight many different aspects of food, feed and fuel production in the country. This… Read More
If you were given the choice between playing the game or sitting down together to come up with the rules of the game which would you pick? Here we see the inherent problem with the family business and the dilemma of succession planning. Unfortunately, we can play the game for years before we run into… Read More
There’s nothing that fuels the old equipment buying itch more than a few good years of decent prices. Canada’s Farm Progress Show gave farmers in the market to buy a chance to scratch that itch. The newest in everything from trucks, tractors, seeders and other implements were scattered across the grounds. It was a great… Read More