The carbon tax, that “price on pollution,” as the Liberal government calls it, is supposed to encourage Canadians to move away from fossil fuel use by making diesel, gas, natural gas, and propane more expensive. What the government has done or plans to do with the tax proceeds is a post for another day, but… Read More
Tag: poll
Do you mark weather events such as fog or hoar frost on the calendar as predictors of what’s to come? Do you track down caterpillars to measure their stripes as an indication of the winter ahead? Does a fall full moon bring frost? Unlike most people, the weather has a profound impact on the livelihoods… Read More
The Bank of Canada overnight rate has risen sharply since early 2022 and has held above 4 per cent since December (see below). The longer the period of increased interest rates continues, the more likely it is farmers will have to renew some loans or take on new debt in this time of more expensive… Read More
There are many reasons why there are fewer equipment dealerships across Canada, including a shrinking customer base. Depending on where you farm, you may still have access to several options, but the risk to those who have lost or will lose dealers was noted on the July 2023 intake of the Canadian Farmer Sentiment Index…. Read More
Some technology is adopted because it becomes the only real option — like needing an email address or running tractors instead of horses. But plenty of technology is a “nice to have” not “need to have” and the defining line between the two usually hinges on the return on investment (ROI). In farming, ROI can… Read More
Dreams need deadlines or they remain just that — dreams. Put another way, a goal without a deadline is just a dream. What’s one way to turn a goal or dream into reality? Writing it down. We broached the subject of written goals in Episode 81 of the Mind Your Farm Business Podcast. In it,… Read More
Since the Canadian Farmer Sentiment Index kicked off in September, the rating given to one metric has stayed nearly unchanged. When farmers are asked to rate how well the federal government is supporting agriculture, just two per cent give an “excellent” rating. The numbers don’t improve much for provincial governments either, resulting in an overall… Read More
Most Canadians have noticed a serious run-up in grocery bills in the last 18 months. Inflation has hit consumers at checkout lines, even at the most discount of discount stores. Which begs the question, how do you save money on food? This week, the RealAg team had its regular Tuesday meeting where we kick off… Read More
It’s a busy time of year for just about everyone — the crop is getting in the ground, calves (and lambs) are hitting the ground, and there are never enough hours in a day to get all the things done. Making sales of new-crop product, whether that’s grain or calves, is perhaps not top of… Read More
If the news is to be believed, some inflationary pressures are beginning to ease, and many supply chains are getting back to “normal” (whatever that means). But if you’ve tried to find basic items such as children’s medicine, coffee filters, or some basic household items, you’ll know that there are still several supply chains that… Read More
As farms decrease tillage passes, swathers get parked, and planters become more precise, there are fewer forgiving field passes to train new drivers on. While many current equipment operators likely learned to manoeuvre large machines running the harrows or knocking down crop, these opportunities are fewer overall. What’s more, the seeding and planting window is… Read More
Prior to November of this year, plenty of Western Canadian farmers would have listed flea beetles as one of the major insect pests of canola. Then, just last week, distributors of the insecticide active lambda-cyhalothrin (sold as Matador and Silencer) announced they were pulling the product out of retail and likely not returning it for… Read More
The current “price on pollution,” i.e. the carbon tax, sits at $50 per tonne carbon dioxide equivalent. Right now, there is an exemption on this tax being applied to on-farm diesel and gas bought in bulk, however propane and natural gas used for grain drying, barn heating, or running irrigation is still subject to the… Read More
We all know how many different facets of the agriculture industry there are. Whether it be cropping, livestock, retail, communications, education, or mechanics…the list goes on and on. When it comes to our careers, we all have to make choices, and sometimes we wonder about the other ones out there. So this week, on the… Read More
Statistics Canada tells us that the average age of farmers is increasing. Of those farming in 2021, 60.5 per cent of farm operators were 55 years and up. Instead of looking at it as an unstoppable march to the older generation’s demise, let’s think about it from the standpoint of a chunk of the farming… Read More