High winds, recent frost hurts crop development

Manitoba Crop Report and Crop Weather report for June 2

Southwest Region Some scattered showers in the southwest region last week. St. Lazare and Russell received 4 to 7mm respectively. Crops need some good moisture in some areas of the region, as soil surface is quickly drying with very windy conditions. Temperatures were variable throughout the week. Daytime highs were normal; while nighttime lows dropped

Waste on the farm is a recurring issue and not just this year. What is different this year is the unprecedented volume.

Opinion: Canada has the food industry it deserves

Don’t blame farmers for euthanizing animals and dumping milk

Millions of litres of milk are being thrown away, more than two million eggs are eliminated from the food chain, and pigs and chickens are being euthanized. There is horror in the countryside. Throwing away good food when more than four million Canadians have lost their jobs is morally reprehensible, and farmers would be the


(Dave Bedard photo)

Insurance customers’ contact info dropped into MASC email

Crown crop insurance agency warns of privacy breach

A contact list of crop insurance customers at Manitoba Agricultural Services Corp. has gone out via email to several dozen of the Crown ag insurance agency’s customers. MASC on Monday said a file containing names and contact information of an unspecified number of AgriInsurance clients was “attached in error” to an email sent last Tuesday

(RGtimeline/iStock/Getty Images)

Labour shortages persist, hort sector says

Horticultural Council warns sector output will drop for lack of workers, support

Ottawa — The Canadian Horticultural Council warns the federal government is using inaccurate numbers to describe how many temporary foreign workers are currently in the country. During a virtual meeting of the Commons standing committee on agriculture and agri-food, CHC president Brian Gilroy said food security continues to be threatened as a result of labour


A flat of young vegetable plant seedlings outside of a greenhouse, waiting to be transplanted, at a farm in rural New Brunswick

New Brunswick to lift ban on temporary foreign workers

Damage 'already been done' for farmers, NFU-NB says

New Brunswick plans to end its ban on the entry of temporary foreign workers (TFWs) next week as the province moves to the “yellow” level in its COVID-19 pandemic recovery plan. The ban, announced April 28, will end effective May 29, Premier Blaine Higgs said Friday in an announcement some farmers say comes too late

Angela Bedard-Haughn, shown here delivering a TEDx Talk in Saskatoon in September 2019, becomes the University of Saskatchewan’s new dean of agriculture in August. (Video screengrab from Ted.com)

New dean of agriculture named for U of S

Soil science prof Angela Bedard-Haughn takes over Aug. 15

One of Western Canada’s major post-secondary ag institutions will get a new hand at the wheel this summer. The University of Saskatchewan announced Wednesday it has named soil science professor Angela Bedard-Haughn as the dean for its College of Agriculture and Bioresources for a five-year term starting Aug. 15. Raised on a family farm in


The downturn has come as an abrupt shift from expected demand for Manitoba potatoes.

COVID-19 puts the brakes on potato acres

The potato sector is bracing for long-term impacts as the COVID-19 pandemic shrinks demand

Manitoba’s potato acres will take a hit this year in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic and plummeting demand. According to multiple industry sources, McCain Foods has dropped 16 per cent of acres from its contracts with Manitoba farmers, while Simplot has also made smaller cuts from its agreements. Why it matters: As demands shrinks,

While U.S. farmers are getting billions of dollars to help them through the current economic crisis, some say Canada’s efforts to help out farmers have fallen short.

A tale of two countries’ farm subsidies

American farmers have received billions of dollars in aid and legislators are working to send out more, while Canadian farmers’ requests fall on deaf ears

What a difference a border makes. The Canadian Federation of Agriculture (CFA) wants $2.6 billion in emergency farm aid due to reduced revenues caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, while the American government has already budgeted US$23.5 billion in ad hoc farm subsidies. That’s coming as part of its US$2-trillion Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security


Prime Minister Justin Trudeau speaks at Rideau Cottage in Ottawa in this April 24, 2020 file photo. (Photo: Reuters/Blair Gable)

Trudeau pledges $252 million in COVID-19 aid for farmers, processors

Dairy commission's credit line extended for storage program

Ottawa | Reuters — Canada will invest $252 million to help some of the country’s farming and food processing sectors weather the coronavirus outbreak, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Tuesday, adding more money could come later if needed. The Canadian Federation of Agriculture, one of Canada’s biggest farm groups, asked Ottawa last week for an

Mark and Yanara Peters were happy to restart what they’re hoping will be an annual tradition this past fall.

Manitoba potato growers keep on giving

Despite a challenging year this farm family keeps an important tradition alive

For Mark and Yanara Peters, 2019 had been a year full of challenges. Yet despite a less than average potato crop on Spruce Drive Farms, a dozen miles northwest of Portage la Prairie, the couple chose to keep a new tradition alive on their farm. Sine 2016 they’ve donated more than 120,000 pounds of potatoes