Wildfires in the RMs of Piney and Stuartburn in the spring of 2012 starkly illustrated the need for better rural telecommunications.

CRTC chief deems Internet a necessity

Modern telecommunications are still rare as hen’s teeth in rural areas, but hope is on the horizon

A mid-hearing speech, made by the chairman of the Canadian Radio-Television and Telecommunications Commission, is welcome news to rural advocates of digital equality. In recent televised remarks, Jean-Pierre Blais said the necessity of broadband Internet access was a “self-evident truth,” shifting the focus of the current review of basic telecommunications services from proving the need

(Darden.com)

Activists press Olive Garden on antibiotics, worker pay

Los Angeles | Reuters — Dozens of activist groups, emboldened by recent policy shifts at major U.S. restaurants, are demanding Olive Garden owner Darden Restaurants change its food and labour practices. Their sweeping agenda, part of a campaign called “Good Food Now,” includes calls for the nation’s largest full-service restaurant operator to strengthen its antibiotics


(JBSsa.com)

JBS posts large loss, announces reorganization

Brasilia | Reuters –– Brazilian meat packer JBS posted a much larger-than-expected first-quarter loss on Thursday, but its shares jumped the day after it announced a corporate reorganization to bring together international operations. JBS, the world’s biggest meat packer, lost 2.741 billion reais (C$1.02 billion) on currency hedging costs and poor results on the company’s



Sandra Schillo, a management specialist from the University of Ottawa, says it’s time to listen to more viewpoints in agriculture research.

More collaborative research model urged

Input from more stakeholders would mean greater and faster innovation for the agriculture sector

It’s time for agriculture research to break out of its pipeline approach and look for new ideas wherever it can find them. That means upending the old model where ‘good’ scientific research basically saw data go in, lab work happen, and eventually a new product come out. Now it’s time for that same research to

cattle in a pasture

Livestock Insurance Program goes offline

The Western Livestock Insurance Program makes adjustments to be more user friendly to those without Internet access

Manitoba livestock producers are getting new offline options to sign up for price insurance coverage. Until recently the only way to buy a Western Livestock Price Insurance Program (WLPIP) policy was to go on the Internet, activate an account through an online portal and buy a policy online, paying with a credit card. Now that’s



(Photo courtesy Canada Beef Inc.)

World food prices edge up in April

Rome | Reuters — World food prices rose slightly in April, up for the third month in a row but they remained almost 10 per cent lower than a year earlier, the United Nations food agency said on Thursday. The Food and Agriculture Organization’s (FAO) food price index, which measures monthly changes for a basket


Serge Buy

Ag researchers calling for ongoing research evolution

The new federal government’s been saying all the right things, but that hasn’t translated into a lot of concrete action yet

A new federal government with a new focus has agriculture researchers feeling more hopeful, but they’re still waiting for clear signs research spending will rise. Serge Buy, the Agriculture Institute of Canada’s CEO, said the budget promised additional funding for agriculture research and restoration of federal labs that do basic science. It also restated a

North Dakota farmer, Gabe Brown, says stacking complementary farm enterprises has changed his operation and now he is always on the hunt for ways to add value.

Stacking enterprises makes farms more profitable and efficient

North Dakota’s Gabe Brown says they’ve found some surprising revenue streams on their operation

Puppies from the stock dogs and flower arrangements from cover crops — those are just a couple of the unconventional revenue sources Gabe Brown has found on his operation. You might think there’s no way that could add up to real dollars, but when he told attendees at a recent grazing club meeting in Lenore