Winnipegger Jason Kang has taken many jobs since his family immigrated from China in 2003. He has worked in manufacturing and garbage disposal. He has been a dishwasher, a pizza delivery man and a commercial driver. But now he has a different profession behind his name, one that he hopes to make permanent — master
Distilling the true spirits of Manitoba
Jason Kang of Capital K Distillery has shifted his brewing hobby into a full-fledged business, using only Manitoba-grown grain
From field to bottle: a look inside the Capital K process
A look at the world behind the still and the process behind locally produced spirits
Kang’s process starts once the grain arrives at his distillery in one-tonne totes. Each 400-kilogram batch of raw grain is first weighed, then sent to the mill to be cracked. “After that, we cook the grain,” Kang said. “Which is what we call the mashing, so the same process as making beer.” After that, the
App sounds sweet to honey producers’ group
Beekeepers say the BeeConnected app has positive possibilities for their industry, but it’s going to depend a lot on uptake
A smartphone app imported from Australia might be the next big tool for beekeepers to manage their sometimes complicated relationship with surrounding farmers. BeeConnected, an app piloted in Manitoba last year and about to make its full-scale national debut, looks to facilitate communication between beekeepers and pesticide users. The app for Apple and Android allows
Beef producers react to U.S. NAFTA scare
Manitoba beef producers are watching the discussion over NAFTA closely, but both provincial and national beef industry groups say they see a silver lining
Manitoba’s beef producers were initially alarmed by reports in late April that NAFTA was on the chopping block in the form of an executive order to withdraw from the trade agreement. Dissatisfaction with NAFTA was among Trump’s talking points during his 2016 election campaign along with the Trans-Pacific Partnership, which he signed an order to
RMs looking for a few good medical recruits as doctor offices sit empty
Faced with perpetually rotating medical staff, RMs in southwest Manitoba have started taking recruitment in their own hands
The medical centre’s doors are open, but the doctor is not in at Baldur in the RM of Argyle. According to Bob Conibear, chair of the Baldur Health Care Committee, the community lost its single physician last year to health problems. The void was then filled by a part-time nurse practitioner and a decision will
Eyes on winterkill as producers assess forage stands
Some forage fields are lagging, a number of producers in the east and central Manitoba have said, but the final toll is still up in the air
It appears forage producers in eastern Manitoba are suffering the same weather-related winterkill that hit winter wheat in the region. The Manitoba Forage and Grassland Association (MFGA) says it has got reports of damage in the southeast corner of the province, while producers in the western Pembina Valley have also noted poor regrowth. “Part of
VIDEO: Manitoba Beef and Forage Initiatives gets ready for summer research
Alexis Stockford, reporter with the Manitoba Co-operator, takes an up close look at summer research preparations at the Manitoba Beef and Forage Initiatives.
Wet weather delays seeding in western Manitoba
Field work was limited into the second week of May in northwestern Manitoba, while the southwest fought rain
Parts of western Manitoba were fighting wet fields in the second week of May, but Dan Mazier, president of Keystone Agricultural Producers, says that’s nothing new. Mazier said it is not unusual for seeding to begin between May 1 and May 10. It makes it no less frustrating for farmers near Minnedosa, however, some of whom had
Manitoba confirms fourth PED case of year
Another finisher barn in southeastern Manitoba has tested positive for porcine epidemic diarrhea (PED) in the province’s fourth on-farm case of the disease this year. Manitoba Pork Council general manager Andrew Dickson said barn staff noticed symptoms Sunday. Tests were taken the following day with results confirmed Tuesday. “That doesn’t mean every pig in the
Disc tillage not the only answer to corn residue
Recent research on the effect of corn on subsequent soybean crops suggests there may be other alternatives
Producers may want to look beyond disc tillage to deal with corn residue, according to research co-funded by the Manitoba Corn Growers Association. In a two-year comparison of four residue treatments and their effect on soybeans, Patrick Walther and Yvonne Lawley of the University of Manitoba found that low-tillage treatments yielded the same soybean crop