When Mario Tenuta started talking about nitrous dioxide emissions, it didn’t take long for skepticism to show up. It’s a drop in the bucket; it’s hard to nail down; dealing with the issue will add cost and risk; agriculture is going to be expected to carry the can – these are among the arguments that
Emissions reductions remain controversial
Academic says agriculture will be expected to solve its own problem
High-tech solutions bring bin management into focus
It's as simple as cooling the grain -- and as complex as managing Mother Nature
Managing stored grain isn’t complex but farmers do need a clear picture of what’s happening in the bin. Wayne Clews, of Clews Storage Management, says many farmers just guess and run fans as a safeguard measure — but that can work counter to their own best interests. Rather than incrementally reducing the temperature of grain
Editor’s Take: Reconciliation roadmap
I recently attended the International Federation of Agricultural Journalists annual conference. This year it was at Olds College in rural Alberta. As one might expect, agriculture in all its forms was front and centre. From autonomous sprayers to crop-scouting drones and everything in between, the future of agriculture on the Prairies was on full display.
Editorial: Checks and balances needed
There’s a deepening need in Canada to increase oversight into competition in our economy, as evidenced by the latest food-related scandal. Canada Bread, an arm of the Mexican multinational Groupo Bimbo, just agreed to pay a $50-million settlement for its part in a bread price-fixing scheme. It was a conspiracy that ran for 14 to
Editor’s Take: Booms and busts
I’m just old enough to remember the farm bust of the 1980s. I was a teenager at the time, and like all good parents would, my folks tried to shield me from the worst of their worries and woes. But I grew up on a grain farm, and in that era, troubles were unavoidable all
Editor’s take: Private member’s bill reveals deep divisions in agriculture
Not long ago, the deepest division in Canadian agriculture — at least west of the Lakehead — was the Canadian Wheat Board. From protests to prison sentences for running the border with truckloads of wheat, it had enough drama to keep everyone interested. And perpetually outraged. On one side were those who favoured the monopoly
Counting the impacts of China-Australia barley deal
As normal trade flows resume, new markets will be needed
The coming resumption of China-Australia barley trade will require Canada to seek new markets. Peter Watts, managing director of the Canadian Malting Barley Technical Centre, noted that after China imposed 80.5 per cent tariffs on Australian barley in May 2020, Canada was a clear-cut beneficiary. “Canada saw its biggest barley export program of the past
Editor’s Take: Slipping one in
Many years ago, I saw a cartoon that caused my cynical inner journalist to chuckle. A man in a suit sat behind a massive desk, handing a paper to a lackey, saying “Take this, Henderson, and hide it from the public.” I laughed because even a wet-behind-the-ears cub reporter in the early 1990s could recognize
Eastern Prairies get good marks on soil moisture
Manitoba has seen some of the coolest, wettest conditions of the Prairies so far
Manitoba is sitting pretty for soil moisture as the growing season looms, according to one crops and weather specialist. Bruce Burnett, director of crops and weather for MarketsFarm, a division of Glacier FarmMedia, said things get drier as one looks further west in the Prairies, but Manitoba’s soil moisture is good — maybe even verging on too good. “Soil moisture
Prairie soil moisture picture growing clearer
Alberta driest; Saskatchewan variable; Manitoba mostly OK
It’s a variable soil moisture picture on the Prairies as seeding season draws nearer. The east has enough moisture — and in some cases too much. And it gets progressively drier toward the west, with portions of Alberta nearing critical condition, according to one weather watcher. Bruce Burnett, weather and markets director for the MarketsFarm
Cyber-Savvy Farmer
