“I know the industry is short a billion dollars.” – andrew dickson, mpc Pork producers worry that a federally guaranteed loan program for the financially troubled hog industry may lend only a fraction of the money originally hoped for. Ottawa has set aside $400 million in cash as a reserve to backstop special long-term loans
Hog Program May Lend Less Than Expected
Valley Residents Fed Up With Red River Flooding
Frustration about constant flooding from the Red River spilled over at an international commission forum on flood solutions for the Red River basin. Local residents voiced aggravation at the economic and emotional toll from spring floods which regularly inundate farmland and cut off communities. Many demanded compensation for the expense, damage and inconvenience caused by
Beekeepers Edge Toward Lifting Bee Embargo
“The varroa mite is completely widespread.” – TODD YAKIMISHEN, MBA Manitoba honey producers have inched a step closer toward calling for the elimination of a 22-year-old ban on imported bees from the U. S. The Manitoba Beekeepers Association is asking for an industry summit meeting on allowing greater access to packaged bees from the continental
Swine Workers Encouraged To Get H1N1 Flu Shot
“Vaccination of swine workers may reduce the likelihood that H1N1 flu will be introduced into barns.” – DR. WAYNE LEES The Manitoba government is telling people who work directly with pigs to get the H1N1 flu shot. In a recent letter to the Manitoba Pork Council, the province recommended the move, not just to guard
Safety Net Programs Continue To Fail Farmers: KAP
“This program just doesn’t work well on multi-year declines.” – IAN WISHART, KAP Adramatic plunge in government program payment s, t r iggered mainly by a livestock industry crisis, is further proof that farm safety net programs do not work properly, according to Keystone Agricultural Producers. Statistics Canada reported Monday that program payments to Canadian
SRM Subsidy Critical To Survival, Packers Say
“There’s a very real possibility that there would not be a cow killer east of Brooks.” – BRAD WILDEMAN, CCA Canada risks losing its entire processing sector for older cattle unless the federal government subsidizes the cost of removing specified risk materials (SRMs) from beef carcasses, the industry warns. New, less stringent regulations for SRM
Give The Poor Tom Some Air
“A lot of poultry houses haven’t kept up.” – MICHAEL CZARICK, UNIVERSITY OF GEORGIA In the last 20 years, average live turkey weights have greatly increased. Today, thanks to improved genetics and management, a 42-day-old tom is 25 per cent heavier than it used to be. That means birds generate 25 per cent more heat
Province Accused Of Stonewalling Hog Farmers
– KARL KYNOCH “I would assume that these requests are not being looked at seriously.” The Manitoba government appears to be turning a deaf ear to hog producers’ appeals for emergency aid to help them through their worst economic crisis in memory, the chairman of the Manitoba Pork Council says. The province is stonewalling producers’
RR Alfalfa Sparks Debate At CSTA
“All it takes is one plot.” – LES JACOBSON, MFSA European forage seed companies are starting to require official testing and GM-free certification from Canadian exporters because of the existence of Roundup Ready alfalfa in test plots. “We are aware of Roundup Ready alfalfa trials in Canada and (are) therefore not happy, since Europe has
EI Extended To Self-Employed, Including Farmers
“Do you have to contribute up to 85?” – LAURENT PELLERIN, CFA Farmers, who have traditionally fallen outside work benefits programs, may now qualify for employment insurance under new federal legislation. The proposed law would extend benefits, such as employment insurance, to the 2.6 million Canadians, including agricultural producers, who are self-employed. Self-employed people could
Cyber-Savvy Farmer
