Editorial: A fine balance

A big thumbs up to the five Manitoba commodity groups that announced recently they will work towards a merger. The Manitoba Corn Growers Association, Manitoba Pulse and Soybean Growers Association, the Manitoba Flax Growers Association, the National Sunflower Association of Canada and the Manitoba Wheat and Barley Growers Association have signed a memorandum of understanding

Editorial: Pigs and protests

Any changes to the rules governing the operation, permitting or construction of hog barns in Manitoba are always going to be controversial. This is a well-worn debate with both sides set to battle over perceived risks to the environment or the industry, depending on the advocate’s point of view. What is a little surprising is


Editorial: Trump-eting doom

Last week Donald Trump, while playing his most important reality television role to date, came within hours of signing an executive order to cancel the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). A report from the Canadian Press that detailed the contents of a leaked version of the order said the move would have given Canada

Editorial: Every day is Earth Day

This past Saturday was Earth Day, a worldwide celebration of environmental protection, observed since 1970. Across the world people gathered for events, though a cursory scan of the activities through news reports suggests that most were in very urban locations such as Toronto and Vancouver. This is the great irony of the modern environmental movement.


Editorial: Hope springs eternal

What would possess someone of the pioneer era to try to farm here? This thought was much on my mind the past Easter weekend as I drove to the family farm in Saskatchewan for a holiday gathering. In mid-April, when the winter wheat is already well on its way in Kansas and Nebraska, here the

Editorial: Too small to bother?

There’s been lots of talk in the news lately about financially troubled corporations and how their plights are handled by governments. For example, the Quebec-based aerospace and mass-transit company Bombardier has been the subject of controversy after it proceeded to give 50 per cent pay increases to senior executives shortly after receiving yet another taxpayer-funded


Editorial: By the numbers

Statistics Canada says there were just over 13.3 million households in Canada at the time of the 2011 census, a number that has surely grown since then. The numbers crunchers at the agency rather dryly define the term as “… a person or group of persons who occupy the same dwelling and do not have

Editorial: Market realities

Over the years people have done some pretty goofy things to make money. Probably the best example is Gary Dahl, the inventor of the hare-brained scheme that was the pet rock. The story goes he was sitting in a bar in Los Angeles with friends in the early 1970s, listening to them complain about their


Editorial: Family feud

Everyone has that cousin, uncle or sibling. You love them, they’re family after all, but sometimes you just don’t like them much. Maybe it’s their insistence on talking about their controversial politics over Christmas dinner. Perhaps it’s the way they can’t just talk about how much they like their new tractor without running down yours.

Editorial: The missing link

Canada’s sheep and goat producers had better not be counting on me to earn a living. Don’t get me wrong, they produce excellent products, but neither of these protein sources has ever been a big part of my diet. I can’t remember the last time I had a lamb chop. A few years ago now, for