Winter wheat claims have been the largest issue with crop insurance so far this season.

Crop insurance working on claims

Last week the focus was on winterkilled winter wheat, but some reseeding claims are expected following strong winds

Manitoba’s long winter and cold spring wasn’t kind to many Manitoba winter wheat crops, says an official with the Manitoba Agricultural Services Corporation (MASC), which administers the federal provincial crop insurance program. Meanwhile, MASC is also expecting to get reseeding claims following last week’s high winds. “We’ve had the one canola claim (from the Portage

Craig Evans, Granny’s Poultry CEO speaks to company staff at Blumenort last week during North American Occupational 
Safety and Health Week. The company hosted a SAFEWork on Wheels demonstration event at its southern Manitoba 
processing plant.

Stellar safety record at Granny’s Poultry brings WCB premiums way down

Their company has put major effort into educating their entire team on why safe workplace practices are so important, says company CEO

Granny’s Poultry is proving dedication to a safer workplace can really pay off. Ten years ago the poultry processor’s Workers Compensation Board (WCB) experience rating was $7 per every $100 of payroll — WCB sets rates based on the employer’s track record. A major effort put towards reducing on-the-job injuries has now brought its premium


McDonald’s Canada’s senior marketing manager Jean-Guillaume Bertola spoke to the CAMA meeting April 26 about the company’s efforts engaging with customers.  PHOTO: LORRAINE STEVENSON

‘We are all responsible for earning public trust,’ food and ag industry leaders say

Canadian Agri-Marketing Association hosted a two-day Winnipeg session focused on best practices and skills for nurturing public trust

Earning public trust is about doing the right thing, and being able to show and tell others why and how you do it. But in the noise of social media-spread myth and misinformation, being heard, believed and trusted has never been more complicated or challenging. The food industry is now in a veritable “pressure cooker”

Manitoba winter wheat growers have reported spotty damage in their fields this spring, especially in the Interlake.

Winter cereals (mostly) dodge winterkill woes

Winter cereals are looking good this spring, with exceptions in 
the Interlake and central Manitoba around Winnipeg and Selkirk


Winter wheat mostly came through the bitterly cold stretches in December and January and extended chill this spring. The first crop report of the season was mostly good news for the few farmers who got winter cereals in the ground last year. Western Manitoba has good regrowth so far, according to the province, although some


Transport modernization on hold

Transport modernization on hold

Liberals and Conservatives blame each other for latest transport bill delay

Liberals and Conservatives were quick to blame each other May 11 for the latest snafu in getting the transport modernization bill passed into law. Anxious farm groups will now have to wait until May 22 at the earliest for action. Read more: Grain groups rip lawmakers over derailed transport bill The Senate sent the bill back

Kate Storey, Manitoba Organic Alliance chair, seen here at the MOA annual meeting last October, says a recent report is hopeful for Manitoba’s organic industry.

Organic acres up, farmer numbers stable

The Prairie Organic Grain Initiative says a survey shows lots of new organic acres, but just a handful of new organic farmers

Manitoba and Saskatchewan couldn’t match Alberta’s explosion of new organic producers in 2016, but local experts say their gains have been in acres, not farms. Alberta gained 82 certified producers (counting livestock operations) from 2015-16, according to the 2016 Organic Agriculture in the Prairies report. Saskatchewan and Manitoba, meanwhile, only added 16 producers each. Acres,


Organic processing in Manitoba a bright spot

The numbers look slim, but experts say Manitoba’s modest processing increases in 2016 miss part of the story

Manitoba had one more organic processor in 2016 than 2015, according to the last Organic Agriculture in the Prairies report, but provincial organics expert Laura Telford says the view might be more optimistic than that implies. “The report doesn’t release the type of processing. I think what we’re seeing there is an increase in primary

Glyphosate-resistant kochia is still rare in Manitoba, but the time to prevent it from spreading is now.

ON THE GROW: Herbicide resistance is spreading quickly

Manitoba Agriculture is warning about new and looming threats when it comes to resistant weeds

Manitoba’s provincial weed specialist is urging a harder line on herbicide resistance. “Zero tolerance is really where you need to be,” Tammy Jones of Manitoba Agriculture said. “Controlling your escapes. Control them with mowing; control them with tillage. If you really want to, control them with hand weeding, but if you have resistant wild oats


Executive director, Jen Sims.

VUELC cares for kids from area communities

Villages United Early Learning Centre provides much-needed licensed daycare facilities

Through the growth and expansion of licensed daycare facilities in area communities, the non-profit organization once known as the Hamiota Kids Club Inc., is now known as Villages United Early Learning Centre Inc. (VUELC). Enrolment numbers prompted the expansion in Hamiota, along with opening new centres in the neighbouring communities of Kenton and Oak River.

Hemp growers hope cannabis legalization will remove some legal roadblocks they’ve been facing.

Hemp growers will be able to harvest more material

Hemp growers want in on the nutraceutical market, but until now 
regulations have limited them to harvesting hemp grain and fibre. 
That might be about to change when cannabis becomes legal

Farmers may soon be able to harvest the whole hemp plant, including the leaves and flowers they are currently required to throw away. Health Canada has just completed consultations on the federal government’s proposed framework for legal cannabis, a document that includes regulations that are, “risk based and that allows cultivators of industrial hemp to


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