Stock Dogs Helpful Farm Hands

Thank you for the very well-written article in the Country Crossroads section of the July 8 Manitoba Co-operator on “Life Made Easier with Stock Dogs.” This is one of the best articles I’ve read that explains in simple terms how dogs can greatly help whether you have cattle or sheep. Although having a dog from

A “Rally” Good Idea

Some of the biggest blessings in life are the things we take for granted. Like, living in a free and peaceful country, having access to good and plentiful food and being able to watch our youth grow in a safe and nurturing environment. One of the greatest blessings here in rural Manitoba is our ability


Do We Really Need More Farmers And Ranchers?

Most producers, particularly those trying to get a crop into the ground last spring, would have noticed junketeering federal politicians and their entourage on a fact-finding tour in Alberta. That group would be the House of Commons Standing Committee on Agriculture and Agri-Food, not to be confused with the Senate Standing Committee on Agriculture and

Carbon Credit Market In Doubt

With almost no fanfare, Saskatchewan has passed a new greenhouse gas bill that should theoretically provide a mechanism for farmers to be paid for carbon credits. However, the devil will be in the details and the regulations for the bill have yet to be established. Observers worry that when the dust clears, farmers will not


Province Should Reconsider Bipole Route

It is hard for us to understand why “pristine” forest is viewed as more important than productive farmland, especially against predictions of the critical challenges we’ll face concerning feeding the world in 2050. The Manitoba Government is due to announce its preferred route for Bipole III, and farmers are very clear – none of the

U. S. Feed Rations Could Shift To Wheat

U. S. livestock producers may begin injecting more wheat into their feed after its price premium to corn hit its lowest level in three years and a government report revealed a radically tighter corn supply. Wheat is typically a costly feed alternative to corn, but the spread between the two narrowed to as little as


Shoot, But Don’t Slaughter

If letter writer Carol Thomas (Stop Importing Slaughter Horses, July 1 Manitoba Co-operator) would like my advice on what to do with her old, lame, or sick horses, I would suggest she have them humanely euthanized. If that’s not something she can afford then, yes, I would prefer to see them take a bullet in

Will Farmers’ Actions Improve The Ethanol Energy Balance?

Several years ago, there was substantial debate on whether corn ethanol produced more net energy relative to the amount of fossil energy required to manufacture it. This ratio, the amount of energy produced divided by fossil energy input needed, often is referred to as ethanol’s energy balance. For years, scientists argued whether the ratio exceeded


Your Door Is Ajar

DAVE BEDARD It’s not been much fun in retail these past few years for those selling fertilizer to farmers. If you had to restock when prices skyrocketed, then deal with outraged farmers who declined to pay those prices, you’d start to wonder how the next growing season would pan out. If you were then stuck

Caution: Reforms Packaged Under Pressure

The new “Product of Canada” guidelines came into effect on Dec. 31, 2008 and have been published as the new paragraph 4.19 in the Guide to Food Labelling: “a food product may claim ‘Product of Canada’ when all or virtually all major ingredients, processing and labour used to make the food product are Canadian.” The


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