News & Opinion & Farming Articles - Manitoba Co-operator

Manitoba Agriculture’s Khosi Mashinini leads attendees through hiring and employee retention tips during the Manitoba Farm Women’s Conference in Brandon Nov. 19-21.

Branding base for good hires

The Manitoba Farm Women’s Conference looked at hiring and human resources during the most recent event

By Alexis Stockford December 4, 2017

Farms need a brand for hiring employees the same way they need to market for customers. That was one message that Manitoba Agriculture’s Khosi Mashinini had Nov. 20 during her presentation on human resource planning in Brandon. The farm enterprise management specialist urged producers to develop or update an HR plan, a document handling interview,

Bees and other beneficial insects could some day benefit from new pyrethroid pesticide research.

Did you know?, News

Spare the bees

New research may make for better-targeted pesticides that do their job but don’t hurt beneficial insects

By Manitoba Co-operator Staff December 4, 2017

Pyrethroid pesticides could be modified with a few molecular tweaks to eliminate pests while preserving beneficial insects like bees. Those are the findings of researchers at Michigan State University’s entomology department in a study featured in the current issue of Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. These pesticides target a protein known as the

Beef cattle, Local news

Manitoba Beef Producers hosting checkoff town hall

The meeting will include representatives from  several key industry groups

By Manitoba Co-operator Staff December 4, 2017

Manitoba Beef Producers is hosting a town hall Dec. 7 in MacGregor to keep producers in the loop on the national checkoff program. The meeting is one of a series being held nationally, and is slated for the Heartland Multiplex, kicking off at 4 p.m. The program includes presentations from the National Check-Off Agency, Canada

Local news

Licensing program promises domestic wash stations: Manitoba Pork

The Manitoba Pork Council wants trucks washed in Canada, and it looks like it’s going to get its wish

By Alexis Stockford December 1, 2017

Empty swine trucks crossing over the border may be washed in Manitoba in 2018, a move sure to please the Manitoba Pork Council. MPC has lobbied the Canadian Food Inspection Agency to seal trucks at the border and wash them at a certified station in province. “They seem to be warming up to it,” MPC

Motivational speaker and North Dakota farmer Katie Dilse leads one of several sessions on life balance during the  2017 Manitoba Farm Women’s Conference Nov. 19-21 in Brandon.

Local news, Other

The changing face of the farm-her

Female farmers, agriculture industry workers and others gathered for Manitoba Farm Women’s Conference

By Alexis Stockford December 1, 2017

The Manitoba Farm Women’s Conference wants female farmers to start thinking about the next century-and-a-half. The 31st incarnation of the event landed in Brandon Nov. 19-21, taking on the theme, “Advancing Farm Women for the Next 150 years.” Conference chair Donna Lee Brown said the theme is a play on Canada 150, marking changes in agriculture and

News

Working on Plan B

U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue says American farmers could weather U.S. NAFTA withdrawal

By Manitoba Co-operator Staff November 30, 2017

There are more signs the United States could pull out of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue said he is “talking with the administration and Congress about some mitigation efforts” if U.S. President Donald Trump withdraws the United States from NAFTA,” Ag Insider, an online, subscription-based publication, said

News, Oilseeds

Organization in Canada, China, sign memorandum

Canola Council of Canada touts benefits of canola oil and meal during trade mission to China

By Shannon VanRaes November 30, 2017

The Canola Council of Canada is celebrating a new memorandum of understanding after wrapping up a trade mission to China. Speaking from Beijing, canola council president Jim Everson emphasized the importance of the Chinese market for Canadian canola producers and processors. “We are just at the end of what we think is a very successful

Editorial, Opinion

Editorial: Green tape

By Gord Gilmour November 30, 2017

Hipsters and hippies across the country are set to celebrate cannabis legalization this coming Canada Day. The Trudeau government is on track for legalizing this recreational drug by that date, one of the highest-profile promises made during the last election campaign. That’s likely a good thing. While any recreational drug, alcohol included, is a problem

Manitoba sheep producers hope to make some major inroads in developing value-added for their industry with a proposed new initiative.

Livestock, Local news

Sheep association supports concept of ‘enhancement board’

New initiative to place emphasis on educating producers  about market needs, says director

By Lorraine Stevenson November 30, 2017

The Manitoba Sheep Association (MSA) has taken its first step toward creating an initiative to add more value to Manitoba-raised lambs and help member producers do a better job selling them. Members at its annual meeting Nov. 18 widely supported a resolution calling for the establishment of what is to be called the Manitoba Sheep

The MSA’s Vision 2020 — a five-point strategy for sector development — includes the goal of developing more educational resources for producers to learn how to keep flock health optimal, boost productivity and improve farm profitability.

Livestock, Local news

Sheep producers want more resources for optimizing productivity

Manitoba Sheep Association’s 2017 annual general meeting included multiple speakers  on flock care and management

By Lorraine Stevenson November 30, 2017

Sheri Bieganski and her husband Jeff decided to add sheep to their stock farm five years ago and they’ve never looked back. It’s been a period of remarkable growth of the sheep sector, says the Carberry-area farmer and co-owner of Shereff Stock Farms. Bieganski is also acting chair for the Manitoba Sheep Producers. “There is

Daily Network News

Southern California honeybees show resistance to varroa mites

Pulse Weekly: SaskPulse optimistic despite input, crop price concerns

Canadian aquaculture should be classed as agriculture, industry groups say

News & Opinion