Mount Agassiz ski hill

Demolition of Mount Agassiz underway

Parks Canada is seeking public feedback in efforts to determine the future of the former Riding Mountain ski hill

Amidst site demolition, more than 100 community members gathered at the foot of the former Mount Agassiz ski hill to share memories and reminisce of times had on the slopes. The gathering was held by the Agassiz Mountain Resort Group (AMRG) on Saturday, Feb. 21, in hopes of garnering community support to continue to push

Chuck Penner

Investors lulled by high prices

Ending stocks of corn are likely to begin to drop downwards next year

They’re phrases that have gotten a lot of use over the last few months. Analysts and experts are increasingly describing changes in commodity prices for wheat and corn as a “paradigm shift” or the arrival of a “new price paradigm.” But Chuck Penner, founder of LeftField Commodity Research said producers should be cognizant that high


wheat grains in a person't hand

KAP says do homework before selling grain to unfamiliar buyers

History shows sometimes even trusted companies burn farmers

Sellers beware! In the post-monopoly wheat board era many new, unfamiliar grain buyers, often American, are offering to buy western Canadian grain. The Keystone Agricultural Producers (KAP) says farmers should do their homework before striking deals to avoid getting burned. “People will spend two weeks researching which cultivator shovel to buy so it doesn’t wear

The grain market needs a dose of ‘good cholesterol’

More regulation is not the solution to improving grain transportation

Just as there is both good cholesterol and bad cholesterol, there are both good and bad regulations. The CWB single desk was an example of a bad regulation — it clogged the arteries of western Canadian grain commerce by burdening farmers with high costs and no evidence of premium prices. Markets are efficient and effective


‘Farm teams’ of professionals more important then ever

The two-day conference focused on professionals and resources to support the farm business

The days when you could do it all are gone. That’s the message farmers took home after a two-day conference here focused on building a ‘farm team’ of professionals. Every business needs the input and expertise of professionals like accountants and financial planners, lawyers and lenders, and farm businesses aren’t any different, said organizers of

Land remains a good spot to park spare cash

Land remains a “safe deposit box with a view” for the ultra-wealthy, according to the publication 2013 Land Report 100, an annual survey and ranking of the largest private landowners in the United States. It says that in 2012, the country’s top 100 landowners cumulatively increased their private holdings by 700,000 acres to a total


Weekly livestock auction

For week ending Nov. 22, 2013

The first real snowfall of the year, seen on Nov. 17, didn’t keep the cattle away at Manitoba’s auction yards during the week ended Nov. 22. The snow made for some messier conditions and caused a few cancellations here and there, but overall didn’t interfere too much with cattle marketing in Manitoba during the week.

Rancher’s Risk and Return will be an important tool as producers consider new ways to manage downside risks and upside potential.  file photo

New calculator assesses financial risk for cattle operations

Can show how sensitive an operation is to different selling prices 
and cattle price insurance coverage levels

A new decision support tool to assist cattle producers in calculating their cost of production and risk exposure has been posted to Alberta Agriculture and Rural Development’s website. Rancher’s Risk and Return is an Excel spreadsheet calculator that takes an innovative approach to assessing the market price risk that cow-calf and feedlot producers continually face.


Dennis Stephens, secretary of the International Grain Trade Coalition, says grain trading is at risk so long as importers don’t have a policy allowing a low-level presence of unapproved GM crop traits.  photo: allan dawson

Canada leads efforts to convince importers to dump zero tolerance

Canada is leading efforts to get an international agreement that would see countries accept small amounts of unapproved genetically modified (GM) crops in their imports, says Dennis Stephens. And the Oakbank-based secretary of the International Grain Trade Coalition credits Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz for leading the charge. Ritz, along with Canada’s flax industry, experienced first

The future of the 850 cattle at the Brandon Research Centre is uncertain.  
Photo: Laura Rance

Price insurance for livestock on its way

There’s been no official announcement, but commodity groups say price insurance for livestock producers will soon be a reality

Price volatility could soon be a thing of the past for Manitoba’s beef producers, if a proposed livestock price insurance program comes to fruition. The insurance plan could be announced within weeks, said Cam Dahl, general manager of the Manitoba Beef Producers. “I’m very hopeful that there will be an announcement made very soon,” said