Crop insurance expands areas for heat-loving crops

This is something farmers have been asking for, especially 
with the release of earlier-maturing varieties

Crop insurance on soybeans, corn, open-pollinated corn, edible beans, sunflowers and lentils is being expanded — on a test basis — across Manitoba this year. Until now, those crops were only insurable in areas deemed to be warm enough, and with enough frost-free days. However, farmers from outside those areas have been asking for coverage,


Other Manitoba crop insurance changes for 2013 and 2014

Expanding crop insurance coverage is just one of the changes for crop insurance in 2013 and 2014. Here are some others. Dollar selections per acre have increased to the following: All crops (excluding potatoes, vegetables and strawberries) $120, $160 and $200. For potatoes, the levels are $250, $500 and $750 and for vegetables and strawberries,




It’s not the heat — it’s the photoperiod

You can breed soybeans to grow just about anywhere, but whether you’d want to is another question, says an Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada soybean breeder. Elroy Cober told the recent Manitoba Special Crops Symposium that it’s widely expected that Manitoba will take the No. 2 slot behind Ontario in the coming season. “The short-season areas


Goss’s wilt continues to spread

Goss’s wilt can be tackled through good management practices, but it may take 
genetic resistance to subdue the disease

It’s been four years since Goss’s wilt made its first appearance in Manitoba corn crops, and the disease shows no signs of abating. “It seems to have spread to most of the grain corn-growing regions of Manitoba,” said Holly Derksen, who spoke about the problem at a recent Special Crops Symposium in Winnipeg. Derksen, a

Britain’s food agency seeks stringent tests on beef products

reuters / Britain’s horsemeat scandal has prompted the Food Standards Agency to demand a more stringent meat-testing program from U.K.’s retailers. The agency has demanded that food retailers and suppliers test all beef products such as burgers, meatballs and lasagne and present their findings to the agency by February 15. Britain’s food industry has been


Horsemeat holds a place of honour in French cuisine, but few eat it now

Consumption of horsemeat has fallen by 80 per cent in the last three decades as a more squeamish younger generation turns away

In a dingy Parisian back street, diners at a one-of-a-kind bistro tuck lustily into breaded horse brain, pan-fried heart of horse and broiled cheek, along with prime rump steaks the chef cuts from the bone himself. Seasoned aficionados queuing at one of the few horse butchers left in Paris say they prefer theirs raw as

Horsemeat scandal gives a boost to England’s besieged butchers

Britons are flocking to their local butchers after horsemeat was discovered in a wide variety of frozen foods and restaurant items

In one of Britain’s oldest butcher shops, staff in straw hats are rushing to cope with a surge in demand for pricey pies and sausages from customers worried about a scandal over mislabelled horsemeat. Founded in 1850, Lidgates in London’s smart Notting Hill district retains a Dickensian atmosphere, but very different prices. A whole beef