Policy shift needed to tap Africa’s farm potential

Reuters / Africa’s agricultural sector could become a $1-trillion industry by 2030 if governments and the private sector radically rethink policies and support for farmers, a World Bank report said March 4. Africa’s food market, currently valued at $313 billion a year, could triple if farmers modernized their practices and had better access to credit,


Researchers praise the many benefits of cover crops

University of Manitoba plant science researcher says farmers need to think more about what happens below a field’s surface and how they can improve soil health

It’s time for farmers to stop treating soil like dirt. “The role of a farmer is to manage a complex ecosystem to produce food, feed, fibre and fuel,” University of Manitoba plant science researcher Yvonne Lawley said at the recent Ecological and Organic Farming conference. “Millions of ‘moving parts’ need to work together, both above

Cows and crops: A perfect combination, experts say

Fifteen years ago, Marc Boulanger and his family took a closer look at what was happening on their operation near Grande Clairière, Man. — and didn’t like what they saw. “In the late 1980s, when grasshoppers were a major problem, we’d spray — then we were watching how the grasshoppers died, then the birds were


Aerial registrations for broadleaf weed control approved

Dow AgroSciences has received aerial use registrations for Prestige XC, Attain XC and OcTTain XL a move the company says will offer more options to customers needing broadleaf weed control in regions with spring conditions that are too wet as well as those needing to cover a large number of cereal acres quickly. “We have

PMRA reviews insecticide link to bee deaths

A class of insecticides that could be banned in the European Union because of their risk to honeybees is also under review in Canada. The neonicotinoid class includes imidacloprid, clothianidin and thiamethoxam products which are the basis for several popular insecticides and seed treatments in Canada. Imidacloprid products include Bayer’s Admire and Gaucho, and thiamethoxam


Jury still out on benefits of deep ripping

There has been a host of studies on whether deep ripping can fix soil compaction but the results have been inconclusive

Does deep ripping fix soil compaction and improve yields? Despite numerous studies, no one really knows, attendees at the recent Special Crops Symposium in Brandon were told. “Collectively, we haven’t done enough disciplined testing or research yet to sort out whether or not it is profitable in Manitoba,” said John Heard, soil fertility specialist with



Two new branded off-patent products hit market

MANA Canada has introduced two new off-patent co-pack products that are analogues of popular products already available in Western Canada. The new Topline herbicide is a cereal product that includes the active ingredients florasulam and MCPA ester, the same active ingredients as Frontline. It’s registered for use on wheat, oat and barley. In a conference

The quest is on to improve rate of canola emergence

Canola seeds may be tiny, but they don’t come cheap. That’s prompted more farmers to use row-crop precision seeders in order to get more bang for their buck. There are many row-crop seeders on the market, but the problem is none of them do a perfect job, said Pipe-stone-area farmer Frank Prince, who offered his