Commodity groups may band together to hold mega-meeting

Annual meetings of commodity groups could soon be more convenient and worthwhile for Manitoba farmers if a proposal for a joint meeting is accepted. “I’m really excited about this,” said Ernie Sirski, a director with the Manitoba Canola Growers Association. The idea would be to have one large event held over several days. Groups would


Canola growers executive for 2013

The Manitoba Canola Growers Association elected Starbuck farmer Ed Rempel to serve as president for 2013 at its Feb. 27 annual meeting. Rempel will be joined on the executive by Brian Chorney of East Selkirk as vice-president, Hugh Drake from Elkhorn as treasurer and Wilf Harder from Lowe Farm as secretary.



Yellow flowers in February at CanoLABs

Brandon is hosting the Manitoba version of the Canola Council of Canada’s CanoLAB, which comes to Manitoba for the first time Feb. 28. “CanoLAB is a truly unique learning experience,” says Dan Orchard, Canola Council of Canada (CCC) agronomy specialist for north-central Alberta. “You get a full day with an extensive list of professional instructors,

Canola award of excellence

Staff / The Manitoba Canola Growers Association has awarded honoured Dugald farmer Ken Edie the 2013 Manitoba Canola Growers Award of Excellence. Edie was the first president of the association back in 1970, when the association went by the Manitoba Rapeseed Growers Association. During his farming career, he served the Manitoba canola and agriculture industry


Why were canola yields down?

Has canola turned into a wimp or were 2012’s lacklustre western Canadian yields due to poor weather, diseases, insects and pushed rotations? The Manitoba Canola Growers Association (MCGA) hopes to find out later this month when it meets with the life science companies that produce new canola cultivars, MCGA director Ernie Sirski told the Keystone

Canola variety selection tool now live with 2012 results

The tool includes an economic calculator, interactive maps, and the ability to refine searches by five traits

The online Canola Variety Selection tool is now live with data from the 2012 Canola Performance Trials (CPT), giving canola growers another tool to compare variety performance. The CPT provides science-based, unbiased performance data that reflects actual production practices. The selection tool provides comparative data on leading varieties and newly introduced varieties. The tool includes


Nitrogen plants popping up like mushrooms

Lured by the promise of cheap and plentiful natural gas, more hopefuls are jumping into the nitrogen fertilizer production. Earlier this spring, Northern Plains Nitrogen (NPN) launched plans for building a $1.5 billion North Dakota project, and in mid-September, CHS Inc., the largest farmer co-op in the United States, unveiled its plan to open a

KAP on board with N.D. fertilizer plant project

Keystone Agricultural Producers is joining the North Dakota Corn Growers Association’s bid to build a farmer-owned nitrogen fertilizer plant. With a feasibility study already completed, and sites in eastern North Dakota being examined for the $1.5-billion plant, the project is moving towards the business-planning stages. Following consultations with commodity groups with the organization, KAP has