Saskatchewan To Test Drive Beaver Dam Removal Plan

The Saskatchewan government is spending $500,000 in a one-year pilot program to help its rural municipalities get rid of problem beavers and beaver dams. The program, to be administered by the Saskatchewan Association of Rural Municipalities (SARM), will target areas where beaver dams have swamped rural infrastructure, farmland and other private property. The pilot program

Outlook Improving, But Problems Remain, Politicos Tell CFA

The next few years appear positive for farmers with both crop and livestock prices on the rise, says Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz. Farmers have rebounded from the BSE crisis in the beef industry, influenza outbreaks in the poultry sector, widespread bankruptcies among pork farmers and depressed grain prices, he told the annual meeting of the


Flying For 79 Floors

Twice a week,New York Timescolumnist Thomas L. Friedman drives political and economic policy-makers into full rant on topics as opposite as global free trade (he loves it) and national industrial policy (he loves it, too). Kiss him or kick him, Friedman can turn a phrase. A current Friedmanism notes that “If you jump off the

Consumers Rise To Buy-Local Challenge

Barbecue season is upon us and more and more Canadians are visiting farmers’ markets or seeking out a Product of Canada label in order to support Canadian farmers. Several campaigns promoting locally grown or Canadianproduced food have sprung up. Recently, retailers like Loblaw Companies Limited, fast-food chains such as McDonald’s and major companies like Unilever

Celebrating Perseverance

Jack Wilkinson, one of the most respected veterans of national and international efforts to give farmers a policy voice, was eloquent in his brief description last week of the crossroads farmers in Manitoba faced a quarter-century ago. “It was not obvious that Keystone would be successful,” he told farmers and dignitaries gathered for the 25th