Grab And Go

UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA EXTENSION Devastating disasters like a flood are a vivid reminder of life’s uncertainty. With the high likelihood of spring flooding in many areas, ask yourself if you would know what to grab if you only had minutes to escape from your home. “The plans you have made in advance and the items

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


Global Grain Reserve Idea Gaining Momentum – for Oct. 7, 2010

During the decade from 1996 to 2006, the world became accustomed to stable crop production levels. Production problems in one part of the world were balanced out by increased production elsewhere. In such a world it was easy to argue that reserves were unnecessary, because there would always be someone with a supply they were

Northern food insecurity

“We see a very, very bad and a very, very big problem,” Uche Nwankwo, Intern Professor at the Natural Resources Institute

Hunger haunts three out of four households in northern Manitoba with some families going entire days without food, new research has found. Last summer a team of researchers from the University of Manitoba’s Natural Resources Centre surveyed 473 households in 14 communities across Manitoba’s north. They found a 75 per cent incidence of household food


The Urbanization Of Farm Policy

It has often been difficult over the past decade or so to find the word “farmer” or “agriculture” in the avalanche of policy statements put out by federal parties during election campaigns. Oh sure, there’s been the hot-button issues such as the Canadian Wheat Board, listeria and more money for hard-pressed farmers, but getting the

“Alternative” Systems Get Mainstream Funding

“We’re thinking about more diverse ways of building relationships across the Prairie provinces. We’re not talking about 100-mile diets here.” – STPHANE MCLACHLAN The federal government is providing $1 million for a five-year project in Manitoba to develop more community-based alternative food systems for rural, urban and northern Manitoba. The Community University Research Alliance (CURA)


Buying Of Developing Countries’ Farmland Slows: UN

“Maybe some of them don’t want to take this political risk, reputational risk and economic risk.” – JEAN-PHILIPPE AUDINET, IFAD The pace at which investors in richer countries have been buying farmland in developing nations has slowed with the fall in food prices this year from peaks hit in 2008, United Nations farming experts said

Starvation In An Age Of Plenty

Other countries’ domestic and foreign policies are often at the root of food disasters What is it about Africa? With its tropical climate and rich soil, it should be able to feed its teeming millions many times over. Yet too often Africa becomes a metaphor for famine and hunger. In 1984-85 a horrified world responded


Low-Cost Alarms Improve Farm Security

Farms are home to some pretty valuable merchandise these days. And although rural residents often expect to be able to leave homes and buildings unlocked, they can fall victim to thefts just as easily as city residents, maybe even more easily given their remote locations. So it may be wise to consider just how secure

Farmland Buying May Harm Poor States

The European Union is concerned by the trend of foreign investors and countries acquiring large tracts of farmland in developing countries to guarantee their own food security, a senior EU official said June 3. Although the EU had not reached a common position on the issue there were fears the trend might pose a risk