Alberta beef producers who took part in a Verified Beef Production workshop have until March 31 to get funding for half the cost of related equipment.
Eligible producers can get back 50 per cent of the cost up to a maximum of $750 for eligible livestock equipment including chutes and headgates that facilitate neck injections; hand-held radio frequency identification (RFID) tag readers; computer software to track medication withdrawals; scale/calibration device for medicated feeds; and a disposal container for used medical bottles.
“The purpose of this funding is to provide assistance in ensuring the accuracy of medication use on-farm,” said Eileen Leslie, the provincial co-ordinator for the federal Verified Beef program.
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“For example, in the case of chutes and headgates, cattle must be held tightly to facilitate accurate neck injections and to reduce the chance of broken or bent needles.”
Over 1,700 Alberta cattle producers have taken part in Verified Beef workshops in the past several years, Leslie said in a provincial release. Of those, all are eligible for the funding program, which expires March 31.
“As well, our workshops are ongoing, so if a producer is interested in participating they should contact us.”
Qualifying equipment must appear on the program’s approved eligibility list, have a minimum unit cost of $200, and be commercially available in Canada.
