Alberta Agriculture Minister Oneil Carlier speaks with Alberta Beef Producers’ Tom Lynch-Staunton, Roland Cailliau and Bob Lowe (l-r). (Government of Alberta photo)

Alberta to restore non-refundable checkoff option

Alberta’s farmed-commodity commissions may soon be able to make their checkoffs non-refundable again if their producer members are willing. The provincial government on Tuesday tabled amendments to the Marketing of Agricultural Products Act (MAPA) which would grant each of the province’s 13 agricultural commissions the ability to determine whether their checkoffs should be refundable or […] Read more

(Manitoba Co-operator file photo by Laura Rance)

Wet spring hampers Prairie fertilizer timetable

CNS Canada — This week’s dump of snow in eastern Saskatchewan and western Manitoba will likely push back fieldwork and fertilizer applications on a lot of farms, according to one crop watcher. Keystone Agricultural Producers president Dan Mazier, speaking from a conference in the U.S., said only about 50 per cent of the normal amount […] Read more


Replace that pencil with an online calculator

Replace that pencil with an online calculator

Take your homework from page to screen. Online calculators can help you add up production costs and estimate profits

If you need help planning for the upcoming crop year, there are plenty of online tools on provincial government websites to help. Some of them are in downloadable, customizable Excel spreadsheet format; and others are downloadable software that can producers can save to their computer and customize. With different soil and climate conditions, each Prairie […] Read more



Five uses for provincial machinery rate guides

Five uses for provincial machinery rate guides

The new provincial Machinery Guides for 2016-17 have been published on each Prairie province’s website. These guides show rental or custom rates for commonly used machinery. Dan Schmeiser, manager of the farm business management services section in the Saskatchewan Ministry of Agriculture, says “the purpose of the Guide is to provide approximate costs for renting […] Read more



(PC.gc.ca)

Canada reintroduces bison to Banff National Park

Calgary | Reuters — Parks Canada has reintroduced a herd of plains bison to the country’s oldest national park in Banff, Alta., officials said on Monday, more than 130 years after the iconic North American animal last grazed the eastern slopes of the Canadian Rockies. The conservation team moved 16 bison from a protected herd […] Read more



(ParrishandHeimbecker.com)

P+H to expand Alberta ag retail reach

Grain company Parrish and Heimbecker plans to expand its crop input retail space into east-central Alberta by buying four store sites in a federally-mandated sale. The privately-held Winnipeg firm on Monday announced it has reached an agreement with Agrium’s retail arm, Crop Production Services, to buy the sites at Sedgewick, Wainwright, St. Paul and Marwayne. […] Read more

Alberta’s provincial Agriculture Minister Oneil Carlier and Medicine Hat MLA Bob Wanner (r) met Dec. 21 with producers affected by the bovine tuberculosis outbreak near Jenner, about 75 km northeast of Brooks. (Government of Alberta photo)

Quarantines added in bovine TB probe

Federal inspectors’ search for animals exposed to one of six Alberta cattle confirmed with bovine tuberculosis (TB) has led them to quarantine more farm sites for testing. As of Wednesday, “approximately 50” farm sites, mostly in southeastern Alberta with “approximately five” in southwestern Saskatchewan, are under quarantine and movement controls, affecting about 26,000 animals, the […] Read more