(Doug Wilson photo courtesy ARS/USDA)

Malt barley seeding well ahead of normal

CNS Canada — Barley seeding is well underway across Western Canada and almost complete in southern Alberta, according to the head of the Barley Council of Canada. “We’re two weeks ahead here in southern Alberta, there’s guys that have wrapped up; they’re done seeding already,” said council president Brian Otto. On his own farm at […] Read more


(Peggy Greb photo courtesy ARS/USDA)

Ont. oat, barley growers approve GFO entry

Ontario’s barley and oat growers have voted just over three-quarters in favour of representation by the province’s wheat, corn and soybean growers’ organization. Grain Farmers of Ontario (GFO) confirmed Monday that eligible growers voted 77 per cent in favour of the move in a November vote conducted by the Ontario Farm Products Marketing Commission. GFO […] Read more



fusarium head blight in wheat

New fusarium control on the horizon

Farmers who spray fungicides for fusarium may soon have a new biocontrol to consider

Fusarium head blight is a perennial problem for cereal growers across the Prairies. A fungal disease that can impact many small grain cereals including wheat, rye, barley and oats, fusarium is caused by infection by species of the fungal pathogen Fusarium, and can result in yield losses and reductions in grade and end-use quality. It […] Read more

family standing in front of a Christmas tree

Farming was the right choice

After 40 years of farming, Blair Rempel knows he made the right choice when he chose to come back to the farm

Blair Rempel has been farming for almost 40 years. The Nipawin area producer and seed grower earned his diploma in agriculture at the University of Saskatchewan, in 1976. He considered other careers but always came back to agriculture. “The things I found attractive was a certain degree of independence and the satisfaction of building your […] Read more



Markets for barley in 2014

Logistic troubles and a declining domestic feed market spell trouble for barley growers

What a difference a year can make! Big yields in many of the key grain-and oilseed-producing countries have pressured prices for several months. Total world grain and oilseed production is up about eight per cent while barley production will actually be down 10 million tonnes to 135 MT. However, two big U.S. corn crops in […] Read more


Tractor seeding a field

Farmers tweak rotations to reflect markets

Farmer panel: Farmers contacted for the February Farmer Panel are making 
changes to get the most from a falling market in 2014

While the high rolling wheat, barley and canola prices of the past couple years are into a market slump in 2014, that doesn’t mean western Canadian farmers are making major changes to their cropping plans this coming year. Some adjustments, yes, as they consider crops with lower inputs, or bring back specialty crops they haven’t […] Read more

Ochap Farms has best year yet

Ochapowace First Nations’ Ochap Farms Ltd. is investing in people 
and building a farm in southeast Saskatchewan

Shelley Bear is the first to admit she didn’t know a lot about farming. “I knew you put the crop in the field in the spring and you took it off in the fall,” Bear told delegates at the inaugural Indigenous Agriculture Summit, held in conjunction with Canadian Western Agribition in November. Bear is the […] Read more