Forages
Forage program aims to conserve Canadian prairies through collaboration with ranchers
Ducks Unlimited Canada (DUC) has teamed up with McDonald’s Canada and Cargill to support rancher-led work through a $5-million CAD Forage program. The program will work to return 125,000 acres (50,585 hectares) of cropland to grass and pasture by 2025.
Manitoba soil temperatures allow for spring fertilizer
Winter ban lifted, with cautions
Farmers across Manitoba are now cleared to apply spring fertilizers including livestock manure on their fields, thanks to sufficiently warm soil temperatures, the province said Tuesday. Though the winter nutrient ban has been lifted, the province cautioned producers to “assess current weather conditions and periodically check weather forecasts” if they’re applying anytime between now and […] Read more
New U.S. trade chief Tai focused on CUSMA, China ties in calls
New trade deals on hold for now, White House says
Washington | Reuters — New U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai mapped out her priorities and Washington’s desire to rebuild alliances in initial calls on Monday with her counterparts from Canada, Britain and the European Union. Tai, sworn in Thursday as President Joe Biden’s top trade negotiator, emphasized climate change, racial equity and the need to […] Read more
Cargill buying further into Saskatchewan ag retail
Company to take up other half of Precision Ag
Cargill plans to expand its crop retail reach further into southeastern Saskatchewan by buying up the remaining half of one of its joint ventures in the region. The Canadian arm of the U.S. agrifood firm said Thursday it will buy up crop input retailer Precision Ag for an undisclosed sum, taking up the 50 per […] Read more
Yes or no now on AgriStability changes, ag minister says
Farm and commodity groups line up to press provinces for decision
Ottawa’s proposals for changes to the AgriStability farm income stabilization program require a yes or no answer from participating provinces, not more discussion, the federal ag minister said Wednesday. “It has been just over 110 days since we made the offer to the provinces to improve AgriStability,” Agriculture Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau and Winnipeg MP Jim […] Read more
Pilot project aims to demonstrate grasslands’ carbon-storing power
The pilot will allow landowners and ranchers to generate carbon offsets for carbon stored on Canadian grasslands.
A new pilot project has been launched to help conserve native grasslands, one of the most endangered ecosystems in Canada, which remain under pressure from development. The “Retaining Canada’s Grasslands Using Carbon Offset Markets” is a two-year pilot that will allow landowners and ranchers to generate carbon offsets for carbon stored in conserved grasslands in […] Read more
No credit expected for farmers’ past work in new carbon market
Work on protocols for specific projects to begin this spring, department says
Draft regulations for Canada’s new carbon market show Canadian farmers won’t receive credit for removing any greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) from the atmosphere prior to 2017. Federal Environment Minister Jonathan Wilkinson on Friday announced the offset market, to be known as the Federal Greenhouse Gas Offset System. A 60-day public consultation period on draft regulations […] Read more
Spring road bans coming into effect across Prairies
MarketsFarm — Warming temperatures and melting snow across Western Canada may cause some disruptions to grain and livestock movement over the next few weeks as seasonal spring road restrictions come into effect across the Prairies. The annual spring road restrictions set axle weight limits for vehicles moving on certain roads in an effort to reduce […] Read more
Weston Family Foundation donates nearly $25 million to prairie conservation efforts
The five-year project will affect nearly four million acres of native prairie, making it one of the largest prairie grasslands conservation efforts in Canadian history.
The Weston Family Foundation has injected nearly $25 million into grassland conservation efforts in Canada, giving a major boost to five organizations protecting prairie ecosystems. Canada’s native prairie ecosystem is home to hundreds of species of wildlife, including everything from northern leopard frogs to swift foxes, while simultaneously supporting beef herds and other livestock. Grasslands also sequester carbon, giving them a potential role […] Read more
Farmers Edge launches IPO
Digital ag firm makes first public share offering to big demand
Manitoba’s best-known digital agriculture firm is now a publicly-traded company. Farmers Edge, founded in 2005 in Pilot Mound, Man. by agronomists Wade Barnes and Curtis MacKinnon, has carved out a niche using field-centric data, artificial intelligence and its FarmCommand data management platform. CEO Wade Barnes called it an exciting day during an online press conference […] Read more