Martyn Donnelly, regional manager, livestock production, Atlantic Canada; Judy Cairns, accounting manager, finance; and David Ross, sales manager, livestock production (l-r) mark the rebranding of their division as Sollio Agriculture outside their Moncton office. (Photo courtesy Sollio Agriculture)

Atlantic Farm Services takes sister firm’s new name

Corrected, Dec. 6, 2019 — The former ag retail distribution and feed milling businesses of Co-op Atlantic are set to take the new name of their sister company. Sollio Agriculture, the agribusiness arm of Quebec-based La Coop federee, announced Monday its Atlantic Farm Services business is officially rebranding with the Sollio Agriculture trademark, which La […] Read more



Hogs on a stock trailer bound for a Toronto packing plant accept drinks from Toronto Pig Save members in 2013. (Screengrab of Toronto Pig Save video via YouTube)

Ontario draws new legal lines against on-farm trespass

Ontario has introduced a legislative package setting up new legal boundaries around livestock in that province, whether on farms or in transit. The Security From Trespass and Protecting Food Safety Act, introduced Monday by Agriculture Minister Ernie Hardeman, is expected to “address the unique risks and challenges associated with trespass onto a farm or into […] Read more

John Barlow, shown here in 2015, is the federal Conservatives’ new lead shadow cabinet minister for agriculture and agri-food. (Johnbarlowmp.ca)

Federal Tories’ former associate ag critic takes lead chair

Andrew Scheer’s federal Conservatives will have a familiar face in the agriculture critic’s chair when the House of Commons reconvenes next month. Scheer on Friday named John Barlow, the MP for the southwestern Alberta riding of Foothills, as the lead opposition critic for agriculture and agri-food. Barlow replaces Quebec MP Luc Berthold, who takes up […] Read more


When anthrax spores get inside the body, they are “activated.” Bacteria rapidly multiply and produce powerful toxins resulting in vascular collapse and death.

Anthrax: A disease of antiquity spread by ancient human migration

Vet Advice with Dr. Ron Clarke

Historians think anthrax originated in Egypt and Mesopotamia. Biblical scholars suggest that during Moses’ time and through the 10 plagues of Egypt, anthrax may have caused the fifth plague, captured in ancient script as a sickness affecting horses, cattle, sheep, camels and oxen. Homer described a plague that many believe to be anthrax in The […] Read more



Ionophores are used most extensively in feedlot cattle diets, but are generally considered a good investment regardless of the diet fed.

The complicated life of an ionophore

Ron Clarke outlines the basics of how these widely used feed additives work

Ionophores are a class of compounds frequently talked about in animal nutrition, yet infrequently understood by many. First marketed in the 1960s and derived from soil-borne organisms, ionophores are best described as feed additives that reversibly bind ions — chemical entities possessing an electric charge — then subsequently facilitate their transport across membranes. Commonly used […] Read more