A mixed farmer from Quebec and an Ontario farm financial planner are the newest appointees to the board of Farm Credit Canada. Federal Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz on Monday named Caroline Belzile of Saint-Elzéar, Que., to a three-year term effective immediately. Belzile has co-owned a beef, hog and grain farm and sugar bush in the […] Read more
Farmer, financial planner named to Farm Credit board
JRI to expand Alta. Pioneer elevators
James Richardson International (JRI) will expand storage capacity at two of its Pioneer Grain elevators in Alberta and rail car capacity at a third, the company announced Friday. Pioneer’s facilities at Carseland, Lamont and Stirling “are great agri-centres and our investment in these projects will ensure that they meet their full potential,” JRI president Curt […] Read more
NFU accredited in New Brunswick
The New Brunswick wing of the National Farmers Union has picked up provincial accreditation as a general farm organization. The accreditation, announced Friday, allows farmers who register their operations with the Registrar of Farms to direct their registration fees to the NFU in New Brunswick to fund its operations there. The province recently proclaimed the […] Read more
Alta. to add on-farm power plants to grid
“Micro-generation” projects, in which Albertans generate power for their own needs from biomass, wind and other sources, are welcome to send their surplus power into the provincial grid. The province announced new micro-generation regulations Friday that will allow Alberta residents to generate their own power, and will credit them for any power that they don’t […] Read more
Ag wastes loom large in B.C. bioenergy plan
Biomass from British Columbia’s farms figures prominently in the new bioenergy strategy the provincial government released Thursday. The strategy, which is meant to help the province toward its goal of self-sufficiency in electricity by 2016, will back development of pilot- and demonstration-scale projects with industries and communities in its “key biomass resource areas.” While forests […] Read more
Man. research to develop boomer food
Manitoba’s Food Development Centre and the University of Manitoba will collaborate on finding foods more fit for fiftysomethings. The provincial research centre, based in Portage la Prairie, and the university on Friday announced a research project that will start by arranging consumer focus groups to home in on the food products most commonly consumed by […] Read more
Mayo Clinic pans CPR bid for U.S. railway
The Mayo Clinic, one of the pre-eminent medical centres in the U.S., wants Canadian Pacific Railway to commit to major upgrades before it will accept CPR’s proposed merger with the railway running through its home town. The clinic, in a release Friday, said CPR’s US$1.48 billion cash bid for the Dakota, Minnesota and Eastern Railroad […] Read more
Saanich mayor to head B.C. farm tax panel
A Vancouver Island mayor whose municipality is at the centre of a debate over what constitutes a “farm” for municipal tax purposes will lead the province’s review of the bigger issue. Provincial Revenue Minister Rick Thorpe on Thursday named Saanich Mayor Frank Leonard as one of two co-chairs for the province’s farm status assessment review. […] Read more
Campaign to boost biodiesel awareness
A new program to boost awareness of biodiesel production and its environmental benefits among diesel consumers in Western Canada has picked up a $330,000 investment from Western Economic Diversification Canada. The program, called BioFleet, is expected to focus on boosting demand for biodiesel through information campaigns and “first-user incentives.” Partners in the project include the […] Read more
Initials set for Pool B feed barley
Initial payments for 2007-08 Pool B feed barley were released Friday by the Canadian Wheat Board, putting No. 1 Canada Western (CW) at $157.50 per tonne, or $3.43 per bushel. That’s the same initial price per tonne as for Standard Canada Western Hulless in Pool B, which works out to $4.14 per bushel for that […] Read more
Canadian Cattlemen Presents: Depth of Field
