
Forages

Farmers for Climate Solutions pilots mentorship programs
Farmers for Climate Solutions, a national coalition of farmer-led and farmer-supporting organizations, launched a mentorship program in 2022. Also known as FaRM, they offer three learning streams on the topics of advanced nitrogen management, advanced grazing systems and cover cropping. Cedric MacLeod with the Canadian Forage and Grassland Association (CFGA) says a few people at […] Read more

Sending hay abroad
Canada’s export forage market: trade missions, tips for producers and market trends
Canadian exporters say they’re receiving more overseas inquiries for high-quality forage. Last May, one inquiry led the Canadian Forage and Grassland Association (CFGA) to organize a trade mission that brought representatives from Al Dahra Holding LLC, an Abu Dhabi-based agribusiness that trades three million tonnes of forage annually, to tour Ontario, Saskatchewan and Alberta. Siju […] Read more

More grass, less gas, more money
Good grazing management pays dividends for both farmer and the environment
As Canada works to reach the goals set in its 2030 Emissions Reduction Plan, many industries, including agriculture, are looking at ways to cut emissions, but discussed less often are measures to prevent them in the first place. Alberta rancher and custom grazier Steve Kenyon is the lead grazing mentor in the Canadian Forage and […] Read more

Manitoba to cut Crown forage lease rates
Previous years' forage conditions a factor, province says
The rents paid by Manitoba producers using Crown lands to produce perennial forages will be cut in half next year and by smaller amounts the following two years. Provincial Ag Minister Derek Johnson on Wednesday announced the forage lease rent on agricultural Crown land will be reduced by 50 per cent in 2023, 33 per […] Read more

Manitoba trials forage grass from Africa
At one of Manitoba Beef and Forage Initiative’s (MBFI) field days this summer, MBFI showed off a new trial — teff grass. Initially grown in a plot trial at the Parkland Crop Diversification Foundation in 2020, MBFI decided to try the crop in a larger trial after seeing the success at the foundation. “I would […] Read more

Using forage to prevent liver abscesses in finished cattle
Liver abscesses are a leading cause of beef defects and economic losses in the Canadian beef industry. On average, 12 to 32 per cent of cattle develop liver abscesses, which account for over $60 million in yearly losses by the Canadian beef industry due to liver discounts and condemnations. Liver abscesses are pus-filled lesions found […] Read more

Mentoring the mentors
Opportunity awaits farmers who want to learn how to develop and plan an advanced grazing system
I started farming on my own back in 1996. I was fresh out of college and had a huge passion for grazing. I was very lucky to have a lot of great mentors who were patient enough to put up with my never-ending questions. I was eager and I just could not get enough education […] Read more

Alfalfa for Canada’s climate
Nature doesn’t always provide conveniently severe winters to select for survival
Very few of the alfalfa varieties sold in Canada were developed under Canadian conditions. The CFIA registered 119 varieties in Canada between 2012 and 2022, but only four (AAC Nikon, AAC Meadowview, AAC Bridgeview and AAC Trueman) were developed in Canada. The other 115 came from breeding programs in China, Australia, California, Washington State or […] Read more

Water monitoring made simple with FarmSimple product
What started out as a hobby for two brothers has evolved into an award-winning product that allows ranchers to monitor livestock water remotely. Katlin Lang is CEO of FarmSimple, a company he runs with his brother, Dustin, at Vibank, Sask. Together they sell a product known as Herd Hand, which monitors remote watering systems. Herd […] Read more

VIDEO: What does a healthy pasture look like?
Rangeland biologist answers the question, ‘can cattle be trained to eat spurge?’
A number of situations – some within a producer’s control, some not – can compromise the health of pastures and grasslands of not being able to grow quality forages to feed livestock. During a field day in July hosted by Manitoba Beef & Forage Initiatives, Mae Elsinger, a rangeland and pasture biologist with Agriculture and […] Read more