Checking cattle in a Canadian feedlot. Bovine respiratory disease remains the most common disease affecting feedlot cattle.

New nasal spray may provide relief from BRD

By focusing on the microbiome in the respiratory system, a new startup hopes to control shipping fever without antibiotics

Research into a promising alternative to antibiotics that prevents and treats bovine respiratory disease (BRD) has investors and the beef industry buzzing. “My interest is to understand how the microbiome influences the animal’s overall health and response to disease,” says Dr. Christopher Belnap, co-founder and CEO of Resilient Biotics, based in North Carolina. The Microbiology […] Read more

Gillian Arraial, Alexandra Shepherd and Bailey Hove learning to castrate calves while interning with Chelsea Geiger Pellerin and her family.

Mini-internships give ag students hands-on farm experience

A University of Alberta program connects urban students to farmers, and gives farm kids new ag experience, too

A unique internship program at the University of Alberta has become increasingly popular with students since its creation in 2016. Poultry professor Dr. Frank Robinson helped create the program, which is a partnership between the faculty of agricultural, life and environmental sciences and the University of Alberta Career Centre. Robinson set up mini ag internships, […] Read more


Bovine Expert Tracking and Surveillance, or BETSY, can identify cattle from almost any angle and at considerable distance, the company says, and there are plans to enable the system to read RFID tags.

Biometrics and artificial intelligence may be coming to a ranch near you

Companies are developing emerging technology to identify cattle, track health, growth and behaviour, and analyze data

Like the facial recognition technology now used on smartphones, a new livestock identification technology is using artificial intelligence to keep tabs on cattle. Created by Canadian company OneCup AI, Bovine Expert Tracking and Surveillance, or BETSY, uses artificial intelligence to identify and monitor cattle through facial recognition technology. Mokah Shmigelsky, founder of OneCup AI, grew […] Read more

Creativity needed to address veterinarian shortage

Creativity needed to address veterinarian shortage

As demand grows for veterinarians, stagnant graduation rates and steep competition from urban areas have left many rural practices in a crunch

Working in a rural community as a large animal veterinarian always made perfect sense to Dr. Trevor Lawson. “There’s nowhere I’d sooner be because I came from a rural area and that’s where I always wanted to be,” says Lawson, who practices at Shubenacadie, Nova Scotia, specializing in bovine and equine care, and is an […] Read more


Left to right: Cooper, Chad, Renee, Ricki and Riata Seelhof of Woodjam Ranch, 2020 TESA recipients.

The Environmental Stewardship Award reaches 25-year milestone

National recognition has contributed to the sustainable beef conversation, but people in the industry see more opportunities to reach the public

The most recent recipients of The Environmental Stewardship Award weren’t seeking praise when they implemented conservation-minded practices on their ranch. However, the opportunity to share their story with a national audience was incredibly meaningful. “For us to be recognized was a true honour,” says Ricky Seelhof of Woodjam Ranch at Horsefly, B.C., who along with […] Read more

Former federal and provincial community pastures operated for decades in Manitoba and Saskatchewan, many of them on ecologically sensitive lands. These pastures held habitat for wildlife and provided grazing allocations to area farmers. Starting in 2013, the pastures transitioned to patron operation.

Pastures hold on to ecological benefits through transition

Pasture managers and patrons are working with conservation groups to preserve these islands of Prairie habitat

The following is the final in a three-part series exploring how community pastures shifted from government to producer operation. You can read Part 1 here and Part 2 here. The Prairie Farm Rehabilitation Administration’s (PFRA) community pasture program began in the 1930s as a quest to stop drifting soil and provide stable grazing for the […] Read more


From left to right: Peter, Lyal Jr., Rose, Spencer and Isaiah Fox.

Building a career as a livestock buyer

Lyal Fox Jr. reflects on what’s changed, what’s remained constant and what he’s learned over the years buying livestock

The Fox family is well known in the Canadian livestock industry, as breeders of Holsteins, Percheron and Morgan horses, polled Hereford and Angus cattle, and sheep. They have been involved in many different operations all over the world. One family member, Lyal Fox Jr., forged a slightly different path as a livestock buyer. In the […] Read more

Matching economics with reality on the ranch

Matching economics with reality on the ranch

As Laura and Grant Smith expand their cow-calf operation, they’re applying what they learned from Ranching for Profit to decisions ranging from buying cows to grazing plans

Grant and Laura Smith own and operate Brush Hills Ranch near Bentley, Alta. The couple ran an oil and gas service company for 14 years, but recently sold their share of the business and expanded their cow-calf operation from 25 to 180 head, while also adding a small heifer development program. “We have a real […] Read more


Updating the handling requirements for specified risk material in processing facilities is a priority with Canada’s negligible risk designation.

Negligible risk status may mean more market access for Canadian beef

Historic designation opens doors for conversations on removing BSE-era trade restrictions for beef products, feeder cattle access and processing requirements

This spring, a difficult chapter for the Canadian beef industry came to a close after almost two decades. In late May, the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) Scientific Commission approved Canada as having negligible risk for bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), moving from controlled risk status to the disease’s lowest risk level of transmission. This […] Read more

AgriProfit$ key indicators for cow-calf operations are referred to as GOLD: Growth (weaning weight), Open (rate), Length (of calving period) and Death (losses).

Measuring production and profitability in beef production

An enterprise analysis can help steer your farm or ranch towards profitability

Variations of the “need to measure to improve management” quote are staples of business and industry mission statements and dogma throughout all sectors of the globe. Ranch and farm operations are not exempt from this appraisal. AgriProfit$ measures performance For 35 years, producers in Alberta have had access to the AgriProfit$ Business Analysis and Research […] Read more