Cannon Smith answers questions on using Herdly from rancher Travis Hartley of Aetna, Alta.

Former Alberta rancher delivers high-tech ranch management

Cannon Smith finds there is life after ranching by developing software for the industry


In 2008, Cannon Smith had a big decision to make. Like many cattle producers at the time, the lifelong southern Alberta rancher was being rocked by the lingering price effects of BSE. His hog operation was also in jeopardy from free-falling pork prices. Smith had two choices: either exit livestock production altogether or embrace a […] Read more



Ontario’s Livestock Research Innovation Corporation was instrumental in helping to get the new Elora Beef Research Centre up and running.

Doing livestock research and innovation right in Ontario

The new CEO of the Livestock Research Innovation Corporation shares his thoughts on the organization’s direction

Mike McMorris, the new CEO of Ontario’s Livestock Research Innovation Corporation (LRIC), is a firm believer in systems research — finding ways to leverage better results through collaboration and making connections across species. He’s also focused on better co-ordinating research services, making sure member organizations receive value for their investments and digging deeper into the […] Read more




(ThornloeCheese.com)

Gay Lea buys northern Ontario cheesemaker

Ontario’s first producer of verified-grass-fed butter and cheeses is set to become part of the province’s biggest dairy co-operative. Gay Lea Foods said Monday it has completed a deal to buy Thornloe Cheese from its current owner, Guelph-based dairy genetics firm EastGen, for an undisclosed sum. Thornloe Cheese on its website says the business takes […] Read more


There are a number of steps producers can take to ensure that cattle maintain relatively high levels of feed intake while on high-grain rations.

Feed bunk management key to a sound feeding program

Nutrition with John McKinnon

In my last two columns, we have looked at issues with starting cattle on feed, as well as providing insight into the design of backgrounding and finishing programs. In this column, the focus will be on management of the feeding program, particularly feed bunk management. At its most basic level, feed bunk management is the […] 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



A colourized low-temperature electron micrograph of a cluster of E. coli bacteria. Individual bacteria in this photo are oblong and colored brown. (Eric Erbe photo and colourization by Christopher Pooley courtesy ARS/USDA)

Ryding-Regency’s federal beef packing licenses cancelled

Citing “false or misleading information” given them during an E. coli probe, food safety officials have now permanently pulled the federal slaughter, processing and export licenses for Toronto’s Ryding-Regency Meat Packers and related companies. The cancellation, announced Monday, indefinitely prolongs what was already described as “critical processing capacity shortage” for the province’s cattle producers, leaving […] Read more