Mycotoxins know no bounds

Mycotoxins know no bounds

DON is the No. 1 mycotoxin found in several Canadian cereal crops

Awesome turned awful as September rolled into October with its short wet days and longer wet nights downgrading many cereal crops to feed quality across the Prairies. To make matters worse, a lot of grain that did make it into the bin was infected with fusarium and to a lesser extent with ergot. The fusarium […] Read more



Cow chewing hay

Get hail-damaged crops tested before feeding to livestock

Doing a feed test ‘is much cheaper than losing an animal,’ says beef extension specialist

Hail damage this summer on the Prairie provinces is approaching an all-time high — and with many producers putting livestock on their ruined fields, the risk of nitrate poisoning is also shooting up. So be sure to do a feed test first, said a beef extension specialist with Alberta Agriculture and Forestry. “A feed test […] Read more

(Photo courtesy Canada Beef Inc.)

Philippines rush new GMO rules to avert import disruption

Manila | Reuters — The Philippines is set to issue new rules next month on GMO imports, seeking to avert food supply disruptions when a court-ordered stoppage kicks in as import permits for livestock feed expire this year, government officials said. In a landmark ruling in December, the country’s Supreme Court struck down a 2002 government […] Read more


Hay Bale Landscape

Measuring feed quality in the field

A new system allows for bale-by-bale feed value testing

In challenging economic times it is more important than ever to know the value of the alfalfa forage you are feeding your dairy or beef cattle. Whether you are blending alfalfa in a ration to maximize lactation, fertility and calf growth, or utilizing lesser-quality hay for dry cattle or replacements, you want to know that […] Read more



looking at grain underneath a magnifying glass

Are mycotoxins hiding in your feed supply?

When it comes to feed quality, we usually think in terms of nutritional properties such as energy, protein or mineral content. There are, however, other feed characteristics that have an impact on quality, one of which is mycotoxin contamination. Depending on crop type, environment, location, harvest and storage management, there are a wide variety of […] Read more

Hi-Pro Feeds plans to buy and close New-Life Mills’ Lethbridge feed mill, then consolidate the two plants’ business at its own Lethbridge mill shown here. (HiProFeeds.com)

Hi-Pro buying, shutting Lethbridge feed mill

The livestock feed business in southern Alberta is set for consolidation as feed miller Hi-Pro Feeds moves to buy, then close, a fellow feed mill. Hi-Pro, the former feed milling business of grain handler Viterra, announced Wednesday it’s bought New-Life Mills’ Lethbridge feed plant for an undisclosed sum, will hire three New-Life employees and will […] Read more