The AgriPost
August 25, 2017
Controlled Crop Residue Burning Authorization Negotiators Told “Do No Required
Harm” in NAFTA Talks
The presidents of the continent’s 3 largest farm groups voice their support for a renegotiated NAFTA.
By Les Kletke The three largest farm organizations on the continent have come out in favour of modernizing the North American Trade Agreement (NAFTA) after 20 years and
all agree that it is beneficial for each country. Ron Bonnet, President of the Canadian Federation of Agriculture (CFA), said the industry has a lot of common ground and renegotiating it
makes sense at this time. Canada and the US have $56 billion in trade and Canada and Mexico trade is over $4.2 billion in agricultural products annually. Canada is the top market for agricul-
tural products for 29 US States. The presidents of the three largest farms groups held a joint press conference in Washington, DC in late August at which time they drafted a letter to the negotiators Continued on page 2...
Manitoba Agriculture reminds producers who choose to burn crop residue that authorization is required until November 15. Daily authorizations are issued by 11 am based on weather and smoke dispersion conditions. Night burning continues to be banned year-round. The daily authorization will indicate if burning is permitted or not, and the start and end times allowed for that day. These depend on weather conditions and can change. Depending on conditions, burning may not be authorized for the entire province. In addition, a burning permit is required at all times in the rural municipalities of Rosser, Headingley, St. François Xavier, Cartier, Macdonald, Ritchot, Taché, Springfield, East St. Paul and West St. Paul. The City of Winnipeg is responsible for issuing permits to farms located within its boundaries. Farmers must follow all other provincial and local regulations when burning crop residue. Burning permit applications and more information are available from the toll-free information line at 1-800-265-1233, online at gov.mb.ca/agriculture, or from Manitoba Agriculture offices. Manitoba’s controlled crop residue burning program was introduced to protect public health and safety while allowing farmers to deal with difficult straw management problems. Farmers must ensure they burn crop residue safely. The regulation is enforced by environment officers and the RCMP and penalties for failing to comply can result in fines of up to $50,000. Many producers use alternative methods of dealing with crop residue, such as chopping and spreading the straw or listing straw they have for sale on the Manitoba Hay Listing Service. More information on these practices is available on Manitoba Agriculture’s website.
August 25, 2017
The AgriPost
NAFTA Negotiators... Continued from Page 1... charged with revamping NAFTA. “Do no harm, is the message of the letter sent to the negotiators,” said Bonnett at the press conference. He said the leaders met a few weeks earlier and agreed there is much common ground, but this agreement needs to be updated after more than 20 years. “Some of the issues we are dealing with were not even thought of 20 years ago,” he said. “We need to have
trade regulations based on science and we have asked for the elimination of trade barriers that are not based on science.” Zippy Duval is the President of the American Farm Bureau and he stressed that the agreement needed to be modernized and that Canada and Mexico are the no 1 and 3 trade partners of the US. “The US has a slightly positive trade balance with both of these countries and trade
deals have been beneficial to the farmers and ranchers of our country,” said Duval. “Negotiators need to make improvements to the agreement but they cannot come at losses to the present success of the agreement. We need unity in agriculture.” Bosco de la Vega is the President of CNA an organisation that represents 80% of the producers in Mexico, which covers 75% of the production. “We are stron-
ger together and we need to move to strengthen these ties,” he said. “We need to move to better market access in these countries and make us partners in trade. Working together we can be stronger as we face competitors in the market place.” De la Vega is confident that the modernization of the agreement can be instrumental in gaining further market access to the three member countries.
Opponents to NAFTA Take a Stance By Les Kletke While negotiations were getting underway to rework NAFTA with some farms groups sending letters of support the National Farmers Union (NFU) came out solidly against the process. The NFU maintains its position of opposing the trade agreement as it did more than two decades ago when it was put in place. It is not alone in its position and has aligned itself with farm groups in both the US, and Mexico that hold similar positions. “Under NAFTA and its forerunner, the Canada-US FTA, farm input costs have gone up and inflation-adjusted commodity prices have dropped, yet the farmer’s share of the grocery dollar is smaller. We export more, but imports have increased fast-
er, which means our share of our own domestic market is actually shrinking,” said Jan Slomp, President of Canada’s NFU. “NAFTA and the FTA have not helped farmers. Since 1988 we have seen one in every five of our farms disappear and we’ve lost over 70% of our young farmers, even though Canada’s population has increased.” The NFU maintains trade agreements are a further sell out of the family farm to large corporate interests. “The USA cannot solve its dairy crisis by taking over the Canadian dairy market and putting our farmers out of business,” said Slomp. “We need Canada to stand firm against any temptation to negotiate away supply management. Our system ensures farmers are paid the cost of
production, processing plants are able to run at full capacity and consumers have a reliable, wholesome and affordable supply of dairy, poultry and eggs, all without any government subsidies.” At least one farm group in the US agrees that access to Canadian markets will not solve the problem. Jim Goodman, a Wisconsin dairy farmer and member of the National Family Farm Coalition, agreed. “Federal and State Governments and Land Grant Universities, at the behest of the dairy industry, have done all they can to encourage US dairy farmers to produce more milk, never questioning how much milk might be too much or how the subsequent cheap prices affect farmers. We cannot expect Canada, at the ex-
pense of their dairy farmers, to bail us out. Farmers whether US or Canadian are nothing more than parts of the machine to the industry and NAFTA. That’s the way free trade works.” At least one Mexican farm organization agrees with the opinion that the Free Trade Agreement has hurt local farmers. Victor Suarez, Executive Director of the Mexican National Association of Rural Producers (ANEC) added that, “This whole process should begin with a thorough, independent evaluation of NAFTA’s economic, social, environmental and governance impacts. The goal should be to restore national sovereignty over food and farm policy, and to support local farming communities.”
Addressing Marketplace Interest in Production, Distribution and Retail of Cannabis The Manitoba government has issued an expression of interest (EOI) to determine options and possible participants in the new cannabis industry. “In anticipation of the legalization of cannabis, we have taken a proactive approach to addressing our primary concern, which is the health and safety of Manitobans,” said Justice Minister Heather Stefanson. “In addition to this focus, we also recognize there are many questions to be answered regarding distribution, regulation and
quality control. This EOI will help us source potential solutions to these important questions and further engage Manitobans on an approach to legalization that works best for our province.” The minister noted the purpose of the EOI is to determine market place interest and capability to provide, full or in part, services for the production, distribution and retail of cannabis that will meet the needs and standards of the cannabis industry in Manitoba. She added the EOI will seek input from respondents
on their understanding of the requirements of the Manitoba cannabis industry, a detailed work plan to fulfill those requirements, proposed costs, commitment to corporate responsibility, economic benefits, method of age verification, status as, or relationship, to a company holding a Health Canada Cannabis Production License and details of any additional services they may provide. “The Federal government has been clear in its intention to legalize cannabis by July 1, 2018,” added Stefanson. “Our government is focused
on responsibly managing this significant change in public policy. We are concerned about the Federal government’s deadline but we will continue the work that needs to be done to implement the legalization of cannabis. As we await further clarity from the Federal government, this EOI will help us gather the information necessary to help protect the public health and safety of all Manitobans.” The EOI is now live on the online Canadian public tendering service, merx.com. Submissions will be accepted until September 8.
The AgriPost
August 25, 2017
Canola Plant Can Be Deceiving You Into An Early Harvest By Harry Siemens Günter Jochum farms at St. Francois Xavier, and is ready to start his harvest for 2017. “Well, the crop is coming along nicely. For the most part, it looks good. Our soybeans could use a drink. We have missed all the rains here in August; haven’t had a decent rain yet. So, they’re starting to suffer a little bit,” said Jochum. “We did a sample of malt barley last Friday and it wasn’t quite ready. Probably Monday [August 21] we’ll be going in the barley. We’ve desiccated some wheat and some oats, and so I expect that will come down sometime next week. Our canola, I think, is still a week away.” A tweet prompted this interview when someone wrote, “Hey, make sure you’re not leaving five to ten bushels on the field because your seed is green.” The message went on to say a few people are going around here, getting anxious to start the harvest. “If the crop isn’t ready to swath or desiccate, the farmer should not be in there. Go to the lake, instead!” “You have to look at the
seed colour change. Don’t just look at the plant itself because it can be deceiving, where it looks like it’s turning colour, but if the seeds inside the pod haven’t turned color, it means nothing,” said Jochum. “Don’t swath unless, for swathing, you should have at least 60 per cent seed colour change. If you’re straight-cutting, like podshatter-resistant varieties, you should wait until 80 or 90 per cent seed colour change before you desiccate.” He said while not damaging the sample the seeds will be much smaller and those are very immature, they become pepper and light and the operator will have a hard time keeping them in a combine. “You lose a lot of yield. There are lots of examples, plenty of tests done over the years about the optimum time of swathing. I get it if you have a lot of swathing to do and you only have one swather, you can push it and maybe go a little bit sooner, but not when it is grass green,” he said. Jochum said he fared well with marketing last year’s crop and he no carryover.
The canola harvest is underway at Jim Pallister’s farm near Portage la Prairie
This year’s crop, he was about 30 per cent sold by seeding time but has not added much to that mix because it has not rained. “Then I get a little gun-shy and just wait to see what comes off, so we’re okay with what we’ve sold early on,” he said. “There were a couple of good opportunities just a short time ago when the market realized how dry it is in Saskatchewan, Alberta, Montana, North Dakota, and South Dakota. Some good pricing opportunities there, but since then, the markets backed off again. I guess everybody’s
harvest pressure is probably on right now, even if harvest hasn’t started yet.” For the most part, Jochum markets his crop. “I do subscribe to a newsletter, and I follow their advice pretty closely. I haven’t used any marketing consultant where somebody’s there and tells me, okay, here is the plan that we worked out. You need to start selling some stuff now,” he said. “And the reason is I kind of like doing my own thing. So somebody that doesn’t like to market their grain, that’s a good way to go, to hire someone for a
Early Yields Look Good as Harvest Gets Underway By Elmer Heinrichs With some rainfall over the week, warm weather has continued to advance crops in most of central and eastern regions as well as over most of the province. Crops are maturing rapidly, farmers are out cutting early canola, swathing and combining grasses, and early cereals. In its weekly summary, central region reports continued high daytime temperatures and described rainfall as light and variable. It noted that some crops are ripening prematurely due to lack of rain, especially in areas with gravel and sand ridges and areas with salinity. Harvest continues in fall rye and winter wheat, and occasional fields of spring wheat are coming off. Fall rye is yielding 75 to 110 bushels an acre and winter wheat 50 to 80 bushels an acre. Altona Farm Production Advisor Dennis Lange said early cereals are
yielding quite well, averaging about 60 - 65 bu/acre, and while soybeans missed some moisture while podding, he expects the yield will still be good. Lange also sees an average harvest of edible beans. In the cereals, that just starting to come off, barley yields range from 80 - 10 bu/ acre, with excellent quality. Oat yields range from 130 170 bu/acre, with good test weight. Early seed colour change is evident in later seeded canola fields, and swathing continues, as does desiccation application for straight-cut canola. Sunscald is making crops look riper than they are. Peas are standing well, and the harvest continues with yields ranging from 50 - 80 bu/acre. Flax fields are in full boll and starting to turn colour. Soybeans are in the R5 to R6 stage, some on knolls and ridges are drying out, some upper pods are
filling due to dry conditions, and monitoring for aphids continues. Early types of edible beans have shown some leaf drop due to dry conditions, and some white mould is showing in dense canopy, but control measures are not economically feasible. Most sunflowers are at later stages of flowering, and some basal stalk rot is evident. Most corn looks good and is in the grain filling stage, and late blight has been detected in potatoes, with producers continuing to spray to prevent infection. Some grasshoppers are also noted. The harvest got underway in the southeast over the weekend with a handful of fields being combined. Ste. Anne farmer Brian Dueck took off 100 acres of two-row barley, which yielded very well. Eastern region notes isolated reports of drought symptoms on soybeans and corn on light soils. Crop development
continues at a good pace and overall condition varies from good to excellent. While most cereals are going through the hard dough to ripening phase, in good condition, pre-harvest applications are almost complete, and a few early fields of oats and wheat are combined. Corn was reported at the tassel/silking to blister stage, and some fields would benefit from additional rainfall. Pre-harvest application and swathing of canola has started, while some later fields were still at pod-fill stage. Soybeans are progressing well with some spraying for aphids underway. Second-cut hay continues to be harvested, and quality is generally good. While still fair to good, pastures will need more rain to sustain them, and earlier supplemental feeding may be required.
Günter Jochum farms at St. Francois Xavier, Manitoba urges farmers to make sure they are not leaving five to ten bushels on the field because the seed is still green.
couple of dollars an acre, or however much they charge.
Most likely well worth your time and money.”
PAMI Study Shows Straight Cutting is Viable for Canola Canola producers on the prairies now have assurance that straight cutting their crop is a viable option thanks to a detailed study of harvest methods undertaken by Prairie Agricultural Machinery Institute (PAMI). “Swathing has always been the reliable harvest method for canola in western Canada,” said Avery Simundsson, project leader with PAMI in Portage la Prairie. “But it’s good to understand what other options are available. The goal of our study was to provide information that will help people make economic decisions about which harvest method may work for them.” Conducted in Manitoba during the 2016 growing season and funded by the Canada and Manitoba governments, the study evaluated four treatments, Reglone, Heat and glyphosate, natural ripening and swathing, which was the benchmark. Simundsson said the data collected showed the method of harvest does have a significant effect in some
areas, productivity, harvest efficiency, fuel consumption, harvest speed, time to harvest and operator experience but no significant difference was found in yield, engine speed, dockage, oil content, green seed or seed weight. She added there was an expectation that straight cutting would result in larger seeds and higher oil content but that did not turn out to be the case. Simundsson stressed that straight cutting is most appropriate for shatter-resistant varieties of canola due to the reduced risk of shatter loss. The study’s final report makes no recommendation for one harvest method over another. “But if you have a critical harvest window due to factors like weather, manpower or acres left to harvest, I can imagine people using a combination of straight cutting and swathing. It’s very dependent on the producer and their particular operation,” said Simundsson.
August 25, 2017
A Supper Celebration as Foodgrains Harvest Begins
By Elmer Heinrichs
Along with the general harvest, Harold Penner, Regional Representative of the Canadian Foodgrains Bank said organizers and volunteers of Manitoba grow projects are also starting to combine crops growing on the various fields seeded to raise funds earmarked to feed hungry people. One project, Grow Hope is inviting participant partners to join organizers, Grant Dyck’s Artel Farms near Niverville, in a harvest celebration on August 27. Grow Hope is a unique community growing project to raise funds for the Mennonite Central Committee (MCC) account with the Foodbank. Grant and Colleen Dyck invited non-farm people who joined them by sponsoring an acre on their farm to a supper, with an opportunity to see the growing crop to celebrate together and give thanks for the harvest. Along with an opportunity to meet, participants will also hear from Vurayayi Pugeni, MCC humanitarian relief coordinator, about how their acres will make a difference. Altogether, Grow Hope partners have sponsored enough acres to generate hundreds of thousands of dollars that MCC and CFGB will use to help end global hunger. For the Foodbank, Penner said the proceeds from project harvests are a huge part of its fundraising for food aid.
The AgriPost
Ten Years and Going Strong On June 29, 2007, Apple released its first iPhone, and it changed the world forever. Ten years later, we can see what a revolutionary product it really was. Using old Radio Shack flyers, Mark Perry, who teaches economics at the University of Michigan, points out the increase in value the device creates. He estimates that a much cheaper, basic $200 iPhone performs all the functions of 13 different products that cost $5,225 in 1991, with those prices adjusted into today’s dollar values. The items Perry used from a 1991 flyer were a personal stereo, am/fm clock radio, headphones, calculator, computer, VHS camcorder, mobile cell phone, regular speed-dial phone, portable CD player, mobile CB radio, desktop scanner, phone answering machine, and a cassette tape recorder. The iPhone performs all these functions at a small fraction of the old price. Perry also looks at the devices in terms of what he calls
“time cost”. In ’91, you would have had to work 290 hours (or 7.25 weeks) at a wage of $10.50 per hour to buy those 13 items. Today, you could get them all at a time cost of less than 10 hours, at an average wage of $20 per hour. That represents an absolutely amazing reduction in the time needed to acquire all these goodies. Of course, an iPhone can replace way more than just these items, so its value is actually much higher than that. But Perry’s facts give us information to see the big picture. And hey, it all fits in your pocket. Farmers these days would be lost without their smartphones. From real time weather radar, to instant commodity prices from around the world, to texting a picture of some part they’re looking for to multiple dealers all at once, it’s a real boon. You can get things done faster and easier than ever before. Who even carries a flashlight anymore? Or a map? They’ve also made life way
Penner’s Points By Rolf
more fun, less bor- Penner ing and monotonous. You can listen to your favourite songs, catch a podcast on a subject of your choice, chat via texts with your neighbours, and visit virtual coffee shops via social media such as Facebook and Twitter. Or watch a movie on Netflix while you’re waiting at the tire shop for some new boots for your 4-wheel drive. With over two million apps now available, there is literally no end to the things you can do on your phone, even when you are out in the middle of nowhere. At any time, day or night. This provides a great example of Adam Smith’s “invisible hand” at work in the free market. Over time, capitalism gives us more and better things over time for much less money. What only someone who was wealthy would have been able to buy a couple of decades ago is now within reach of poor or middle-class folks who, as a result, benefit the most.
These days we hear a lot of hand-wringing about “income inequality” and the supposed decline of the middle class. The free market, which gives us such wonderful things as the iPhone, often gets the blame, even though it is clearly raising the living standards of everyone. Professor Perry would argue that such advances have done more good for people in general than all of the government programs, safety nets and the “War on Poverty” combined. He makes a compelling case. The smartphone has certainly made life better for farmers. Even though we may run 20- or 30-year-old equipment for cropping the land, we have inexpensive access to the most up-to-date devices on the planet. What will come next with this technology? No doubt, such wonders will be cheaper, faster and more convenient than ever before.
I Need Faster Internet I embraced technology early in my life. Thinking it was 1982 when I bought my first Osborne computer, a tiny five-inch screen, green in colour, two floppy disk drives, 187,000 kb, and no ram or memory. Then Skype 1.0, but I could call through my computer around the world for nothing and record those interviews. Fast forward to high-speed internet service, should I say souped-down high speed ‘Net meaning download is 5 megabytes per second, and upload an amazing .5 MB/ s. That’s from a company that pretends to know technology, but if they do, they don’t know how to run it. To upload a five megabyte-sized image for one of my several publishers as a freelance journalist, I can make coffee and drink it. When I first saw and heard the news about Valley Fi-
ber’s plan to bring the fastest internet on the planet to Winkler, and then breaking ground saying how excited they are about hooking up the first customer soon, I could hardly contain myself. Then my good friends Conley Kehler, the new General Manager and Doug Rempel Director of Sales came on board. I decided to get a meeting with Conley and CO Hank Wall. It took three weeks of chasing them down because of their busy schedule, but finally last Thursday I sat down with both of them to hear what they had to say on and off the record, what makes this new technology tick. Okay, you get my point, 5 MB/s compared to 1,000 MB/s is again, a no brainer. As a proof of concept, the Rosebrook development north of the city will be first in line for 1,000 MB/s underground fibre optic internet. It doesn’t stop there. When
things settle down in Winkler, farmers in southern Manitoba will have access to the same fast internet service. “Valley Fiber came out of a passion for customer service and with working with VISS for many years and the tech industry, we’ve looked at different technologies as to how can we solve, mainly, local problems,” said Hank Wall CO of Valley Fiber. “That being internet access, internet connectivity, and how can technologies that exist out there or that are close to existing be further developed and eventually implemented in a rural environment like Winkler and the surrounding area. We’ve spent thousands and thousands of hours developing multiple formats of technology and ultimately land it on the technology that we’re using today. We were able to meet with a very eager community, Winkler and the council members, and the understanding of the need of being able to install infrastructure that allows for this
next generation of economic development to be happening. With us being able to come in, with technology option and a municipality and a city that was willing to see the economic growth happen, there was a very good partnership created with that.” “We will very shortly be running our first speed test to be able to show the community and the world what we can do,” said Wall. Off the record, they let me know the rate at what it ran at, but I can’t say it here. What I can say is what is in store for agricultural areas and farmers who depend on high speed and up-to-date market information to make their decisions is breathtaking. Why should people do business with Valley Fiber and why Hank Wall? He had an answer for that, “I would say, the major difference is, we are local. We care. At the end of the day, we go home because customer service is king. We have the ability to create the economic devel-
opment to see the economy grow and to see this region keep on prospering into the next generation and ultimately into many different revenue streams. I’ve personally witnessed having the local intellectual properties having to leave because their development can’t sustain in the current economy. The only thing that we see that is limiting is the lack of infrastructure. Much like taking gravel roads and upgrading them to superhighways, that’s what we’re doing today. That is our goal, and that is our passion,” said Wall. I’ve used the word nobrainer twice before in this column, let me use it again. In my humble opinion, people and businesses in Winkler and the surrounding area should embrace this new and far-advanced technology because it will be the best in the world, and will help generate, I believe economic activity and development, the likes we’ve not yet seen. It is a no brainer.
The AgriPost
Can They Do That? Yes They Can and Are I remember a couple of decades ago when the Angus people announced the establishment of the breed as the premier beef breed on the continent. It was at a broadcaster’s convention in Minneapolis that we heard the news. They announced it at a very nice restaurant that served us an excellent steak sandwich that they assured was only Angus beef. Several of us thought it was a bit of a pie in the sky dream and quite unlikely to come to fruition, we thanked them for a great lunch and left shaking our heads, knowing that it would be impossible for one breed to establish itself as “the beef breed”. About the only people to take them seriously at the time were the Hereford people. It was not long after that
I remember being invited to an event where the Hereford Association announced their plans for a very similar branding program but they would concentrate on the freezer market. Hereford was to be the best meat you could buy from your butcher, and they even went so far as to have their own wrapping paper printed. Yes, it had little red cows on the outside of the butcher paper and proudly proclaimed the contents as being from a red and white animal. That paper would not be a collector’s item, so I don’t need to tell you how the program went. The Angus breed has established itself as the standard of the beef industry. The ultimate compliment is contained in the current advertising campaign by the world’s
biggest restaurant. McDonald proudly proclaims that it is chicken is so good it could be considered the Angus of Chicken. That is quite something, not the compliment but that the Angus people would stand for that. There was a time using Angus and the C word in the same sentence would have been considered nothing short of blasphemy but now it is a compliment. In the past several years, I have used this space on more than one occasion to speak of the power of the Golden Arches and how they affect our business but this one is a shocker, even to me. Would the Angus people stand for their name to be used in describing a fowl (note the spelling) product? Would the chicken people allow their product to be la-
belled… as good as beef? The times are changing, and since last October Ronald McDonald is no long a part of the restaurant chain, he was released in short order when the Creepy Clown incident surfaced last October. Who would have thought they would can Ronald McDonald, but they did and most of us did not notice. Now they are using a beef breed name to describe a piece of chicken, the folks who run the empire established by Ray Kroc are not afraid of change, if it makes the till ring. That is an attitude that would do well for some people in our industry. I never thought I would hear it but McDonald’s is saying it, chicken so good it could be Angus.
Is Technology a Boon for Agriculture? It is hard to believe, but the genetic engineering technology that gave us herbicide resistant canola, corn and soybeans is yesterday’s science. The recombinant DNA techniques that gave us these new farming options have benefited agriculture – through increased yield, reduced input costs and reduction of tillage and summer fallow. The technology has also helped improve Canadian agriculture’s sustainability picture, by reducing fuel use, improving soil organic matter and decreasing erosion. But not everyone in society sees these benefits and the resistance to “GMO” by some consumers in the market place continues. So what about the next step in technology? I am a complete science nerd, so I get excited when I read about new gene editing techniques like CRISPR-Cas9. But not everyone shares this excitement. Should we embrace the advances in genetic science or stick to the older traditional methods of plant breeding? For me, the answer is an enthusiastic, “Yes, but.” First to the “yes” part of the answer. Unlike rDNA methods, the new gene editing techniques do not introduce DNA from outside of the plant. A new wheat variety
derived using the emerging technology will still be 100% wheat DNA. Gene editing will rapidly speed the plant breeding process. It can take ten to fifteen years or more to breed a new variety using traditional plant breeding methods. With the new processes, this will be cut back to five to seven years or even less. Gene editing technology will allow scientists to deliver drought tolerant crops, salt tolerant crops, fusarium resistant crops, resistance to rust, specific nutritional profiles and a likely few beneficial traits that we have not even contemplated. The technology is precise, only changing what needs to be adjusted leaving the beneficial characteristics in place. And the new breeding programs will deliver these traits in 1/2 the time, or less, of regular plant breeding. Being on the cutting edge of technology is a competitive advantage for Canadian farmers. We can’t afford to turn our back on advancements in science. The new technology will help agriculture adapt to a changing climate. This is how we will deliver new productive seeds to small landholders around the world who are looking for a path out of poverty. This is how we will feed a growing popu-
lation. The world really is on the edge of another green revolution. How could one be anything but excited? Now we get to the “but” part of the answer. Many consumers are wary of new science and technology, especially when that science is applied to food. We can’t blaze the new technology trail and ignore the consuming public. We need to acknowledge the concerns and bring consumers on the path with us. Accomplishing this goal is just as important as delivering new traits and varieties. There are two tracks we as an industry need to take simultaneously. First, we need scientists and farmers to come out of the fields and labs to explain why the new technology is good for consumers and our planet. We know how the science will benefit agriculture, but how will the new techniques benefit someone in downtown Toronto with no connection to the farm? We need to deliver real answers to this question before the activists convince the public that we are putting Frankenstein’s monster onto grocery shelves. But our actions should not be confined to trying to convince the consumers. There is a regulatory element as well. And here the Government of
Canada must be an active partner. Canada must lead the development of clear, science-based regulations that include the new gene editing techniques. Regulations based on fact and research, not fear, will facilitate the adoption of the new technology. Second, we need the Government of Canada to actively engage regulatory agencies in key markets to follow the Canadian example and implement a regulatory regime that allows rather than prevents the use of the new plant breeding techniques. This is work that needs to be accomplished before new varieties are planted. Working towards enabling regulations around the world should have a priority that is on par with negotiating the elimination of tariffs and restrictive quotas. The new technology is a potential boon, not just for farmers but also for consumers and a hungry world. But agriculture has work to do with consumers and governments around the globe if the possibilities of the science are to be realized. Cam Dahl is President of Cereals Canada.
August 25, 2017
A Little Bit of Work Goes a Long, Long Way August 1 marked the five-year anniversary since the Canadian Wheat Board (CWB) became an optional place for western Canadian farmers to sell their wheat through. At this point, marketing wheat just seems so normal to us, that it’s almost hard to believe it’s been only five years since we operated under the CWB’s monopoly. For all the hoopla and hysteria that surrounded the government’s decision to have marketing freedom with wheat and barley, the anniversary passed without much fanfare. A few stories were run online marking the day, with interviews done with farmers both pro CWB and pro open market, and analysts working on interpreting and selling wheat globally. For myself, I could never figure out what the big deal was from the CWB proponents or why they thought it would be the worst thing to dismantle or make wheat marketing open. From my perspective, we were marketing all the other crops grown on western Canadian farms in an open market, having to do price discovery and basis shopping, so I didn’t understand why doing that with another crop would really make a difference. The arguments around losing market share or a guaranteed quality really didn’t mean much to me, in my mind farmers will get paid for the quality they grow (for better or worse). Looking back on five years of post CWB wheat marketing, it’s become quite clear that there is more to marketing wheat than meets the eye. Although I don’t say it was better with the CWB, it certainly was easier. With the CWB, there was only one buyer, meaning you knew exactly what the grade and protein spreads were, and knew in advance when they would be changing. In the post CWB era, it is now on the farmer to call different elevators to find out what the grade and protein spreads are like, and make their contracting decisions based on that information. While there were ways of working the system before, it’s become a lot more work to sell wheat, however I would argue that the market is paying those who do their homework before selling. Regardless of your position on whether the CWB was the best way to market Canadian wheat, or that it should have been an open system a long time ago, it is the current reality that marketing wheat now falls under each individual farm. Doing your homework for marketing wheat will definitely pay off, as grade and protein spreads can vary by 70 cents/bu from elevator to elevator (based on a deal made last fall). This year, when grade is not likely to be as big an issue, it will be a little easier to sell wheat, but the free market always pays those willing to do the work. Brian Voth is the President of IntelliFARM Inc, working with farms to create customized grain marketing plans and carrying them out. For more information visit intellifarm.ca or call 204-324-3669.
August 25, 2017
Investments for Dairy Supply Management Innovation Before CETA A strong dairy industry and a competitive agricultural sector are vital to Canada’s prosperity. Budget 2017 recognizes that agriculture and agri-food is a key growth industry by supporting science, innovation and the overall competitiveness of the sector, to create better opportunities for farmers and Canadians. Lawrence MacAulay, Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food, announced the fulfillment of a Government of Canada commitment by unveiling details of two programs worth $350 million, aimed at dairy producers and processors. The programs will help the sector increase productivity and competitiveness and prepare for the implementation of the Canada – European Union Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA), which will establish greater access for European cheeses into Canada. “These two programs will assist Canada’s dairy producers and processors to prepare for CETA implementation, within a strong supply management system. The Government of Canada is proud to support a robust dairy industry that contributes to meeting growing demand for high-quality, sustainable food, while strengthening the middle class,” explained MacAulay. The two programs are the five-year, $250 million Dairy Farm Investment Program and the four-year, $100
million Dairy Processing Investment Fund. The new programs will enable producers to investment in such efficiencies as robotics and other automated systems that improve farm productivity. Similarly, for dairy processors, the new program will support investments in equipment and infrastructure, or provide access to specialized expertise to introduce new products or processes. The Dairy Farm Investment Program will provide up to $250,000 per licensed dairy farm to support cow milk producers in making upgrades to their barn technology and equipment, to improve productivity. The program will support large investments such as the adoption of robotic milkers and feeding systems and small investments such as herd management and barn operation equipment. The Dairy Processing Investment Fund will provide up to $10 million for each capital investment project, such as installing new equipment and infrastructure, or up to $250,000 for each project to access technical, managerial or business expertise. For example, the program could support a cheese maker’s investment in a new processing line that would allow them to increase their production or introduce new varieties of cheese to the market.
The AgriPost
Wanted: Some Help Telling Our Story By Les Kletke Diane Mauthe is the project manager and volunteer co-ordinator for the Amazing Agriculture adventure. A three day event that is held at Richardson International’s Kelburn Farm and the University of Manitoba’s Bruce D. Campbell Farm and Discovery Centre, from September 19 -21. Mauthe said the event operates with nearly 250 volunteers and she needs more. The volunteer staff stations act as hosts for the Grade 4 and 5 students that attend the event. “We provide scripts for the people that will be staffing the stations, they do not have to write their own material explaining the industry,” she said. “We also have a practice run the morning of the event so that they get more comfortable with the material. They don’t have to be experts in the industry.”
Stations include an opportunity to see honey production with live bees, crushing canola as well as grinding wheat into flour. Some stations provide information on larger issues of agriculture and provide a hands-on look at water moving through the eco system. Over the years, volunteers have been a big part of the event. “I am overwhelmed by the help we have gotten, both from corporations sending staff and individuals offering their time,” she said. “We just need a few more to make things work this year.” For those who may not feel comfortable telling the story of their industry, Mauthe has roles as hosts. “We have a lot of grade 4 and 5 students visiting each site each day,” she said. “And we need hosts to help with the logistics. To keep the groups moving from station to station and keep things on time.”
The event also includes the story of agriculture to the high-energy cookie auction next generation, you can get at lunch where students can more information on the Ag bid on cookies with money in the Classroom website they have earned at the vari- aitc.mb.ca. ous stations through their morning visits. To volunteer, the time commitment is between 8:30 am to 2 pm each day and while she needs volunteers for all three days, the program accepts volunteers who might only be able to help one day. If you’re interested and can spare a The Amazing Agriculture Adventure needs few hours to volunteers to help tell the story of our business. help tell the Training is included.
Clack Museum Open House
Elaine Black and Shelley Burt compete in the log-sawing contest at Clack Museum Open House near Oak River while Terry Radcliffe, Nancy Smith, and Brian Burt watch the event. Photo by Joan Airey
Research in Sow Milk Production Leads to Increased Piglet Production Recent research by Dr. Chantal Farmer, of Agriculture and Agri-food Canada’s (AAFC) has revealed that the amount of food a sow eats during pregnancy affects how much milk she will produce to feed her babies. Sows often do not produce enough milk to sustain the growth of all their piglets. This is important because piglet litters can be very
large. “Milk production is not affected later in life, even if the amount of feed is increased. Hyper-prolific sow lines are great for the industry but it is necessary to feed all those piglets, too,” explained Dr. Farmer. Dr. Farmer’s study has shown that ensuring piglets have enough milk is key to healthy growth. This can be a challenge for sows that have large litters. Today the
average sow produces 10 piglets as opposed to nine in 2014. The nutrition of a sow can greatly affect gestation and lactation. Improving hog feed management can help. It is suggested that a 300-sow farrow-to-finish operation selling 6,000 market pigs would need approximately 342 tonnes/year of feed. That is a lot of feed but even more may be needed
to guarantee that sows have enough milk to feed large litters. Sows are often fed more during lactation to increase the amount of milk they produce. The results showed that for ultimate milk production, feeding sows as much during pregnancy as during lactation can ensure sufficient milk production for large litters.
The AgriPost
Farm Deaths Show a Downward Trend By Harry Siemens From 1990 to 2012, there were 2,324 agriculture-related fatalities in Canada. An average of 101 deaths each year. During the first 12 years of the surveillance period (19902001) on average 116 deaths each year. During the last 11 years (2002-2012), the average number of fatalities dropped to 85 each year. Glen Blahey, the Health and Safety Specialist for the Canadian Agricultural Association, said every so often when he starts talking about safety whether one-on-one or on Twitter, someone will push back and say, “’Oh, regulations are terrible’, ‘That’s far too much to keep up with” and “I don’t have the time’, etcetera, etcetera. It was chewing away at me,” said Blahey. “I thought well, okay. How many farmers operate their farms just to get by, or don’t care about their efficiency, they don’t care about their yields, they don’t care about their productivity, they just farm to get by. How many producers are there like that in Canada?” He said there used to be some, but today there are none. Occupational Safety and Health legislation, safety and health standards are minimum performance criteria. “This is the minimum you should be doing to protect the people that work in your operation, including yourself,” Blahey said. “My question to the producers is if you’re going to farm and reach maximum productivity, maximum efficiency, why would you only invest a minimum effort to protect the people that are involved in your operation?” One farmer questioned him about the cost and making sure those writing the regulations and then getting the government to implement them must know the reason for doing so. “Right. Cost is a factor, but the bottom line on health and safety is making sure that you know what you’re working with and that the people that are working with that piece of equipment, that chemical, that animal, are properly trained and understand how to control the potential hazards to them. That’s the bottom line. Know what you’re doing,” Blahey said. “A joke sometimes used where a farmer is reluctant to give his $50,000 pickup truck to his son when he gets his driver’s license to let him take it to town by himself. But the farmer thinks nothing of putting his 14-year-old son on a $250,000 combine and leaving him alone in the field for several hours.” From his perspective as a safety expert, it’s a matter of
looking at it reasonably and responsibly. “What’s the point? Rain is coming, so you’re gonna bust your butt, and you’re going to try and get out there, and get the maximum amount of crop taken off because you don’t want a lower grade on it. If you’re dead, or if you’re in the hospital with broken bones and missing limbs, what value is that crop in the bin?” he asked. “Taking it to a more personal level, most farmers look at their children as the future of the farm, but yet, in many cases and we see that on a regular basis, where they sacrifice their children because it’s, ‘I want them to experience what farming is about.’” Blahey wants producers to stop and think for a minute. Practicing health and safety is not to make him happy. It’s not to make some regulator happy and keep them away. It’s not to keep some politician satisfied. It is to make sure that, at the end of the day, “You go home to your family in one piece, and all your family sits at the dinner table.” Overall, across Canada, there is a downward trend regarding fatalities in the agricultural sector. One observation is that injuries and death trends over the last ten years in agriculture have the greatest rate of reduction of any industry with work related injuries. “What lesson can other industries learn from agriculture,” said Blahey. “The Ag industry is finally starting to talk about it. They’re talking about that elephant in the room, and they’re learning about it, and they’re using good business risk management practices, to not only improve their productivity and efficiency, but they’re using business risk management practices for protecting the people that are working in their industry.” He went on to say, that it is a matter of balance. “I was looking at some stats the other day, concerning agricultural fatalities, and every so often in a given year, you see this big peak where the number goes up,” he said. “My comment every time is when you see a spike; I bet you that was a very wet fall. When you go back and take a look at the weather records, there’s a distinct correlation between injuries, serious injuries and weather conditions.”
August 25, 2017
New Activities Planned for Open Farm Day
Fioan Jochum is waiting for visitors on Open Farm Day
By Les Kletke Open Farm Day happens on Sunday September 17, and event co-ordinator Wendy Bulloch said there is many new activities with the organization and the farms that are opening their doors for the event. “I am so pleased to be working with these farms that put in all the work and incur considerable expense to be a part of Open Farm Day,” she said. Some farms that do not have visitors regularly find it necessary to purchase liability insurance for visitors that will be coming to the farm. The event has 47 farms taking part in the festival up
from 44 last year. “We had some farms take a year off and they are back this year,” she said. “It is a tremendous amount of work and sometimes a wedding or birth of a new family member makes it difficult to put the time in so a farm takes a year off, we understand that and are happy to have them back.” Bulloch and her counterpart in the eastern part of the province Kim Shukla, visit all the farms involved and prepare a website and facebook page for visitors so they can plan their activities on September 17. “The website this year will allow people to see the entire map
and then key in on the region they will visit and print that portion,” said Bulloch. “We found last year, the map got too big for people to print and that caused some problems, so we have remedied that.” She and Shukla are also posting pictures to the Manitoba Open Farm Day Facebook page so visitors can see what is currently going on at the farm. Bullock said that not only are their new farms this year but organizations have picked up the cause and
are making a special effort to host visitors on the day. “We have the Lundar Ag Society, the Beef and Forage Initiatives as well as the Farmery Brewery that are a part of the program this year,” she said. One organization that is listed for the first time and not exactly a farm, but certainly deserves a visit is the 4-H Museum in Roland. Looking for something to do on September 17, check out an open farm near you at openfarmday.com.
August 25, 2017
KAP Travels North to Meet Farmer Members KAP officials, including President Dan Mazier, traveled to the northernmost growing regions of Manitoba recently. Their stops included The Pas, Swan River, Dauphin and Arborg. In The Pas, KAP met with farmers to learn about their water management challenges. According to local officials, 95 per cent of acres were either unseeded or lost due to excess moisture. “This has been the third challenging year in a row for farmers in The Pas,” said Mazier. “Local members told me that while they’re used to dealing with difficult growing conditions, the spring rainfall this year was just too much to get the crop in. Coupled with the lost marketing opportunities through the Port of Churchill, we need to seriously look at the tools we have to support farmers in northern Manitoba.” In Arborg, KAP met with farmers on the Bifrost Agricultural Sustainability Initiative Cooperative, a grassroots initiative focused on water management and drainage infrastructure maintenance in the RM of Bifrost-Riverton. “Across Manitoba, farmers are telling me that we need less complicated regulations paired with provincial and municipal drain maintenance programs if we are going to be able to prevent flooding on farms and create healthier ecological systems,” said Mazier. “The community leaders and farmers involved in BASIC are showing leadership in developing a model that we may want to see expanded to other watersheds.” Additionally, KAP officials visited hemp and quinoa producers in Dauphin, and held meetings with local KAP district committee members. District committees make up the foundation of KAP’s grassroots democratic structure. They meet on a regular basis so that producers can discuss local issues. The policies that KAP advocates for stem from these district meetings.
The AgriPost
When Times Are Tough is Not the Time to Cut Production By Harry Siemens Earlier this year, Andrew Dickson, General Manager of Manitoba Pork cautioned hog farmers it would be very critical how hog producers tend to both ends of their business, inputs, sales, and management from sow to finish, depending at when they sell their pigs. Dickson said producers must make sure they have a margin so they can service the fixed costs, which is about 93 percent of the pig. Dr. John Carr an international livestock consultant and veterinarian who took in that presentation said when the outlook for prices is not great then, sometimes the old thinking of cutting back production sets in. “The pig is a classic boom and bust industry. In my experience whatever the cycle is in Canada, five to seven years, for every five to seven years we’ll make a loss, every five to seven years we’ll
make a profit,” said Carr. “What I’ve learned over the years is to just farm. If I just farm my farm then over ten years I will be profitable. There are times when I might be less profitable none of us wants to make a loss.” However, producers need to consider what they mean by the word, loss he explained. “I mean you could argue, well I’ve lost $4 a pig. So then, one could say, well if I lost $4 a pig maybe that pig shouldn’t have been there. Then think about it, if that pig wasn’t there, the only saving you’ve had is a saving on feed. That’s 65 per cent. But what about the other 35 per cent? The lights are still on. The water is still flowing; employees are working. The vet is still taking his cut for doing consulting work.” Dr. Carr said a producer would still have to pay 35 per cent of that cost. So when one looks at the costs and the profit concept he encourages clients to look at the margin over feed “If you go to a more English system, which I’m going to be more
familiar with, and we have the same boom and bust, and at the moment we’re breaking even a bit,” he said. He mentioned Brexit for the British hog producer. Politics play an enormous role as well as currency with the value of the pound versus the euro, the value of the Canadian dollar versus the American dollar. “So a lot of influences outside of anything that we can affect, that will have a significant impact on whether we make a profit or loss. But you need to look at the whole cost. In England, we probably make a profit on the last eight pigs sold. So we have ten farrowing crates, and we sell 100 pigs. If I only make a profit on the last eight pigs sold, the first 92 pigs are there to cover all the costs. It’s not that you make a profit on every pig. You’re not going to lose money on every pig. The first pigs were never going to make money anyway. If I have ten farrowing crates and make money only on the last eight pigs? Well if a farrowing crate is empty I always lose money
because I’ve not covered all the costs,” he explained. The industry invariably, when the price is going to be low, many people will cut back on their breeding. “And what I do, is I increase my breeding. You’ve got to make sure the farrowing crate is full. You’ve got to make sure the farm is full. And don’t look at it as , I will lose two or three dollars per pig. You will lose money on the last pig sold. Now if you can get more efficient on those last eight pigs, well maybe you’ll break even,” said Dr. Carr. “But if you don’t have them you’ve got no choice. You’re going to make the loss. And what you can’t do with modern pig production, is you can’t add more pigs next week because where do you quickly get the other crate.” He would encourage, while watching the money side, to make sure the farm is full. “I think this concept of margin over feed and, which of the pigs have made a profit, it’s an interesting idea,” he said.
The AgriPost
August 25, 2017
A Good Day on the Dairy Farm Starts with a Drink of Water A dairy producer that milks about 100 cows in a tie-stall barn told me that one day in early August of 2004 was one of the worst days of his life. It started like any other early morning, but as he approached the barn, he could hear cows bellowing. When he and his daughter went to milk them, several cows struggled as they put the milk machines on. During the morning, an odd thing caught his eye; none of the water bowls were filled. His barn had no running water. At the end of the morning, milking, milk production dropped between almost 5 liters per cow. Without its first drink of water in the morning, even this producer’s best dairy cow did not milk well. Given that water makes up at least 65% of the mature dairy cow’s body and milk is nearly 90% water, nobody should disagree that high quality water is
the foundation of health and milk production on the dairy farm. It is estimated that a lactating dairy cow drinks approximately 4 litres of water for every 1 kilo of dry matter intake of feed. For example, a 680-kg dairy cow in mid-lactation; eating 22 kg dry feed, might drink about 90 litres of water per day, while an early lactation cow; eating 27 kg dry feed, should drink over 100 litres. A comparable cow in a faraway dry group, eating 14 kg dry feed will need 50 litres of water, daily. These water requirements for dairy cows are ballpark figures. They usually apply during weather conditions when a dairy cow is the most comfortable. As the temperature/humidex increase and eventually exceed the cow’s comfort zone, she may become heat-stressed, which triggers panting and sweating. These internal mechanisms
and her general desire for water can increase her overall water consumption by more than 50% as she struggles to remain cool. Regardless of the weather conditions, the volume of water that is finally provided to dairy cows must be clean, good tasting and free of dissolved or suspended contaminants. Depending on contamination type and its level in the water, cattle can have adverse reactions that range from mild (slight diarrhea), to moderate (lower feed digestibility) to severe (death due to toxicity). That is why that I never overlook the importance of good clean water and its link to good health and milk performance on the dairy farm. My point: many dairy farms across the prairies have salty water (greater than 3,000 mg/ml) as their sole source of livestock drinking water. It is usu-
ally non-life threatening to dairy cows, but still can cause diarrhea, which in turn increase the rate of feed going through their gut. Ultimately, less essential nutrients are digested and absorbed. As a result, otherwise good milk production can be lost. Such a case of high salinity can be debilitating to the lactating dairy cows, but is not the sole reason behind poor quality water. Here is an outline of parameters (including salinity) that determine water quality for dairy cattle: - Total Dissolved Solids (TDS): TDS provides an overall evaluation of water quality in a single index. Salinity might make up a large part of TDS. TDS of less than 3,000 mg/ml is considered safe for mature dairy cattle. - Water pH: Water should fall within a pH of 6.5 – 8.5 for cattle. Values outside these limits reduce feed
intakes and interfere with feed digestion. - Mineral concentrations: High concentrations of sulphates, and trace minerals such as copper and iron are suspect to either bind nutrients or compete with them for absorption sites in the gut, thereby increasing essential nutrient requirements. High levels of some minerals such as iron makes water taste bad and is a nutrient for some bacteria. - Bacteria contamination: All water is contaminated with bacteria, therefore the amount and type of bacteria fed to dairy cattle should be known. Pathogenic E. Coli (causes disease), coliform bacteria (including fecal) and salmonella counts should be zero. The corrective action necessary to solve each one of above situations is different and sometimes often takes time to find the root cause of the problem. That is why; I am a big believer
in taking water-samples and getting them analyzed. The proper sample bottles and procedures can be obtained at the provincial agriculture office or commercial laboratory that performed water quality tests. Once lab analyses are completed, I often review them, so specific action is taken, where water contaminants are found at high levels. In the above story of the dairy producer without any water in his dairy barn, a water sample most likely wouldn’t help. As I understood the situation, he needed a new water pump for dairy barn and when it was installed, the cows rebounded in milk production. This is a good testimonial that there is no substitute for clean drinking water. It supports well-balanced and nutritious diets that are consumed by lactating dairy cows in order to produce high volumes of milk.
10
The AgriPost
August 25, 2017
Take Care of Your Bulls After the Breeding Season
By Peter Vitti
This past spring, a friend of mine who runs about 300 beef cows spent about $60k on a select amount of crossbred red angus yearlings and 2 year-olds. He had good luck with them during this summer’s breeding season, but since then, he has literarily forgotten about them (and the
rest of his bulls) for the next 9 - 10 months. Unfortunately, I have met many people that do the same thing with their bulls. In light of my concern, a good feed program is essential for beef bulls in the postbreeding season. It helps keep them healthy, in good shape and fertile, so they can get the cowherd in calf during the
next breeding season. Whether they remain on pasture or put into dry lot, I initially suggest that all postbreeding bulls are segregated into three different feeding groups, namely, yearlings, two-year olds and older bulls. Next, producers should conduct a walk-through and give a gross-physical exam on each bull from nose to tail. Thus, create a checklist for points of good sight (signs of injury or disease- pinkeye), mouth/nose and breathing, overall body conformation, legs and hooves condition, genitals and even a swatting tail. It’s surprising what can be revealed upon one’s own bull herd walkthrough. For example, I knew one producer that followed a similar protocol and found out two problems in 15 breeding bulls. One bull had a broken penis and another one had testicular abscesses. Another producer that I knew discovered several cases of early-stage footrot. Yet another found a bull with a broken tail that explained its partial paralysis on pasture. While such stories are dramatic and isolated cases, I expect that most beef producers will likely observe a modest loss of body condition/bodyweight on all their working bulls. It’s usually in the ballpark of about 100 - 150 kg by the end of the breeding season. Our feeding program should then be designed to either maintain or recover optimum BCS by the time bulls are turned out with the cows, despite being 3/4 of a year away. That’s because beef bulls are the most sexually active and fertile (highest sperm count and viability) when they have a body condition score of 3.0 to 3.5 (re: on a scale of 1= emaciated to 5 = obese) at the start of the breeding season. In contrast, skinny bulls with a BCS lower than 2.5 often have lower libido and sperm production. Second, we should also keep in mind that yearling bulls returning as two-year olds need to achieve about 75% of their mature bodyweight at the same later date. Most of the post-breeding bull feeding programs that I set up parallel these twin goals and are quite simple. They are first based upon the specific energy and protein nutrient requirements of returning yearlings (as two-year olds): 55 - 65% TDN and 13 - 14% protein and older bulls: 55 60% TDN and 11 - 12% protein, which encompass three
upcoming time periods of late-summer to fall, overwintering and 60-day pre-breeding phase. Depending upon their existing body condition at the end of their first breeding season, a diet for post-breeding yearlings may consist mostly of mixed-quality pasture or freechoice forages supplemented with a few kilos of grain or molasses blocks (pasture) for growth. More mature bulls (3 years old and older) that come out of the breeding season in fairly good shape can be maintained on an all roughage diet of medium to good quality pasture or hay. Thin bulls should be fed some grain in order to achieve an optimum 3.0 to 3.5 BCS by the next breeding season. Some more grain in addition to meet recovery BCS needs will likely need to be fed during the coldest months of the winter. Producers should also purchase a well-balanced commercial mineral-vitamin product fed at 70 - 100 g (3 - 4 oz) per head, daily, which are often called, “Breeder minerals”. It should contain adequate levels of macro-minerals such as calcium, and phosphorus that compliment the rest of the diet; namely the above forages and grains fed to bulls. Furthermore, trace minerals such as copper and zinc, both of which have long been known to be essential for superior bull fertility (involved in sperm production and liveability) and immunity against disease should be formulated into a bull mineral at relative high levels and be assured of a high degree of bioavailability. Selenium should also be provided at 3 mg/hd/d as well as recommended levels of vitamins A, D, and high vitamin E (i.e.: +1000 iu/hd/d). Finally, salt and a good source of fresh clean water should round out the bull diet. With this feeding care given to good fertile bulls during the long post-breeding season, we really give them, the necessary tool to recover from one successful breeding season and prepare for another one, next year. While it’ a shame that some people (like my 300cowherd friend) fail to realize its importance, they might change their mind, once they see their neighbours whom take care of their post-breeding bulls - have a cowherd with higher conception rates, more saleable calves and finally a higher revenue compared to their own.
The AgriPost
August 25, 2017
11
Some Rain Could Benefit Later Crop Harvests By Les Kletke Kevin Friesen said it is wait and see for the rest of his crop especially now that it is getting late for moisture to do any good. Friesen farms at Oak Lake and has completed his cereal harvest, which he rated at “about average”. He farms 1,500 acres and his break down in acres is typical for many farmers in the province. “I switched some of my cereal acres to oats this year because the price was strong in the spring,” he said. “That seemed to work out all right, the crop was early enough that the earlier moisture carried it through, but things got pretty dry here through the summer.” He said that his oat yield was good but far from bumper and he credits the lack of moisture for the drop. His spring wheat yield was average and again a shut down in moisture is to blame. He did switch a considerable amount of his acres to soybeans. “Like everyone else in the province, I jumped on the soybean bandwagon,” he said. “They seem to be holding on so far but we don’t have enough experience with
the crop to know what they will do.” He is doubtful that rain would help much at this time. The last week of August may increase yield although he would still welcome rain for whatever benefit it might do for the beans and sunflowers. Friesen did not make the switch to corn as many producers in the province did and stayed with a crop he has experience with instead. “We have had sunflowers for a number of years and I am set up for harvest so I stayed with them, they are able to handle the dry conditions better than any other crop we grow,” he said. The crop has a long way to go to maturity but he is happy with the stand and the crop came into bloom early enough to mature. “You never want to be combing in November but that does happen with the sunflowers,” he said. “The return has justified it in the past but we will have to wait and see this year. Conditions have been dry even for them.” He does not have any cattle but said producers in the area are concerned about their feedstocks and a rain could still prove beneficial for them.
Feed Stocks Adequate for Most By Les Kletke Normally by this time of year, Peter Thiessen would be looking for growth that would provide his third cut of hay and that means extra money. “Not this year,” said the Grunthal area producer. “We are going to have enough for ourselves and hopefully the stand comes back to good shape so we have a good start for next year.” Thiessen is fortunate that he had adequate moisture in spring and that got his hayland off to a good start. Nature’s water supply has dried up since July and there is no additional growth for a third crop, the one that he sells for extra income. “We look at that as a bonus but it is not going to be there this year,” he said. His beef herd is assured adequate feed for the year with what he has put up but he will have to manage it carefully. When asked if other producers are in a similar position he said most have enough feed. “Lots of guys have gone to silage and some of the early stuff was good but it will depend on the corn silage and that looks good,” he said. “So there should not be a problem.
He said cutting corn silage will happen soon and the weather has been good for corn growth. “It got off to a slow start with the cool spring, but things came along in late July and August and we should have a normal tonnage out there,” said Thiessen. The dry weather did allow Thiessen to put his feed up in good condition. “We usually struggle with some rainy weather but not this year, we were able to get the hay up in excellent condition and that quality helps a lot.” Thiessen has no plans to change his cow numbers based on market conditions and feed availability. He feeds 400 cows. “We are set up for that size operation and that is what we can handle so we will stay right around there,” he said. “The market is not telling us to expand or sell cows so we will keep on doing what we are doing.” He has a primarily Angus herd that he is breeding to a variety of bulls. “We have not gone the purebred route and have had good results with an Angus cross on our commercial herd, so that is what we will continue to do.”
12
August 25, 2017
The AgriPost
The AgriPost
August 25, 2017
21
Have a Safe Harvest!
Manitoba Youth Beef Round-Up 2017
By Joan Airey Manitoba Youth Beef Round-Up celebrated its 10th anniversary from August 4 - 6 in Neepawa. The event is run volunteers headed by Chairperson Lois McRae. Numerous dedicated cattle people spend countless hours working to make it a roaring success. The volunteers feel the show exemplifies the importance of youth in agriculture and strives to present innovative opportunities that promote and educate future cattleman dedicated to the cattle business. Over seventy young people participated in the event bringing with them seventy-eight head of cattle. Friday morning started with a presentation from Liz Carey on cattle handling. That afternoon they had a chance to use the skills they learned in the morning from the hands on cattle sorting demonstration. On Saturday, the juniors were busy with public speaking, and individual judging. In the afternoon, the juniors took part in team judging, team fitting and stockman’s knowledge competition. Blair McRae taught the Pee Wee’s how to make a rope halter and how to tie up their calves so they would not get loose. Saturday evening wrapped up with the Cook-Off competition and slip n’slide to cool off for the day. Sunday was show
day with judges Levi Jackson from Saskatchewan and Jared Glasman from Russell. Kolton McIntosh was announcer. Participates had showmanship classes in the morning and confirmation classes in the afternoon. The day was rounded off with the parade of champions and after a delicious beef supper, awards were presented. The 2017 Bob Gordon Memorial Overall Stockman’s Knowledge Award was presented to Samantha Rimke. The 2017 Round-Up Scholarships were $1,000 to Naomi Best and $500 went to Levi Rimke and Katelyn Davey. The 2017 Herdsman Award was won by the Falconer Family. The 2017 All Star Team was awarded to Nolan Glover, Sam DeRocquigny, Tanner Harms and Aklen Abey. “It was an awesome educational weekend full of fun and I’d definitely recommend it to young people interested in the cattle industry,” said Alice Rooke, a participate from Alexander. Round-Up 2017 Committee members were Lois McRae (Chairperson), Rilla and Travis Hunter, Blair McRae, Andrea Bertholet, Ken Williams, Albert, Michelle and Samantha Rimke, Candice Johnson, Laura Horner, Melissa McRae, Gracie, Katie and Melissa Falconer, Justin Kristjansson, Adrianne Vandersluis, Carson Rogers, Nanette Glover, Jackie Cavers, and Wenda and Naomi Best. If you would like to see more information and photographs of Round-Up they have a Facebook page with lots of excellent photographs taken by Melissa McRae.
Levi Best, Dezarae Bodnar, Harleigh Carlson, Samuel Harrison, and Lukas Cavers are working on their animal getting it ready for the team grooming class.
Twelve happy Pee Wee’s show off the halters they made just before they learned how to tie them up so their calves would not get loose.
22
August 25, 2017
The AgriPost
The AgriPost
U of M Research to Help Manitoba Dairy Industry The governments of Canada and Manitoba are partnering with more than $1.4 million to expand scientific research capacity at the University of Manitoba’s Glenlea Research Station dairy barn. “Our government understands the key importance of science and food research to keep our agricultural sector on the cutting edge,” said Federal Agriculture Minister Lawrence MacAulay. “This investment will contribute to a robust Canadian dairy industry and help meet growing demand for high-quality, sustainable food, while strengthening the middle class.” “The renovations and equipment upgrades being made at Glenlea Research Station will allow the university to continue its important research in the area of animal nutrition, health and welfare,” said Manitoba Agriculture Minister Ralph Eichler. “We are proud to be a partner in this investment, which will enable faculty and students to further their understanding of the dairy industry while contributing to the sustainability and advancement of Manitoba’s livestock sector.” Funding will allow the University of Manitoba to expand its dairy facility through a repurposed swine barn and install a new automated milking system, free stalls for dairy cattle, dedicated spaces for calves, milk collection tanks, aboveground manure storage, new flooring and related laboratory equipment. The ministers noted the new equipment will ensure the dairy research facilities meet industry standards and support the growth of valueadded dairy processing in Manitoba. The project is expected to go to tender later this year. “This investment enhances our researchers’ ability to develop holistic practices that will produce safe, affordable and healthy food for Canadians. It will also provide students with an outstanding hands-on learning experience in exceptional
facilities,” said Digvir Jayas, distinguished Professor and Vice-President (research and international) at the University of Manitoba. “Supporting our world-class Glenlea Research Station ensures University of Manitoba researchers can continue their work that is relevant to producers, consumers, and the economy. It’s a great investment and we welcome the public to come and visit the station and learn more about what goes on at it.” The Dairy Farmers of Manitoba (DFM) is also making a substantial investment in the barn renovation project. “Dairy Farmers of Manitoba is proud to invest in the renovation of the Glenlea Research Station dairy barn, to further expand our support of dairy scientific research in Manitoba,” said Henry Holtmann, Vice-Chair, DFM. “We have long understood the value of investing in research to advance our industry by continually providing milk of the highest quality, excellence in animal care, and improving environmental stewardship.” The dairy industry in Manitoba generates over $250 million in farm gate revenues.
August 25, 2017
23
Tractor Pride Inspires Trek Expansion By Les Kletke Cornie Klassen has had several 806 International tractors but he favours the one he has now over the others. “It is in such good shape,” said Klassen. “The steering is nice and tight everything about it down the sheet metal on the sides is just in real good shape.” Klassen a retired fertilizer dealer from Crystal City credits the original owner with taking good care of it. He bought the tractor from the original owner who had bought it to replace a 706. “That [706] was an earlier model and a bit smaller, the 806 came out and was replaced by the 856 and then the 1206 series,” said Klassen. He knows because he has had one of each. When he was in the fertilizer business, he had a few extra tractors to shuttle anhydrous tanks around the yard. “They said someday I would have a tank for every tractor and by the end I came close.” His current inventory is just over 100 tractors. He holds no favourite on colour. “I am not prejudice,” he said. “I think they are all a part of history. They may be deteriorating now but I think of the pride the farmer had driving that tractor home, how
Cornie Klassen with his 806 International. The tractor is rated very collectable despite being produced at the end of the production run.
many cream checks or grain checks he had committed to owning that tractor, and colour did not matter. That was the best tractor he had.” International produced over 8,000 of the 806s from 1963 to 1967, and at the end of the run was under pressure to provide dealers with a lower priced tractor to compete with the 4000 offered by John Deere dealers. “The 806 was produced without the TA [tongue amplifier] and those have become very collectable,” said Klassen. Klassen has taken part in several of the Winkler Tractor Treks through the Villages and at this year’s event asked organizer Armin Ens to move it west. “He suggested we organize our
The command centre of the 806 International was operator friendly.
own trek and that is what is planned for next year,” said Klassen. The Hills and Valley Tractor Trek with take drivers through the Pembina Valley from Manitou to Crystal City on July 7. It will follow a similar format to events in Steinbach and Winkler
with proceeds going to Eden Mental Health facility but it is hoped to attract tractors from the western part of the province. “It will also attract some from the eastern part of the province who want to drive through the Valley,” said Klassen.
24
August 25, 2017
The AgriPost
Nuffield Announces the 2018 Scholars
By Les Kletke Nuffield Canada has announced its scholars for 2018 and the group is as diverse as the country’s agriculture. Shelley Spruit is from Mountain, Ontario and is a partner in Against the Grain Farms where she focuses on restoration of ancient grains to produce value added products and whole grain flour. She has a keen interest in raising the awareness of locally sourced products especially grains. Her primary focus will be on how it is implemented in other countries. Josh Coulton is from Port Williams, Ontario and owns Taproot Farms, which has grain, fruit, and vegetable and livestock divisions. He is interested in flax production for linen processing into high quality clothing. He also plans to explore the use of waste materials from long line processing. Elaine Crane is the General Manager of the Maritime Beef Council and from Murray Siding, Nova Scotia. She will focus her studies on which beef attributes are most important to consumers and what they are willing to pay for as well as how producers can implement these attributes to leverage opportunities in consumer marketing. Gavin Robertson is the coordinator of the Niagara College Teaching Winery. He will examine the curriculum and content of a range of international viticulture programs as well as seeking input from industry stakeholders and winery operators.
The scholars are preparing for their international travels and will be a part of a study group in the Netherlands in March of 2018. There they will meet other Nuffield Scholars from around the world at a weeklong conference focusing on global agriculture and business topics. In making the announcement Kevin Meadows Chairman of Nuffield Canada said, “Their international experiences over the next two years will provide opportunities and perspective that will add value to their farms and Canadian Agriculture.” Closer to home Manitoba Nuffield Scholars met in Portage la Prairie earlier in the summer with the intent of strengthening the bonds between scholars in the province and sharing the information they have gained from their study and what it had meant to their farming operation upon returning home. Wally Doerkson of Steinbach was instrumental in bringing about the meeting and termed it a success. “We
have not done anything like this before so it was good to get as many of the scholars as possible together and discuss what we had gained and how we could raise the profile of the program,” said Doerkson. Nuffield Scholarships are available to anyone between the ages of 25 and 45 who is involved actively in farming, agi-forestry or some other agricultural related industry. Scholars come from working on farms, in greenhouses, a winery, feed supplement, fertilizer, dairying or dairy processing business, teaching agriculture and in any capacity of primary production. Scholars gain access to the world’s best in food and farming, achieve personal development through travel and study and the program delivers long-term benefits to Canadian farmers and growers, and to the industry as a whole. Nuffield Canada will soon be accepting application for the 2019 Scholars and those interested can get more information from their website at nuffiled.ca.
Manitoba Nuffield Scholars gathered in Portage la Prairie earlier this spring to discuss the impacts the program had on their farms.
Calculate Combine Losses During Harvest Crop producers are being encouraged to make an important calculation to ensure they are maximizing their returns this harvest season. Joel McDonald, Program Manager of Agricultural Development Services at Prairie Agricultural Machinery Institute (PAMI), said knowing the rate of combine loss, the amount of crop that ends up on the ground after a pass is key to making well thought out economic decisions about harvest. “When you ask how much loss is acceptable, how many bushels per acre or what percentage of yield, there is no wrong amount,” said McDonald. “The error comes if you don’t know how much you’re losing or haven’t considered it.”
The problem is that checking for loss takes time and effort. “The best way to check for loss is to disengage the chopper and spreader to drop the residue in a windrow, and then drop or throw a loss pan under the combine while harvesting at a steady rate. Then, the operator or a helper needs to separate the dust, chaff and straw from the grain in the loss pan.” The final step is to do a calculation to determine the bushels per acre, said McDonald. Multiplying the grain loss rate by total acres and commodity price could result in significant numbers. “It’s possible to lose over five bushels an acre so I recommend that you check for loss as you get into each crop each year. I’ve done these calculations and
often the answer is a simple adjustment or slowing down.” It is well documented that higher speeds result in higher loss, said McDonald, but going faster also means covering more acres per hour and fewer days to completion. Only by knowing the loss rate can a producer calculate, for example, whether it makes financial sense to slow down, recover more crop and invest that saving in an additional combine. “That’s where the economic decision comes in.” McDonald said critical decisions about fleet operations are sometimes made by feel or tradition and not based on data. “A producer can make $20,000 from a good marketing decision but he could also make $20,000 from a good combining decision.”
The AgriPost
Soura-Horan Farms Named Commercial Charolais Breeders of the Year By Joan Airey Martin, Deona, and Amy Horan, owners of SouraHoran Farms near Bowsman, Manitoba were recently named Commercial Charolais Breeders of the Year at the annual Manitoba Charolais Pen Show and AGM in Dauphin. “In 1973 my father-in-law Leland Soura bought his first registered Charolais bull. Deona and I began purchasing cows in 1998 and farmed with Leland and Russell until 2008 when we took over the farming operation. We continued to purchase Charolais bulls and run a commercial Charolais herd. Deona’s brother Russell farmed until 2008 and had a herd of 80 cows with a Charolais influence when we took over the operation. We continued to purchase Charolais bulls and run a Charolais commercial herd of cows. We will be calving out approximately 430 and 30 cows this winter of which three hundred are Charolais and the rest are percentage Charolais cross cows. We normally wean our calves in October and background them until January or February. Our calves are sold through WD Livestock in Roblin and are sent to a feedlot in Ontario. We have
marketed them this way for two years and the same feeder is calling for our calves’ again,” said Martin Horan. Martin’s wife is office manager for Doaks Bulk Fuels in Swan River three days a week and the rest of the time she can be found working on the farm either running equipment or working with cattle. “Our daughter Amy farms with us full-time and has forty-five Charolais cows of her own. She owns some pasture and rents some grain land. Since 1998 we have had a meat goat operation. Around 2004 we were
up to 500 does kidding but have since scaled back to a herd of approximately 75 does. Our kids are marketed into Alberta for meat with some going to various producers as breeding stock,” said Horan. The Horan family also crop approximately 1,800 acres of canola, wheat, barley, oats and soybeans. “We are presently running 20 Purebred Charolais bulls with our cows. Charolais bulls mean performance for us, which means more pounds at weaning which means dollars in our pocket,” said Horan.
Martin, Deona and Amy Horan of Soura-Horan Farms, Bowsman, Manitoba receiving the Commercial Breeder of the Year award at the MCA AGM in Dauphin from Shawn Airey. Photo by Tanya Airey
MWBGA Urges Farmers to Deliver What they Declare to Keep Markets Open The Manitoba Wheat and Barley Growers Association (MWBGA) would like to remind farmers to properly declare the commodity they are delivering in order to protect Canada’s domestic and export markets. Farmers are encouraged to refer to the Keep it Clean online resources and Cereal Canada’s Keep it Clean Cereals Campaign by going to keepingitclean.ca. “We are raising awareness of these resources as the harvest season approaches to ensure individual producers are safeguarded, and that the wheat and barley grown in Manitoba will meet all end-user requirements, domestically and internationally,” said Fred Greig, MWBGA Chair. In Cereal Canada’s Keep
It Clean Cereals Campaign, glyphosate is listed as a “Special Consideration.” If applying glyphosate at the pre-harvest timing, farmers are reminded to strictly follow label instructions that were developed through Canada’s science-based regulatory process. Applying earlier than label recommendations, or too close to harvest, can impact pesticide residue levels, crop yield or crop quality. Farmers should also contact malt barley buyers prior to application to confirm acceptance. “We also encourage farmers to talk with their grain buyers to know the requirements for market acceptance and to obtain details for the “Declaration of Eligibility for Delivery” form,” said Robert Misko, MWBGA Vice-Chair.
New for the 2017/18 crop year, the Declaration of Eligibility for Delivery form will ask farmers to declare if deliveries of wheat, durum, barley as well as flax made by themselves or on their behalf have not been treated pre-harvest with any product containing saflufenacil, including the product known as “Heat LQ.” The application of saflufenacil is registered for use in Canada by Health Canada’s Pest Management Regulatory Agency (PMRA) as per its label, including the pre-harvest timing at the recommended rate and crop staging. However, maximum residue limits (MRLs) have not been established in certain export markets for wheat, durum wheat, barley and flax.
August 25, 2017
25
26
August 25, 2017
The AgriPost
The AgriPost
Canadians Support Supply Management – Until They Don’t The majority of Canadians support supply management and a dairy price support system, yet some may put it on the table to see what can be gained in exchange, according to a 1,000 person 4 day on-line poll conducted by NRG Research Group for the Canada West Foundation. “Even though Canadians may be individually willing to pay more for milk and subsidize dairy farmers, when put into the context of what’s at stake in the larger NAFTA relationship, with over $2 billion a day in trade crossing the border and millions of jobs at risk, keeping supply management is no longer an affordable luxury,” said Carlo Dade, Director of the Trade & Investment Centre with the Canada West Foundation based in Calgary. Rather than an economically viable method of not
subsidising farmers and producers, Canada’s supply management draws fire from US state and federal politicians and most recently including President Donald Trump. They see it as an unfair subsidy that protects Canadian producers from less expensive and over abundant US dairy products. In Canada, people have historically shown support for the dairy processing industry as well as Canada’s quota and price support system. According to a NRG/Canada West Foundation poll conducted in advance of the NAFTA talks support may only go so far. The poll was conducted from May 11 to May 14; from a provincially representative Canada-wide study of 1,000 online respondents was purchased from Research Now. According to the on-line Poll, a majority of 56 per
cent favour keeping the current system including higher prices compared to 44 per cent who somewhat or fully favour abolishing the current system in exchange for cheaper milk. When asked about continued support even though Canada cannot sell dairy products to markets in the US, China and Mexico the majority, at 62% still responded as supporting the supply management system. However, these numbers drop to 18% continuing their support, with no change at any cost to supply management after being asked what the Canadian position regarding dairy in NAFTA negotiations should be if it means jeopardizing market access. The breakdown of the 67 percent of all respondents open to making some concessions includes 36 per cent in favour of entering
NAFTA negotiations with dairy on offer to see what the Americans will offer in return, and 22 per cent who suggest if only necessary and only at the last minute. Only nine per cent of respondents were prepared to offer to end supply management before negotiations even begin and 15% did not know. “For Canadians and the Federal government, it’s not just a black and white question of ‘Do you keep supply management or not?’” said Andrew Enns, President of NRG Research Group. “Canadians’ opinions on dairy industry supply management are nuanced. But this only comes through when people are asked questions which take into account the context of the actual trade negotiation Canadian officials will likely find themselves in.”
Greenhouse Effect Helps Dry Beans Mature Early in Alberta By Harry Siemens The edible bean harvest is underway in Alberta albeit almost two weeks earlier than normal according to a report by the president of Dry Bean World Inc. Alvin Klassen of Winkler, said dry beans grown in Alberta in 2017 experienced a unique growing season. Seeding began in early May ahead of the average planting time into warm soil. With the aid of irrigation, growers could control the moisture and the seed germinated quickly. “With hot dry weather the story of southern Alberta and with minimal amounts of rainfall growers were able to control the water giving the beans exactly what they needed,” said Klassen. While plenty of sunshine and heat in June and July there was an abundance of smoke from forest fires in the air. This has an interesting effect on plants, as there is carbon dioxide in the air while the heavier than normal smoke diffused the sunlight.
“The smoky air has continued throughout a good portion of the growing season and also helps to hold humidity creating a greenhouse effect. Throughout the flowering period there was little or no rainfall and growers ran the pivots when necessary, helping to advance the crop very quickly with excellent pod set,” he said. “On August 10, farmers cut some Pinto beans and should be harvested early in the week of August 21. If the hot dry weather continues, harvest will be over by early September. Yields are estimated to run between 25 to low 30 hundredweights per acre.” Klassen also noted an interesting phenomenon in Manitoba where at least seven dry bean processors are competing for about 125,000 acres of crop. “We have seven active companies contracting and buying beans within Manitoba over the last number of years, we’ve grown between 100 and 125,000 acres of beans. For many of our pro-
cessors, which have gotten bigger over the years, it’s difficult to find enough beans to keep the plants running that exist here in Manitoba. The competition level is quite high and this is favourable for growers producing dry beans in Manitoba,” he said. Referring to the dry beans ready for harvest in southern Alberta, some of those could ship to a processor in Manitoba, namely Global Grain of Plum Coulee. “We will see some beans from Alberta coming into Manitoba. That will probably happen the latter part of the week of August 21,” said Klassen, who travels extensively throughout the dry bean growing areas of Canada and the US. “That’s a really early harvest. Throughout North America right now, we have beans that are currently cut and laying down and we have beans that are just at the verge of starting to produce Pinto beans in some of the southern states. In Klassen’s case starting the drybeanworld.com website a
year ago, he is now partnering with his first advertiser. “Well, for me, it means a lot. The company is Carlisle Liquid Starters and they have a very unique process of tissue testing in a very short period of time and customizing fuller applications for farms to save them money, but a product that gives the plants the optimum nutrients they require to produce at the best level,” he said. While bolstering his website and helping him get the message out there, the Carlisle made-in-Manitoba product helps the dry bean grower raise a better crop. “They’ll test the tissue in the early stages of the plant development, send the tissue send away for testing with a three to four day turnaround time,” said Klassen. “A computer application determines the different levels of micronutrients available for the plant to use. Then, they will formulate a specific foliar application for the farmer to go out and top dress his crop.”
August 25, 2017
27
CAP Looks Good for Canada’s Forages and Grasslands Producer-led forage and grasslands groups across Canada are looking at the recent Canadian Agricultural Partnership (CAP) as a clear signal of greater things to come. “Identifying environmental sustainability and climate change as a priority in CAP is a firm commitment by the federal government towards projects like current the Agricultural Greenhouse Gas Program our group is currently working on,” said Cedric MacLeod, Executive Director of the Canadian Forage and Grasslands Association (CFGA), adding the program will develop and test a carbon reduction protocol for high performance forage management systems in Canada. Signed at the Federal and Provincial agricultural ministers meeting in Newfoundland in July, the Canadian Agricultural Partnership is a five-year, $3-billion program that will come into effect on April 1, 2018 to guide Canada’s agricultural industry over the next five years. The new framework will focus on six priority areas, all of which have varying potential for Canada’s forage and grasslands producers. “Forage and grassland producers have been farming their operations with an eye on next year’s harvest for millennia,” said MacLeod. “Our people tend to farm with what’s best for their operations and what’s best for the environment on equal footing. The CAP appears to be a very welcome reinforcement of the way our people run their farms.” CFGA Chairman Ray Robertson said the Agricultural Greenhouse Gas Program (AGGP) research by CFGA would provide forage producers with valuable ecological information. “Producers already know forages are valuable for capturing carbon, and the AGGP research will quantify the full value of the ecological goods and services provided by the grassland sector,” said Robertson. “It will also quantify the economic value of the contributions made by individual landowners who soil carbon storage with their adoption of beneficial management practices and the use of new, high performance forage genetics.” The Manitoba Forage and Grassland Association (MFGA) said the CAP was warmly received across the board. Manitoba’s forage and grassland production, for instance, puts it among the nation’s leaders year after year. “There’s some very exciting potential that we see coming our way from CAP,” said Duncan Morrison, MFGA Executive Director. “All eyes are turning to grass, it’s finally getting out there loud and clear that while our lands provide critically important food sources for livestock, that our lands are also providing critically important benefits such as soil health, flood and drought mitigation and carbon capture to all Canadians. It’s reassuring and motivating at the same time. We look forward to working with our federal and provincial agriculture leaders to continue this momentum through CAP.”
Alvin Klassen of Winkler, said dry beans grown in Alberta this year experienced a unique growing season with a greenhouse effect from forest fire smoke.
28
August 25, 2017
Manitoba Celebrates 30 Years of 4-H Student Exchange Program The Manitoba government and Manitoba 4-H Council have welcomed 19 Japanese students and their chaperones to learn about agriculture and local culture through an exchange program that has created opportunities for international education for 30 years. “We are proud to be a part of this long-standing opportunity for young people from both countries to become better global citizens and to extend Manitoba’s special brand of hospitality to visiting students,” said Agriculture Minister Ralph Eichler. “For 30 years, Manitoba’s 4-H families have opened their homes and this program would not have been successful without them. The next two weeks in Manitoba will be a special experience for our Japanese guests and I know they will go home with fond memories of their time spent learning about agriculture, our province and our people.” The Japanese students stay with 4-H volunteer families and will enjoy authentic Manitoba summer experiences, including community events, outdoor recreation and host families’ cultural traditions. Prairie sunsets, vast fields, campfires and beaches are also annual highlights. To commemorate the 30th anniversary, all current and former 4-H host families have been invited to participate in several special events. “For the 30th time, the Japan Homestay program will allow 4-H families the opportunity to make lasting connections with Japanese youth during their two-week stay,” said Carlie Whetter, Manitoba 4-H Council president and host family. “It’s an incredible opportunity to show off our local attractions and to witness their joy and excitement as they experience the everyday things we take for granted, like cooking hotdogs and S’mores around the campfire.” Since 1987, 726 Japanese students and chaperones have been hosted by Manitoba 4-H families. Manitoba students and their chaperones travel to Japan every second year for a two-week homestay, which includes tours of agricultural and other cultural sites. Over the past 3 decades, 197 Manitoba students and chaperones have participated. The Japanese students visiting Manitoba are aged 16 to 18 and were chosen by their high schools due to outstanding achievements and an interest in global connections. The primary supporter of this long-standing exchange program is the York-Benimaru Foundation, which was established in memory of Yoshio Ohtaka to foster an international spirit among the youth of Fukushima Prefecture through cultural and educational activities. For more information about the foundation, visit ybfoundation.or.jp. The Manitoba government and Manitoba 4-H Council also provide financial and organizational support to the homestay program. For more information about 4-H, visit 4h.mb.ca.
The AgriPost
John Deere in Pioneer Manitoba The John Deere Company’s involvement with Manitoba agriculture began with an initial shipment of plows and other cultivation tools to Winnipeg in April of 1878. However, it is suspected that, before 1878, homesteaders in Manitoba had bought implements in the US, including John Deere for use in Canada. At the time, many homesteaders felt that US implements were of a higher quality than Canadian was. Initially, John Deere equipment was sold through a wholesaler, Wesbrook and Fairchild, a very common practice at the time by machinery manufacturers. Wesbrook and Fairchild obtained implements from John Deere and other manufacturers to resell to various farm dealerships across the country. While this is a strange way of operating by modern thinking, one has to remember that implement manufacturers at the time built a limited number of items since no farm machinery manufacturer built a complete line of equipment. In 1878, John Deere only manufactured plows, cultivators and harrow models. This meant that dealers selling John Deere equipment had to sell other manufacturers machinery to meet the needs of their customers. Wholesalers also offered cheaper distribution costs to the manufacturers. Frank A. Fairchild came to Manitoba from Illinois accompanying a rail car load of John Deere plows and a number of horses in April 1878. While Fairchild had been in Illinois long enough to get married there, he was born in Ontario and had clerked in a dry good store in Dundas. He somehow became acquainted with Henry Wesbrook in Winnipeg and they formed a partnership operating in the Market Square area selling farm equipment. By 1881, they had expanded in the wholesaling business and handled John Deere, J.I. Case and McCormick farm equipment. The partnership between Westbrook and Fairchild lasted until 1888 at which time Fairchild formed a wholesale business of his own, handling equipment from John Deere, Deering, the Gananoque Carriage Company, the Moline Wagon Company and the
The Fairchild Company was a wholesaler jobber purchasing machinery from various manufacturers and selling equipment to dealers in rural areas. John Deere was just one of the companies Fairchild was wholesaling. This ad was not directed at farmers but at dealers who had not yet tied up with a wholesaler, which explains the sentence in the advertisement, “If you have not secured an agency, remember the above goods satisfy and are trade getters all the time.”
Lundy and Fairchild Company. It is not known what connection there was between F.A. Fairchild and the Lundy and Fairchild Company that manufactured the F&A “Band Cutter and Feeder” which, probably, was a machine for cutting a sheaf of grain into livestock feed and it may even have been hand powered. Fairchild had a showroom in the Grain Exchange Building on Princess Street in Winnipeg. Agriculture in Manitoba from 1895 to 1914 benefited from the wheat boom and Fairchild prospered. However, Fairchild passed away in 1898 at the age of 49. The Fairchild Company was then sold to H.W. Hutchinson who continued with the business using the Fairchild name. In 1904, the Fairchild Company obtained a vacant lot on Princess Street south of the Grain Exchange building. Plans were drawn up for a multi-story warehouse and showroom and construction was completed by 1907 on this 63,000 square foot building. The Fairchild Building was one of the first warehouses to feature a steel frame and presented an attractive appearance as the curtain wall facing Princess featured a red brick trimmed with stone and terra cotta detail work. The showroom faced out on to Princess and featured very large windows to display the goods Fairchild wholesaled. The rear wall of the building was almost all windows, which allowed natural light into the warehouse, workshop and shipping areas. A CPR spur ran between Princess and Adelaide streets providing rail access to the rear of the building. Upon completion of the Fairchild Building, the company was sold to the John Deere Company. Apparently,
Hutchinson had been in negotiations with the John Deere for four years regarding the possible sale of Fairchild. The John Deere Company formed a subsidiary, John Deere of Canada, and hired Hutchinson to operate it. By this time, attitudes to John Deere as a wholesaling network were changing in North America. From 1870 onwards, John Deere had set up a number of “Branch Houses” across the western US. These branch houses were not owned by John Deere instead the branch houses generally were owned by partnerships between various individuals in the John Deere Company such as Charles Deere and Stephen Velie and locals in the area that the branch house operated in. This was not a fixed rule however, as the San Francisco branch house was owned outright by a local family. The John Deere branch houses operated as wholesaler jobbers taking possession of the machinery it wholesaled and paid the John Deere Company for it. The wholesaler also sold other manufacturers’ machinery. In 1908, one branch house was wholesaling Deering equipment at a time when the John Deere Company was very concerned about IHC, which had collaborated with Deering. The formation of IHC at the turn of the century had resulted in a revolution in the farm machinery business as IHC offered a complete line of farm equipment, was adept in marketing, offered financing to farmers, had strong financial backing and was very aggressive. By 1907 people were beginning to realize that wholesalers presented problems when wholesaling technologically complex products, which were costly, required demonstration, servicing and ongoing follow-up. A company
owned distribution network was better at these tasks. By 1907, farm machinery was becoming more technologically complex. John Deere slowly began to wrap up the various partnerships, folding the branch houses into the John Deere Company. John Deere also began to buy up many of the companies that wholesaled their equipment through the various branch houses, which resulted in the Dain, Van Brunt, Moline Wagon, Bain Wagon and others being folded into the John Deere Company. Dain is notable as Dain operated a Canadian branch plant at Welland, Ontario that John Deere of Canada operated for a number of years. The Fairchild Company appears to have been part of this drive to bring the wholesaler network into John Deere. As well as the Winnipeg operation, Fairchild had facilities in Regina, Calgary and Edmonton making Fairchild very attractive particularly in light of the wheat boom and on going expansion of prairie agriculture. John Deere conducted business out of the Fairchild Building until 1953 when it moved to facilities more suitable to the larger farm equipment. The Fairchild building was purchased by a garment manufacturer that also rented out space to other companies. In 2004, a developer purchased the Fairchild Building, converting it to residential lofts and today the building is known as the Fairchild Lofts. Terra cotta plaques featuring the Fairchild Company logo, an ornately intertwined FC, still adorn the front of the building. For more information on the Manitoba Agricultural Museum and hours of operation visit ag-museum.mb.ca.
The AgriPost
Hay and Oats Rock Stars of Manitoba’s Pollinator Conservation An international General Mills Cheerios program that provides free flower seed for prairie producers to bring back the pollinators has hit the hay and oat fields of Manitoba. Now, Project leaders are looking for more growers and more fields. “We want to conserve wild bees and butterflies,” said Jim Eckberg, plant ecologist-agronomist for the Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation, who is leading the program with General Mills. “Primarily, we are targeting oat growers for uptake on our program. Oats are a major ingredient of Cheerios and this initiative aims to bring back pollinators to farms growing oats. We also are looking for other conservation-minded Manitoba producers who want diverse crop rotations and conservation practices on their farm and are willing to plant wildflowers and-or flowering forage mixtures. Those attributes would seem to be a good fit with many of the forage and oat producers in Manitoba and we hope to
hear from those who might be interested.” Eckberg said that mainstay Manitoba crops such as alfalfa and canola rely on bees and other insects for pollination and that grazing lands can be enhanced with forage legumes that will draw pollinators. He said the program is looking for growers that are committed to maintaining plantings for at least three to five years on lands with a full range of sizing potential from ten acres upward. “The seed mix the General Mills program offers is flexible to the grower’s needs by taking into account what seed will best help the grower meet their agronomic goals and area they can dedicate while providing meaningful habitat for bees,” said Eckberg. “We have been consulting Agriculture Agri-Food Canada and Imperial Seed for seed species and plant expertise specific to Manitoba.” The potential for producers to be part of the pollinator solution is what drew Manitoba Forage and Grasslands Association (MFGA) to help pro-
mote the program. “Many of our producers are constantly looking at ways to improve soil health and diversify crop rotations as a part of their everyday farm operations,” said Duncan Morrison, MFGA Executive Director. “This is a cool win-win-win program for any of our producers to be aware of and potentially participate in.” One possible site for the General Mills program may be the Manitoba Beef and Forage Initiatives research farm near Brandon where a new learning centre is slated for construction this summer. Eckberg said the draw of any additional audiences especially school kids and urban audiences to hear the story of producers working for pollinators can never be underestimated. In fact, he said, word of mouth is vital to the program’s success. “We are hoping to engage growers who are enthusiastic to share their story with friends, family, neighbours, and others who care about pollinators,” he said.
New CAP Addresses Some Farmer Concerns The Canadian Federation of Agriculture (CFA) is pleased to see that several of its concerns have been addressed by Canada’s agriculture ministers in a new suite of government agriculture programs titled the Canadian Agricultural Partnership (CAP), set to launch on April 1, 2018. However, CFA is disappointed to learn of a funding cut to one of the central Business Risk Management (BRM) programs, AgriInvest. “We recognize the hard work that ministers and their officials put toward coming to an agreement,” said CFA President Ron Bonnett. “However the reduced annual contribution limit under AgriInvest raises new questions about the adequacy of available BRM support. We hope that the new framework will lay the foundation for future investments, especially in light of the vision established in the 2017 Fed-
eral Budget, to increase agrifood exports to $75 billion by 2025.” Regarding the AgriStability program, improvements to the Reference Margin Limit and after-the-fact enrollment options are welcome changes, and will lead to better risk management protection for some producers, but the modest scope of these changes demonstrate the need of an immediate review of BRM programs. “By taking a step back to assess the risks and opportunities facing producers, this review is an opportunity to ensure BRM programs are grounded in a clear vision that supports producers to invest in the future of their operations and the growth of this dynamic industry as a whole,” Bonnett continued. Although many details are yet to emerge, CFA is optimistic that the CAP will provide the means through which industry and govern-
ment can partner in moving the sector forward. The $3 billion CAP funding agreement will also support priorities in five other areas, science, research and innovation, markets and trade, environmental sustainability and climate change, value-added agriculture and processing and public trust. CFA commends the investments in these additional areas, as they will help stimulate farmers’ ability to capture opportunities. However, few details on these program areas were made available at the announcement. At their meeting recently, ministers also talked about collaboration in accessing the new $1.2 billion Strategic Innovation Fund, which launched earlier this month and is administered through Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada. CFA looks forward to learning about the outcome of that discussion as well.
August 25, 2017
29
Consultations Extended for National Food Policy A Food Policy for Canada will set a long-term vision for the health, environmental, social, and economic goals related to food, while identifying actions we can take in the short-term. We have reached out to Canadians to help shape the policy because we know that by working together, we can build a food policy that is a shared vision to address food-related opportunities and challenges in Canada. A strong response from across the country has prompted Agriculture and Agri-Food Minister, Lawrence MacAulay, to encourage even more citizens to have their say. With over 22,000 Canadians having completed the online survey, canada.ca/food-policy. Launched on May 29, the comment period has
been extended to August 31, 2017, to allow even more Canadians to share their views on A Food Policy for Canada. The online survey is one of a number of consultation activities planned to engage with Canadians on this issue. The Government of Canada is also encouraging community leaders and organizations to continue having food policy discussions in their own regions across the country. A “host your own session” toolkit is available to help organizers with discussions and gather feedback on what matters most when it comes to food policy. Following a successful food policy summit held in Ottawa in June, the Government of Canada will be holding regional engagement sessions across Canada throughout August and September. Stakeholders, Indigenous groups, experts, and
key policy makers will be invited to attend these sessions and share their views on the development of A Food Policy for Canada. A Food Policy for Canada, which will be the first-ofits-kind for Canada, will help address food issues and pursue opportunities in areas related to increasing access to affordable food, improving health and food safety, conserving our soil, water, and air; and growing more high-quality food. “Canadians’ responses to our online survey show they truly care about food issues. I encourage everyone to take advantage of the extended comment period, and I look forward to hearing from a variety of perspectives throughout regional consultations and community discussions,” said MacAulay. “Understanding Canadians’ priorities will be essential as we develop A Food Policy for Canada.”
Simple Spray Tips Make or Break the Marketing of Canadian Crops Farmers have a lot on their plates as they head into the spraying season. The Canola Council of Canada, Cereals Canada and Pulse Canada are reminding growers of best practices that can have a major impact on marketing grain. Proper pesticide use is a critical factor in growing export-quality grain. As a world leader in producing high-quality exports to foreign markets, Canada’s Ag industry relies on growers making informed choices in the coming months. Here are the simple tips growers can follow for in-crop applications: - Use pesticides that are registered for your crop and acceptable to both domestic and export customers. Make sure to only use pesticides that are registered in Canada for that crop. Keep in mind that registration of a pesticide
does not guarantee it is acceptable to export customers. Registration can occur in Canada before there are maximum residue limits (MRLs) in major export markets and in some cases, this can create a market risk. - Keep it Clean works to identify and manage these market risks so that growers can access crop protection products earlier and reduce marketing risks. Talk with your grain buyer before you spray to ensure the pesticides you are using will not limit your marketing options. - Use pesticides correctly. We have all been reminded to “Always follow label instructions” because it is something that must always be top of mind. Applying the product without following label directions may result in higher than accepted residue levels in the seed. - Proper timing is key. For example, cereal growers should not apply glyphosate when kernels are too
green (30% moisture or higher). Follow the correct rates and timing listed on the label, and stick to the pre harvest interval (PHI): the number of days that must pass between the last application of a pesticide and swathing or straight combining. See the provincial Guides to Crop Protection for more information. If you are growing canola, visit spraytoswath.ca for tools to help you plan your spray. In 2017, the Canola Council of Canada, Cereals Canada and Pulse Canada partnered together on the Keep it Clean initiative to inform Canadian growers of best practices in growing export-quality grain. Because growers continue to follow the Keep it Clean steps, Canadian agriculture continues to keep the confidence of our export partners. Visit keepingitclean.ca for information on producing export-quality canola, cereals and pulses.
30
August 25, 2017
Livestock Premises ID Participation Strengthens Canadian Agriculture Livestock traceability protects Canada’s livestock industry and the public’s well-being by strengthening the ability to respond quickly to disease outbreaks, food safety issues and natural disasters. Agriculture and AgriFood Canada, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA), provinces and territories, and members of the livestock industry are encouraging producers, farmers and operators in the Canadian livestock supply chain to participate in livestock premises identification. Identifying premises for livestock operations has many benefits, particularly during an emergency or disease outbreak. Knowing where livestock are located and how to contact owners can reduce potential economic, social and environmental impacts to livestock operations. Livestock traceability that uses valid premises identification numbers helps the industry to rapidly notify registered livestock stakeholders, prepare, manage and reduce the impact of animal health or food safety issues, such as diseases, fires or floods, track and
trace animals in the event of an emergency and better manage emergencies to help maintain market access. The CFIA is considering changes to the Health of Animals Regulations for livestock traceability. These changes would require all Canadian operators of premises where livestock may be loaded or unloaded from a vehicle to have a valid premises identification number for each site, and to report the number when receiving livestock. Canada’s livestock traceability system is a collaborative effort involving federal, provincial and territorial governments as well as livestock and poultry sectors. A robust traceability system helps ensure we can continue to maintain Canada’s worldclass reputation of producing safe and healthy food, which helps ensure a profitable agricultural sector. For more information on getting your free premises identification number, or to find a contact in your province or territory, please visit inspection. gc.ca/traceability.
The AgriPost
On the Trail of the Waterloo Boy Model N The Waterloo Gasoline Engine Company was the first company to manufacture and sell gasoline tractors. John Froelich and a group of Iowa businessmen founded the company in 1893. Froelich built the first successful gasoline tractor in 1892 using a VanDuzen engine mounted on a chassis built by the Robinson Company. This new tractor completed a 52-day threshing run in the fall of 1892. Because of this success, Froelich decided to go into the manufacture of tractors, formed the Waterloo Gasoline Engine Co. and built four tractors. However only two were sold and both were returned as unsatisfactory. The Waterloo Gasoline Engine Company then decided to move into the manufacture of stationary engines and abandon tractor manufacture. In 1911, Waterloo moved back into the manufacturer of tractors after several years of research and experimentation. By 1914, the company had introduced the Model R. By the end of R production in 1918, 9,994 had been built. The Model R was subject to considerable design changes during the production of the tractor, some changes were minor such as the substitution of
flat spokes in the rear wheels for round spokes. However, some changes were major such as the introduction of a detachable cylinder head part way through production. The Model R was rated by the company as a 12-25 tractor. In 1916, Waterloo introduced the Model N, which also proved to be a good seller for the company. The Model N stayed in production until 1923. Late Model Rs were quite similar to the Model N with the exception of the transmission. The N had a transmission with two speeds forward and one reverse. The R’s transmission had one speed forward and one reverse. The N started production with chain steering gear, however part way through production, steering changed to worm gear. In total 23,034 Model Ns, were built. Both the N and the R were rated as 12 - 25. However, in a Nebraska tractor test the Model N was tested at 16 horsepower on the drawn and 26 horsepower on the belt. As the Model R was out of production by the time the Nebraska tractor tests were instituted, the R was never tested. By 1915, John Deere recognized that without a tractor in its product line, it was in a weak
position against IHC that offered a full line of farm equipment. The introduction of the Fordson Model F tractor in 1917 was a great success for Ford and posed further problems for John Deere. John Deere was experimenting with tractors but had developed no promising designs. John Deere liked the Waterloo Boy designs, as they were simple, reliable and could be built at a price farmers found reasonable. In 1918, John Deere put in an offer of $2,350,000 for the Waterloo Gasoline Engine Company and it was accepted. Waterloo Boy tractors continued to be sold under the Waterloo Boy name until 1923. Production ended to allow the Model D to enter production. John Deere discovered after its purchase of the Waterloo Gasoline Engine Company that Waterloo was experimenting with a new tractor design that used the basic engine design used by the Waterloo boy tractors combined with a cast iron “bathtub” enclosing the transmission with the final drive. John Deere continued development of this design, which resulted in the Model D design. Production of the Model N ended in 1923 to allow the Model D to enter production.
The Manitoba Agricultural Museum’s collection holds two Waterloo Boy Model N tractors. One Model N is a 1917 model with chain steering, which was donated by the Mayhew Brothers of Treherne. The other N is a later production model with worn gear steering. It was donated by the estate of August Eliason of the Gimli area. The Manitoba Agricultural Museum is open year round, for further information on the Museum and the Reunion or hours of operation go to their website at ag-museum.mb.ca.
The Model N tractor donated by the estate of August Eliason of the Gimli area. Waterloo used a 2-cylinder engine design, as it was cheaper to manufacture than a multi cylinder engine. Being a shorter engine block, the two-cylinder design could be more easily mounted cross wise on the chassis, simplifying the transmission and mounting the clutch out on the side of the tractor where it could be easily serviced. One further advantage claimed for a two-cylinder engine was that the intake / exhaust manifold was relatively short with a corresponding short distance between the carburetor and the cylinders. So when burning kerosene there was a reduced possibility of vaporized fuel reforming as a liquid when it travelled to the cylinder for combustion.
FNA Calls Farm Profitability Key to National Food Policy Farmers of North America (FNA) welcomed the Federal government’s decision to extend consultations on the proposed National Food Policy, noting however that farmers are in harvest, with little opportunity to participate. According to the FNA, a National Food Policy must recognize farm profitability as a necessary precondition for success. In addition the Policy should address the lack of competitive markets for farm inputs,
directly target anti-competitive practices, demand efficiency and transparency in regulatory processes, insist all relevant evidence be part of decision-making, that repeating work conducted in credible jurisdictions end, allocate costs for government mandates to the government, compensate farmers for contributions to the policy’s goals including environmental stewardship and create a new aggressive posture for Canadian trade relations, ensuring that Canadian farmers are championed when trading partners are not playing by the rules. Noting that much of the food policy discussion addresses issues other than farm profitability, FNA supports
any consensus positions of general farm organizations, including CFA, commodity groups and livestock associations. However, FNA also insisted that a National Food Policy cannot be successful if it does not include actions or plans to maximize farm profitability. “The themes of the current consultation are fine, quite general and strongly weighted toward non-economic questions,” said Bob Friesen, Vice President Government Affairs. Meanwhile the Federal government announced a new Agriculture Policy Framework, distinct from the food policy, which does address some economic considerations. FNA welcomed this commitment to continue to develop private sector solutions for better risk management for farmers, recognizing
the contribution to the FNAled MarketPower Assurance Program. “Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada is already actively supporting risk management initiatives and that is to be commended,” said FNA President James Mann. However, FNA remains concerned about a set of “mission-critical” policy areas that are not included in the national food policy consultation or in the new APF. FNA believes that Maximizing Farm Profitability must be a key focus of any national food policy, and be explicitly noted as a requisite driver for the other elements of the policy to have any hope of real success. “Note we are not talking about government subsidies or handouts of any kind, we are talking about private sector profitability,” Mann said.
The AgriPost
What’s in Your Picnic Basket?
By Les Kletke
Peter Fehr would like Manitobans to go on more picnics and to be sure, they have local foods in their picnic basket. Fehr is the owner of Gourmet Inspirations and has long been an advocate of Manitoba food producers working together to promote their products. He is one of the founders of Love Manitoba an event that showcases Manitoba food products in a trade show-sampler format inside, but also wants to have Manitoban foods outside in picnic baskets. He has pulled together a group of Manitoba producers and products that he thinks make a good fit for a summer lunch. He is already involved in a promotion with Cornell Crème promoting his Salted Caramel Whiskey Dessert Sauce on their
ice cream. He suggested it be added to the basket with some pickles from Crampton’s Market and mustard from Smak Dab or some olive oil from Prairie Oils and Vinegars. For meat, he suggested some pulled beef, pork or turkey from Danny’s Wholehog and Smokehouse. “We are proud to share with Manitoba this summer, the fine food and beverage products that exist right here in our backyard,” said Fehr. “I’m always encouraged by the close knit community of food and beverage makers here in Manitoba. The support by the province has been incredible.” Fehr is working on a product to be released later this year that is being developed in conjunction with Danny’s Wholehog. “It is a marinade dipping sauce that uses another great Manitoba
product,” said Fehr. “It has a Saskatoon base.” He is sourcing the Saskatoon’s and working with a co-operative from the Interlake. Fehr has extensive experience in the food industry in Manitoba from working in kids camps to 5 star resorts. He is an advocate of Manitoba products and partnerships with individual producers. “We have so many great raw products here, and if we can partner with some of the producers who are making complimentary products the potential is much greater,” said Fehr. He said his partnership with Cornell Crème is a prime example. They have been running a promotion through the summer together and are considering extending it into the fall. Fehr said that a new player in the retail market has also been a great advocate. “We
Ritz on Churchill’s Rail Problems
By Harry Siemens
The topic of the Port of Churchill raised a Tweet storm that involved MP Gerry Ritz, of Saskatchewan, the Conservative Party’s international trade critic. “There’s a lot of misinformation out there that just doesn’t seem to get through to people. We had come forward with a package for Churchill as part of our northern strategy,” said Ritz. “Noting that the port needed upgrades, the rail line of course required to be brought up to heavier standards so that they could move product. Over the years the CWB had a subsidy for any product moving north through Churchill. We continued that for five years, and that was going to run right through to the end of the 2017 crop year. But two, three years ago, it all dried up to the point where they weren’t even shipping average tonnage anymore. I think the one year it was less than 200,000 tons, simply because the rail line had been let go to the point where they couldn’t even run trains on it economically.” He said it was around $32 million for the rail line and port. OmniTrax was to match what the Federal and the provincial government provided giving them a pool of close to $100 million to do what needed to be done. “They never did exercise that. They let it go. There
was a contract of course, but it’s unenforceable. When they haven’t taken the money, there’s nothing to enforce,” said Ritz. “Having said that, it’s unfortunate to see it go back as it has. But in the meantime Churchill was stagnating, the capacity of every other port and freight logistics’ lines in Canada were upgrading to the point where the capacity is there to handle it, and that is unfortunate for the long term value of Churchill,” said Ritz. He said that without the Port of Churchill unloading cargo as well as loading that it might not be viable. “Well, I’ve seen numbers as high as a quarter of a billion dollars to bring the rail line up to some capacity. The problem always has been with Churchill is the backhaul. The railways don’t want to run empty one way. No trucker does, no one does, but having said that, they don’t have container capacity up at the port. I know they talked about shipping oil, but again, the rail line would take that type of construction, those kinds of dollars, and then you’d have to actually have a capacity at the port to handle oil,” said Ritz. “One of the things that Churchill never did take seriously was they had to become a push port as opposed to pull. What that means is they needed to double their capacity, so they get it up
there while everything’s frozen through the winter, and then load the boats and out they go. They’ve got about 250,000 tonnes of storage as I understand it, and they should have doubled that, and they could have started then handling fertilizers and so on, maybe on a backhaul, but they never did put the money into it.”
have a number of Manitoba products in Save-on Foods and they have been great to work with,” he said. “They
have been extremely cooperative in featuring Manitoba products.
August 25, 2017
31
32
August 25, 2017
The AgriPost