Irrigation feature
Ag Matters for the election
Farmers are getting more crop per drop » PG 33-37
Farm leaders offer their wish lists » PG 3 Publications Mail Agreement # 40069240
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Antimicrobial use under the microscope Expert says ‘there definitely is a chain’ connecting farms to the rise in antimicrobial resistance By Alexis Kienlen af staff
Cover crops come with a long list of benefits Restoring tired soils isn’t a quick process, but cover crop proponents say it’s well worth the effort
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ntimicrobial resistance is like a forest fire — because only you can take steps to prevent it. Think about resistance every time you use antimicrobials, producers were told during Alberta Pork’s latest telephone town hall. “Any single time one of us uses an antimicrobial, we are tipping the scales toward resistance, said Dr. Leigh Rosengren, a veterinarian and consultant with Rosengren Epidemiological Consulting. “Does that mean that we should never use them? Absolutely not. What we need to do is stop and think of the cost — both the tangible economic cost of the drug and the larger societal cost of resistance to the immediate benefit of your herd in the use.” By 2050, 10 million people around the world could die each year from antimicrobial-resistant infections. And 18,000 people in Canada are hospitalized each year with an antimicrobial-resistant infection. “When we use a product in our pigs, we kill off the susceptible bacteria and resistant bacteria are the population that’s left,” Rosengren said on the conference call. “They go on to
see ANTIMICROBIAL } page 6
The North Peace Applied Research Association’s annual field day in July attracted producers from all across the North Peace and others interested in seeing its cocktail cover crop trials. Photo: North Peace Applied Research Association
By Jennifer Blair af staff
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re you looking to improve soil nitrogen? Prevent soil erosion? Reduce soil compaction, improve water infiltration, and even suppress weeds? Cover crops have got you covered. And as understanding of their benefits spreads, interest is growing. “I think producers are realizing the cost of inputs is getting very, very high and the soil has become just a medium to hold the roots,” said Nora Paulovich, manager of the North Peace Applied Research Association. “They have to feed it with high-cost inputs to get any production. They’re realizing their soils are being degraded.” Cover crops are a major shift away from the “quick-fix” approach that producers are used to, she said.
“If you had a weed problem, you just went out there and sprayed it; if you had a fertility problem, you just went out and applied more commercial fertilizer,” said Paulovich. “Patience is the biggest factor in all of this. We’re not going to see overnight results. Trying to improve soil health using these different methods is going to take time.” Cover crops focus on five steps to improving soil health, which Paulovich summarizes as “keep a cover, practise zero till, increase plant diversity, keep living roots as long as possible, and integrate livestock if you can.” Producer interest is growing, slowly but surely. In 2013, a group of producers from Manning began discussing how they could get more production out of their soil and opted to try cover crop cocktails. “The interest was overwhelming,” said Paulovich. “This really is coming from the
producers. It’s not coming from above — Alberta Agriculture or the applied research associations aren’t saying, ‘Hey, soil health’s really important.’ “The producers are coming to us and saying, ‘This is really important, and we want to learn more.’”
Tired soil
That’s what led Kevin Elmy to explore cover crops on his farm near Saltcoats, Sask., six years ago. “The healthier soils we have, the easier it is to farm with less stress,” said Elmy, a certified seed grower. “Canola is extremely hard on the soil, and when you start growing lots of canola, one of the things that suffers is your mycorrhizae in the soil. By producing cover crops, we’re able to stimulate and really build our mycorrhizae levels, which are really helping with soil health.”
see COVER CROPS } page 7
Research associations reeling from budget cuts } PAGE 11
news » inside this week
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inside » Building equity in the new CWB Automatic credit of $5 per tonne delivered
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APRIL 27, 2015 • ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA
livestock
crops
columNists
Beef Cattle Surveillance Network
Choosing the right blend
analysis
Farmland values should go up — but at a reasonable pace
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The little moves can be the keys to success
Roy Lewis injuries to a bull’s sheath can be treated
Grim warning on clubroot Longer rotations are the only option left
brenda schoepp
Prairie-wide survey of the Prairie cow-calf herd
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Ensuring diversity of plant types is the first step
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5 13
Daniel Bezte Be on the alert for severe summer weather
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The sizzling market for farmland may be ready to take a breather Alberta land prices are still heading up, but double-digit annual rises appear to be over for now
By Sylvain Charlebois University of Guelph
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s farmland prices rise, some Canadian provinces feel compelled to take action. According to Farm Credit Canada’s most recent report, average farmland values in Canada showed a 14.3 per cent increase in 2014, compared to a 22.1 per cent increase in 2013, and farmland in Saskatchewan increased the most in value. In fact, even though the province already has laws restricting foreign investors from acquiring farmland, Saskatchewan has recently decided to no longer allow pension plans, administrators of pension fund assets and trusts to purchase land — an interesting move coming from a free-market-happy government. The Canada Pension Plan Investment Board has already registered its concerns about this decision. But given how food security is affecting the entire globe, this issue will certainly not go away any time soon. Since the 2008 global food crisis, corporations, funds, and governments have had an increased interest in investing in farmland. Subsequently, farmland prices have gone up everywhere. There is a fine line between enhanced farmland stewardship and pure investment speculation. For the future of agriculture, everywhere, the latter is much less desirable, since it frequently leads to land grabs and unsustainable price fluctuations for following generations. In many parts of the world, land grabbing is a real threat to food sovereignty — an estimated 26 million hectares of farmland have been purchased by foreign investors, mostly in Asia and Africa. The underlying intent for these transactions varies from food security, biofuels, or unclear compensation deals involving governments and corporations. It’s worrisome. The situation here in Canada is far different, but high farmland prices certainly speak to how we can support future rural entrepreneurs. For the sake of wealth creation, farmland prices should and must go up — at a reasonable pace though. Farmland management cannot remain unchecked. Any government which opts to overlook such an important component to its agriculture would be deemed irresponsible. Therefore, Saskatchewan should be applauded for its demonstration of concern, despite its entrepreneurial track record.
By Alexis Kienlen af staff
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he red-hot market for farmland is showing signs of cooling off. “The more recent sales are still showing some increase, but the increases aren’t what they have been previously,” said Dave Weber, an appraiser with Serecon, an agricultural consulting company. Alberta farmland values were increasing about one per cent a month during 2011 and 2012, he said. In early 2013, the rise in prices started to slow and by the second half of 2014, land was only going up by 0.3 per cent a month. Serecon’s numbers are similar to the numbers reported by Farm Credit Canada. In its latest survey, Alberta farmland increased an average of 8.8 per cent in 2014 — a significant change from the sizzling gains of 12.9 per cent in 2013 and 13.3 per cent in 2012. “Farm gross revenue is a major factor in land prices and over the past few years, grain prices have been good and yields have been high,” said Weber, who is based in Calgary. Given that grain prices have softened and aren’t forecast to rebound any time soon, he foresees two potential scenarios in the coming years. “The recent decline in oil price won’t necessarily impact land values, but if it carries through over a while, the effect on the economy will affect land values,” said Weber. “If commodity prices trend downwards over a number of years, interest rates rise, there isn’t an improvement in oil prices, and the economy starts rolling down, there could be a drop in land values. If we stay with the status quo, we’ll see a slow and steady rise over the next few years.”
Key factors
Large farms getting larger is still a strong driver. “As farmers continue to expand their operations, it’s going to be supportive of land values,” said Weber. The most expensive land in the province can be found along the
Farmland prices have soared in recent years. Are they ready to level off for a bit? Highway 2 corridor and around Lethbridge, with demand for irrigated land especially strong. Expansion also fuelled a sharp rise in the Peace in 2014, but dry conditions and a reduced harvest had tempered that rise by year’s end. Another factor is retired farmers who would rather rent than sell their land. The number of rented acres has increased over the past few years, and so when something comes up for sale,
there can be a number of motivated buyers. But perception of scarcity can change very quickly, said Weber, noting the 2008 recession hurt prices. So he recommends producers keep a watch on listings in order to gauge the market. “During the recession there wasn’t a ton of sales,” he said. “If a large amount of farmland does become available and the listings expire without selling, it may be an indication that there
“More recent sales are still showing some increase, but the increases aren’t what they have been previously.” Dave Weber
Photo: Thinkstock
might be some change in land values.” High beef prices have increased the demand for pasture, especially in the central to northern-east portions of the province, and some marginal land that went into crops during the boom times may return to grass. “If the beef herd increases, the ratio between pasture and cropland will diminish,” said Weber. Finally, even though land prices have shot up, farm revenue has increased as well. In 2005-06, land was selling for about 4.5 years’ worth of the gross farm revenue it could generate. Today, it takes about 3.5 years of gross farm revenue. Weber will be giving a presentation on Alberta farmland values at the Alberta Agricultural Economics Association’s Vision 2015 conference in Red Deer, which runs April 30-May 1. akienlen@fbcpublishing.com
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ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA • APRIL 27, 2015
Ag matters: What should be on the agenda for the next government As Albertans gear up for a provincial election, provincial farm groups share the big issues that matter to them By Jennifer Blair af staff
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nvesting in agriculture’s future, the nightmare of finding workers, and fair rules for sharing land and water. Those are three big issues for Alberta farm organizations, but not the only ones. None of the farm leaders and officials who spoke to Alberta Farmer had any ‘if you want our vote’ demands for the parties contesting the provincial election. But the issues they raised had an underlying theme: Agriculture can make an even bigger contribution to Alberta’s economy if these matters are dealt with. “In an economy where we’re trying to diversify Alberta and stop relying solely on the oil and gas sector as the driver of the province, bolstering our industry makes sound economic sense,” said Ian Murray, chair of the Agricultural Research and Extension Council of Alberta. Here are three of the top issues we heard from ag industry leaders. (For more, see stories beginning on page 8.)
March budget, researchers can’t continue to count on public dollars to fund their projects. Groups like Alberta Barley use checkoff dollars to fund research, but it’s not always enough. In the last year, Alberta Barley invested in 30 new research projects, and 27 of them fell under Growing Forward 2 — which is funded, in part, by the Alberta government. That’s an indication of how much barley growers rely on publicly funded research, including breeding programs for the varieties they need, said Ammeter. “The risk is that we’ll have a stagnant pipeline of varietal research,” he said. “If you don’t invest in it, our competition will invest in it. If our competition is investing and we’re not, it’s going to beat us.” Having stable funding for agronomic research and varietal development is vital for farmers — but they shouldn’t have to shoulder the financial burden alone, said Ammeter. “It seems like, when there’s budget cuts, everything is on the table,” he said. “If we see that funding taper off, the money has to come from somewhere. Farmers are already carrying the load
in a lot of places, and that fundamental research is so important for us.”
Access to labour
Darcy Fitzgerald is blunt when he talks about the pork industry’s scramble to find workers. “We’d rather it be Canadian workers, but they don’t exist,” said the executive director of Alberta Pork. Ottawa’s tightening of rules for temporary foreign workers is the last thing his sector needed, he said. Of the 85,000 temporary foreign workers currently in Alberta, roughly 16,000 were set to be sent back home on April 1 because they could no longer seek a renewal when their fouryear contracts expired. Most of those who worked on farms or in packing plants can’t be replaced because most Canadians “don’t think of agriculture as a career option,” said Fitzgerald. “That’s huge. Where do we find 16,000 new workers? Where do we find 85,000 workers in Alberta? It doesn’t exist,” he said. “The government in some way, shape, or fashion has to look at that and realize we don’t have enough people here.”
How big a player is agriculture in Alberta’s economy? Alberta farm leaders say investing in agriculture will produce economic dividends. Here are some facts on the province’s farm and food sector.
62% CULTIVATED FARMLAND
32%
NATURAL PASTURE
LARGE FOOTPRINT SIZE OF THE PROVINCE:
IN ACRES
157,710,720 TOTAL FARMLAND:
IN ACRES
50,498,834 MAJOR EMPLOYER PROVINCE’S EMPLOYED WORKFORCE:
2,211,000 AGRI-FOOD INDUSTRIES:
89,700
see AG MATTERS } page 9
Includes 26,400 in Food and Beverage Manufacturing
Research funding
Investment in research and varietal development is “a bedrock issue” for Alberta Barley. “Research is important,” said chair Mike Ammeter. “That’s where we put our money, and we’ve got to continue to have the investment in that area of the industry.” But competition for government funding is getting tighter. With the cancellation of the Agriculture and Agri-Food Innovation Endowment Fund late last year and no increase to the Agriculture Opportunity Fund in the
BIG SPENDER TOTAL FARM CASH RECEiPTS:
11.75 BILLION
$
TOTAL EXPENSES:
10.91 BILLION
$
Includes depreciation
Mike Ammeter
Rich Smith
SOURCE: Alberta Agriculture and Rural Development’s 2013 statistics fact sheet.
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APRIL 27, 2015 • ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA
EDITOR Glenn Cheater Phone: 780-919-2320 Email: glenn.cheater@fbcpublishing.com twitter: @glenncheater
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The best pasture input is the cheapest — grazing management
Jennifer Blair, Red Deer 403-613-7573 Email: jennifer.blair@fbcpublishing.com
CIRCULATION manager Heather Anderson Email: heather@fbcpublishing.com
PRODUCTION director
Grazing management can produce significant pasture health and productivity increases without breaking the bank
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By Albert Kuipers
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Manager, Grey Wooded Forage Association
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’ve been studying and practising grazing management for more than two decades and have always been intrigued by how it allows you to increase pasture productivity with few other inputs. At times, I’ve resorted to adding nitrogen fertilizer, spreading pig manure, harrowing, and clipping thistles. For some pastures, it seemed like the only thing to do was to break them up and start over — a very expensive proposition. But I’ve begun to see that no matter what you do, a pasture will soon be underproductive and weed infested again without proper grazing management. Usually that leads to breaking up the land and starting over once again — and so the expensive, unhealthy cycle continues. On the other hand, I’ve repeatedly seen how appropriate grazing management improves pasture health and productivity without expensive inputs. Now, I’ve been told by many pasture owners that they don’t have time to set up electric fences and move animals often enough to get improved results. But I maintain the time and effort put into the right grazing management strategies gives you the biggest bang for your buck over any other input you could choose to use. Managing that first round of grazing in spring, when the fast growth period is just
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There’s a shift in thinking from ‘we can’t produce enough’ to the prospect of producing too much
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intensive grazing simple, quick, and inexpensive. A single twisted or braided twine with aluminum or stainless steel wires in it and held up by step-in posts will suffice. Such fences are easily rolled up on readily available reels and can be moved in minutes each day. I can take down and set up a quarter-mile-long fence in just 20 minutes. Winter grazing of stockpiled forages is another way to boost pasture productivity. Managing grazing during the growing season to save large amounts of high-quality standing forages for winter use doesn’t import organic materials and nutrients. But if done right, it will improve plant diversity and health; build organic matter; and improve the soil’s nutrient- and waterholding capacity. Others have boosted pasture productivity by bale grazing on pastures in winter. This works especially well on pastures where organic matter and nutrients are seriously depleted. (Rolling out or shredding bales distributes waste materials, manure, and urine more evenly.) If combined with good grazing management during the growing season, these winter grazing strategies can have great and sustainable results. These grazing management strategies can produce significant pasture health and productivity increases without breaking the bank. If you’re interested in learning how to get this working for you on your farm or ranch, contact me at 403-357-7659 or gwfa2@telus.net.
Ag sector must brace for leaner times
ISSN 1481-3157 Call
getting going, is of utmost importance. During that first round, you need to move your herds fast enough so you can hardly tell they grazed a paddock. Consider these numbers from Lee Manske, a range scientist at North Dakota State University’s Dickinson Research Extension Center. “When 25 per cent of the grass tillers leaf area is removed during the first grazing period, the quantity of secondary tillers increases 38 per cent during that same growing season, and increases 64 per cent to 173 per cent during the second growing season,” says Manske. “When 50 per cent of the grass tillers leaf area is removed during the first grazing period, the quantity of secondary tillers decreases 53 per cent that same growing season and decreases 63 per cent to 144 per cent during the second growing season.” That’s huge! And it shows why you need to get things right in that first month of grazing each spring. Once you’ve done that, you can relax your management if need be. High stock density grazing for short periods, affectionately called “mob grazing” by many, can have an amazing effect on pasture health and productivity as long as the recovery period is sufficiently long. Some successful mob grazers have made a nice speaking career of talking about their results at various seminars and conferences across North America. Portable electric fencing systems make
by Daryll E. Ray and Harwood D. Schaffer
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major concern of U.S. farmers this spring is price, particularly corn and soybeans. With current prices at their lowest levels in years, some crop farmers will certainly have to dip into savings to cover household expenses if prices do not increase. In addition, crop insurance will not guarantee the profits of recent years or even the full cost of production. This spring farmers are watching the markets ever so closely as they ponder the allocation of acreage between corn and soybeans. Fewer acres planted to corn will be positive for its price. But all that that means is the price may not drop any further. What we do know is that, for the most part, acres will be planted to something. Given the high cost of cash rents, farmers cannot consider leaving a wet spot unplanted. For the Corn/Soybean Belt, fewer corn acres means more soybean acres and that may not be positive for soybean prices. It goes without saying, the quicker the crops are planted and the better the weather, the worse the price. But, there is more to the equation
than what is happening in the U.S. Between 2000 and 2014, the total corn and soybean harvested acres in Brazil and Argentine increased by 72 million acres — from 99 million acres to 171 million harvested acres. That is an average of 5.1 million acres a year. Lower prices this year and next will certainly slow the rate of increase in corn and soybean acres in the two countries, but any additional acreage increases the overall supply at a time when ending stocks are on the rise. If China increases its 2015 marketing year demand at the previous annual average of 136 million bushels, that will require production from about 3.5 million acres (assuming China’s ending-year corn inventory remains at its current exceptionally high level). If the switch to soybeans by U.S. producers is as strong as some expect, the U.S. will be able to meet the increase in Chinese demand with no help from its South American competitors. However, the combined corn and soybean harvested acreage for Argentina and Brazil has declined only three times in the last 20 years. Given good weather and the absence of the 500-million-bushel increase in the use of corn for ethanol production in the U.S., the price picture for farmers around the world is bearish and a third good
crop in a row will give demanders little reason to bid prices up to guarantee future supply. But it may be more than that. A recent article headline on Agweb. com shouted, “Proof Commodity Price Bubble Has Burst” (http:// tinyurl.com/npq75ez). Citing a research report from the Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations, the Agweb author writes, “global food demand will slow to 1.4 per cent between 2007 and 2030 and to 0.8 per cent from 2030 to 2050, down from 2.2 per cent during 1970 and 2007.” This slowdown in demand results from slower population growth, an increase in the number of elderly who eat less, and a significant portion of the world’s population reaching a saturation level for food consumption. The article sees the levelling off of U.S. corn for ethanol demand and lower oil prices as moderating the demand for biofuels in the near future. At the same time, land in use will not decline quickly as farmers respond slowly to changes in price. In addition to the slowdown in demand, there will be the continued increase in productive capacity that will exceed the modest change in demand. The increase in production can come from increasing yields in countries that have not hit the levels
currently being achieved by major producers. Widespread use of the current seed stock and agricultural production technologies are all that is needed to bring about a significant increase in world grain and oilseed production. And that does not factor in the 1.7 billion arable acres that are available globally that easily could be brought into production. Various studies have calculated that it will take somewhere in the range of a 70 per cent increase in production to meet the needs of nine billion people in 2050. The Agweb article says that the challenge of feeding the expected population growth between now and 2050 will not be as difficult to achieve as previously thought. We previously pointed out that the world’s farmers were able to make a 75 per cent increase in production between 1974 and 2012. Barring a major production problem in 2015, we may well be at the beginning of a long period of low prices. Daryll E. Ray holds the Blasingame Chair of Excellence in Agricultural Policy, Institute of Agriculture, University of Tennessee, and is the director of UT’s Agricultural Policy Analysis Center (APAC). Harwood D. Schaffer is a research assistant professor at AAPAC http:// www.agpolicy.org.
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ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA • APRIL 27, 2015
The secret of success can be found in a simple breakfast spread The man behind Nutella shows how simple ideas can be very powerful By Brenda Schoepp af columnist
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was first introduced to Nutella while travelling in Europe as a young woman — the thought of chocolate for breakfast was just too good to be true! Today, the sweet treat remains a frequent visitor to our home, disappearing in the early hours shortly after waking. The man behind the mysterious blend of hazelnuts and chocolates was the late Michele Ferrero, the creator of other chocolate wonders such as Ferrero Rocher, Mon Cheri, Kinder Chocolate, Tic Tac, and Kinder Eggs. Ferrero rarely gave interviews, but when he did, he talked about differentiation. In other words, his secret to having a net worth of nearly $27 billion was in offering a product with a difference. For Nutella, that was the discovery of adding vegetable oil to the traditional blocks of hazelnut and chocolate that bakeries had used. His father was the first innovator, but Ferrero had the defining moment and was a marketing wizard. It was a spreadable treat that could be afforded by everyone because
you only had to add bread or biscuit to enjoy the taste of chocolate and hazelnuts. The hazelnuts that fell from the trees in abundance in his native Italy were the foundation for relationships with area farmers. In the direct supply chain that was developed, the making of a globally recognized product supported the local economy. This is a great reminder to support local entrepreneurs. We never know where they may go in the future. It all starts with an idea and a little crazy experimentation. Who says the next global wonder won’t be started by the girl or boy next door? As for Kinder Surprise, those lovely little Easter eggs with a toy inside, this was in response to a belief that something special should be part of every day. Why not make it Easter every day? The idea of making a day special for all of the people all of the time reminds me of the philosophy behind Chapman’s Ice Cream, the cool Canadian treat. Its ice cream and other products are produced in a nut-free facility, which is its first point of differentiation. It also tastes better and has less artificial ingredients and is offered in sugar-free varieties. Most importantly, even after fire devastated its plant, the
Chapman team rebuilt because it believed that every Canadian should have the opportunity to enjoy ice cream.
Most folks are looking for the big payoff when it comes to selling their product, but it is often the little moves that count.
White chocolate was introduced by Ferrero in appreciation of families, especially young mothers. He knew mothers loved to reward little ones with a treat and the milky base of white chocolate treats were soon gobbled up by toddlers around the world. Again, by understanding your client and looking at who buys what rather than pushing what you have to sell, there is an opportunity to differentiate and dominate a market. Most folks are looking for the big payoff when it comes to sell-
ing their product, but it is often the little moves that count. Success comes from sacrifice and kindness. Keeping in step with where people are in their lives allows you to fully appreciate the demographic in which you hope to sell. For Ferrero, that was fully evident to him after the Second World War when he tried to sell chocolate in Germany. The country was a mess and the people broken. In response he took his Mon Cheri chocolates out of the box and sold them singularly. The response was good but more importantly it developed a loyalty to the name. Canadians also respond to the sweetness of chocolate and turn to it in times of trouble. Chocolate and lipstick sales always increase during recession because they are low-cost feel-good items. One of Ferrero’s competitors, Hershey, is also listening to the needs of the consumer. Hershey sees the writing on the wall and is going to gluten-free, GMO-free, highfructose-free chocolate production. These decisions are not made lightly but failure to respond would bring about the same demise as has been seen in dry cereal consumption. Keep adding processed sugars and watch your sales shrivel.
The legacy of Ferrero is actually not in his chocolate although it certainly made him the richest man in Italy. The legacy was in his devout faith and his treatment of all his team — because without your team behind you, there is always a point when the entire tower can fall. This is an important lesson for all businesses, family and otherwise. It is people who make you successful. Your team and your buyer both must be fully engaged and loyal to the product and to you. We don’t always know who is behind products or if they were the invention of one man and owned by one family. But we do know when we trust a product and that we buy it because it is different from the rest. And we can always be encouraging of early innovators and entrepreneurs trying to come up with the next best thing to sliced bread. After all, the combination of sliced bread and a simple chocolate hazelnut spread has made food history. Brenda Schoepp is a farmer from Alberta who works as an international mentor and motivational speaker. She can be contacted through her website www.brendaschoepp.com. All rights reserved. Brenda Schoepp 2014
Talent, not gender, is what matters in today’s agriculture Whether running farms or taking a leadership role in ag businesses, women are breaking down the gender barrier By Gwen Paddock
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griculture may be considered a male-dominated industry, but more women are not only recognizing the many opportunities in this sector, they are also taking on leadership roles. Gone are the days when farming meant back-breaking physical labour. As well, the trend towards larger farm operations has meant a need for different skills and capabilities, including management, sales, and marketing skills. There are also positions in agribusiness working for grain elevators, feed manufacturers, and input suppliers, to name a few. Women comprised 48 per cent of the employed Canadian workforce in 2011. In addition, between 1991 and 2001, the proportion of employed people aged 25 to 34 with university degrees rose from 19 per cent to 40 per cent for women compared to only 17 per cent to 27 per cent for men. With the number of women in the workforce and the higher levels of education
they’ve achieved, agricultural businesses recognize they need to be female friendly or they will miss out on top talent. As a result, more are hiring based on skills and experience, with gender playing less of a role. In some cases, women who were raised in rural areas want to move to urban centres, but many in the agricultural industry want to learn how to attract more young women, to bring the energy and ideas of their generation to this evolving industry. One indication that agriculture is a growing field for women is the launch of the first Advancing Women Conference in 2014. In 2015, there are two conferences — one earlier this month in Calgary and a second in Toronto in October. I had the pleasure of speaking at the conference this year. Conference organizer Iris Meck is proud to shine a spotlight on the many accomplishments of women within the agricultural industry. She wants to “pay it forward and invest in future leaders by sponsoring and funding great opportunities for women in ag.”
Women are taking on leadership roles in all areas of agriculture. Some may work on the family farm and take over the management of it when their parents retire or following the death of a spouse. Other women may take on leadership roles in large companies related to agriculture — DuPont, Dow Agro Services, and Bayer Crop Science were all participants at the conference. Still others lead agricultural startup companies. While more women are in leadership positions at work and control their family’s wealth at home, there are differences between the genders when it comes to wealth management. For example, only 53 per cent of women have the confidence to invest money, compared to 82 per cent of men. And although women make up half of RRSP contributors, their total share of contributions is lower — 39 per cent compared to 61 per cent for men. Here are some tips women can use today to achieve financial independence: • Think of long-term savings for a milestone event or retirement.
• P articipate in your employer pension plan, and contribute to your RRSP and TFSA accounts. • Learn by doing. When you begin investing start small, gain a comfort level with risk, and build from there. • You want to pay down your debts, but be sure to allocate funds for savings too. • G et advice. Find a financial adviser who is knowledgeable, who you connect with and who you trust. To find a financial adviser, get a recommendation from colleagues or friends. • R emember, no matter your age, it is never too late to start saving. There are certainly many opportunities for women in the agriculture industry, and many success stories to celebrate. By having a sound financial plan — no matter what industry you work in — you can reap the rewards of financial independence. Gwen Paddock is the national director for Agriculture and Agribusiness at RBC.
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Off the front
April 27, 2015 • Albertafarmexpress.ca
ANTIMICROBIAL } from page 1 reproduce and over time, if that exposure continues, the resistant population can emerge within the pigs.” Bacteria can acquire genetic material as resistant elements move around in the gut of the pig, she said. Certain bacteria, particularly E. coli or salmonella, pick up those resistant elements and acquire that resistance. “Every time an antibiotic is used, it increases the chance for resistance, because we’re always putting that pressure on those bacteria to evolve or maintain the resistant genes that they have,” said Rosengren.
The link to farms
Many people acquire antimicrobial-resistant infections in hospital, but there is an increasing number of such infections acquired in communities. And slaughter plants could be a route for such cases. When an animal is slaughtered, some of the millions of bacteria in its gut can contaminate the carcass and people can then acquire a foodborne infection — commonly called food poisoning — if the meat is handled or prepared improperly. If the foodborne infection is resistant, then antibiotics may not work. “There definitely is a chain connecting agricultural antimicrobial use to the burden of disease in people,” said Rosengren. “It’s difficult to say how often this happens, but there is a chain there. And for that reason, there is a very intense scrutiny on what we are doing in agriculture in terms of antimicrobial use.” Part of that scrutiny involves the Canadian Integrated Program for Antimicrobial Resistance Surveillance (CIPARS). It collects and tests bacteria from farms, abattoirs, and retailers for resistance. “Bacteria found in pork at an abattoir can have up to 70 per cent bacteria resistant to tetracycline. That’s a high number,” said Rosengren. While tetracycline is an old
“Any single time one of us uses an antimicrobial, we are tipping the scales toward resistance.” Leigh Rosengren
drug no longer commonly used in human medicine, it’s still concerning that such a high level of resistance has been established. CIPARS has also been tracking resistance to drugs that are of high importance to human medicine. “In that situation, the pork industry has a good-news story,” said Rosengren. “Less than five per cent of those E. coli are resistant to antimicrobials that are of high importance to human medicine. “But the take-home message is that it is being watched. We’re in a good situation as an industry now, but we need to continue to work hard to make sure that resistance doesn’t emerge and establish.”
Change is coming
Producers in this country can still use some antimicrobials without a veterinary prescription. But Health Canada and the Veterinary Drugs Directorate are reviewing this and considering whether
Use of antimicrobials in livestock is under increasing scrutiny, and experts say new restrictions and regulations are coming. PHOTO: THINKSTOCK veterinary oversight should be increased. “That’s something producers should be aware of,” said Rosengren. “That will probably be changing over the next few years. It’s possible that your veterinarian will be more and more involved in those decisions on your farm.” By December 2016, antibiotics used in human medicine will no longer be permitted for growth promotion purposes in agriculture, and the label claims for growth promotion will be removed. “In some instances, you will need to have a sit-down discussion with your veterinarian or your nutritionist to discuss if
there are other things you can be doing with your feed to get your performance,” she said. “In other situations, it will be a discussion with your veterinarian to discuss whether those products were in there for other reasons, to control or prevent disease.” Because most drugs in Canada have label claims for several indications, it’s not anticipated that any products will be removed from the market. “What will change is how we’re using them, and the veterinary involvement in these decisions,” she said. Antibiotics of high importance in human medicine, such as Exceed and Baytril, should never be used in an extra label manner.
Any producer using those products should be talking to their vet. They should also be discussing their antimicrobial use protocol, she said. “Most veterinarians are very proactive in taking on samples to test for susceptibility so that they can be picking the most appropriate drug for the situation,” she said. Producers might also want to participate in CIPARS. “I think we’re going to see more action towards collecting antimicrobial use data, so we can better understand the relationship and the choices that we make on our farms to the resistance we see.” akienlen@fbcpublishing.com
Antimicrobial resistance a global threat
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hile Canadian farms haven’t been shown to be a source of bacteria resistant to human medicines, tests at abattoirs have found up to 70 per cent of bacteria are resistant to tetracycline, says veterinarian and consultant Dr. Leigh Rosengren. That shows resistance is developing because of farm use of antimicrobials. And that’s a major concern for the World Health Organization. “The inappropriate use of antimicrobial drugs, including in animal husbandry, favours the emergence and selection of resistant strains, and poor infection prevention and control practices contribute to further emergence and spread of AMR (antimicrobial resistance),” the organization says on its website. Here are some of the facts on antimicrobial resistance from www.who.int:
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Antibiotic versus antimicrobial resistance
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Antibiotic resistance refers specifically to the resistance to antibiotics in common bacteria that cause infections.
Antimicrobial resistance is a broader term, encompassing resistance to drugs to treat infections caused by other microbes such as parasites (e.g. malaria), viruses (e.g. HIV) and fungi (e.g. Candida).
Spread of antimicrobial resistance
• In 2012, there were about 450,000 new cases of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis. It requires treatment courses that are much longer and less effective than those for nonresistant TB. • There are high proportions of antibiotic resistance in bacteria that cause common infections (such as urinary tract infections, pneumonia, and bloodstream infections) in all regions of the world. A high percentage of hospital-acquired infections are caused by highly resistant bacteria such as methicillinresistant Staphylococcus aureus or multi-drug-resistant Gram-negative bacteria. • The death rate for patients with serious infections caused by common bacteria that have become resistant is about twice that of patients with infections caused by the same non-resistant bacteria.
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Albertafarmexpress.ca • April 27, 2015
COVER CROPS } from page 1 One of the ways to do that is by planting a mixture — or cocktail — of plant species. “Mother Nature wants to see diversity,” said Elmy. “We want to have the diversity of having different rooting systems — growing at different times, at different speeds, and utilizing different parts of the soil so that we’re stimulating all of the microbes in the soil to keep them healthy and keep them growing throughout the year. “If you have a healthy microbial population in the soil, that’s going to solve a lot of fertility and disease issues.”
Biggest challenge
But many of the benefits in the soil are “intangible things” that don’t come with a precise monetary value, said Bob Blackshaw, a research scientist with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada. “Maintaining soil quality and organic matter are hugely important, but it’s hard to put a dollar and cents value on it in the short term,” he said. Because of that, cover crops can be a tough sell. “There’s so many good things associated with cover crops, but having a year without cash flow on that portion of your farm is a major deterrent,” said Blackshaw. That’s the biggest challenge for producers who are on the fence about cover crops, agreed Elmy. “For a grain grower, they’re going to be asking, ‘What economic benefit do I get out of it?’ It’s tough to visualize the dollars.” The benefit comes in the year after the cover crop is grown, he said. “The first year I seeded them, I wanted to see what kind of production I’d get out of seeding straight tillage radish,” he said. “The next year, I seeded corn, and where the tillage radish was, we got six wet tonnes of corn more where the radishes were compared to where they weren’t.”
Cover versus cocktail cover
Thirty-five days after seeding in the fall, tillage radish has grown enough to cover the ground before the frost kills it, putting the nutrients back into the soil. Photo: Courtesy Kevin Elmy
The rule in creating cocktail cover crops is: The more diversity in the roots and leaves, the better. Shown in this photo are sorghum/ sudangrass, millet, turnip, hairy vetch, soybeans, crimson clover, berseem clover, greenfix peas, faba beans, and tillage radish. Photo: North Peace Applied Research Association
After 20 days of growth, the tillage radish root (bottom) is already longer than the canola root, helping it reach deeper into the soil for nutrients. Photo: Courtesy Kevin Elmy
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In the U.S., fields left bare after corn or soybean harvest are prone to erosions and so ‘cover crops’ (such as rye, winter wheat or tillage radish ) live up to their name by covering and protecting soil. In more northerly climes, including the Prairies, interest is focused on ‘cover crop cocktails.’ Using a diverse mixture of cool- and warm-season grasses and broadleaf crops can accomplish many things, including building organic matter, preventing erosion, adding nitrogen, accessing nutrients in the soil, and counteracting compaction. — Staff
Lower inputs
jennifer.blair@fbcpublishing.com
T:10”
The radishes also acted like “one or two passes of weed control,” which dropped Elmy’s input costs the following year. “In the corn, never mind that we had higher yields — we had no weeds. It did a really effective job of weed control.” Elmy boosted his bottom line even further by replacing canola with cover crops in his rotation. “My net dollars after four years is about $20 an acre more than when I don’t have a cover crop in.” In a research trial conducted over five years in Lethbridge, Blackshaw saw similar results in the year following a cover crop by underseeding grain crops with legumes. “For nitrogen fixation, we were getting anywhere from about 75 to 150 pounds per acre of nitrogen from the sweet clover treatment,” he said. “Our wheat yields the following year were about 30 per cent higher.” But there’s always a trade-off, said Blackshaw. “Sure, we could get nitrogen fixation, but we could actually just buy nitrogen fertilizer, and it’s cheaper and easier,” he said. “Some of them can be very good at suppressing weeds, but a grower can also buy a herbicide to control the weeds. It’s a balance.” But that balance has been paying off for Elmy. “Two years out of the five, it’s going to work wonderful. Two years, it’s going to be OK. And one year, it’s going to be a failure,” he said. “But the two years it works out of the five is going to pay for 10 years of doing it.”
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APRIL 27, 2015 • ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA
Farm Vote: Farm safety Egg Farmers chair would like to see legislation, training and tracking
Feedlot association has a beef with crumbling infrastructure By Jennifer Blair af staff
By Jennifer Blair af staff
F
arm safety in Alberta needs some work — and Susan Schafers has a few ideas. “We in the industry want to make sure that all producers and all employees have a better concept of farm safety and how to improve safety levels on their farms,” said the chair of Egg Farmers of Alberta. While there has been “some very good progress made” so far, said Schafers, the Alberta government needs to keep working on farm safety in three key areas: legislation, training, and tracking. “Alberta is the only province that doesn’t have legislation around that,” she said. “This is something the government and industry have picked up as a bit lacking. We could be doing better.” Training — through things like the Farm Safe Program — is another way the Alberta government can support safer farm operations, said Schafers. “We want to have a comprehensive training program that all producers can work with,” she said. Schafers would also like to see more tracking and accountability for farm safety in the province. “It’s not just about doing it. You’ve also got to be able to prove that you’re doing it,” she said. “It’s easy to say what you’re doing, but you’ve got to be able to document it and show the kind of improvements.” That goes hand in hand with tracking the types of accidents and where they take place. “You hear about deaths, obviously, and you sometimes hear about serious accidents, but there isn’t a really great way of tracking safety issues in the agricultural sector,” said Schafers. “What we’re trying to get to is something where all agricultural sectors have a baseline, and we’re not there yet.” jennifer.blair@fbcpublishing.com
Susan Schafers
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he next Alberta government needs to invest in rural roads and bridges — not just infrastructure in urban centres, says Alberta Cattle Feeders CEO Bryan Walton. “There was a commitment in the budget of $20.5 billion over the next five years, starting with $6.7 billion on a capital program (for roads and bridges),” said Walton. “But the question is: How much of that is devoted to rural infrastructure? The intensive livestock industry is in need of good infrastructure — roads and bridges — and we’re seeing some fallback there.” Proper maintenance is just as important as rebuilding, he added. “We have some concerns about the need to keep up with maintenance, building,
and repair of our rural infrastructure,” said Walton. “If you have bridges that are falling down and aren’t usable, that’s an issue. If the roads are not being maintained, that’s an issue. We need to be sure we can get our product to market and get the inputs to the feedlots.” Putting money into rural infrastructure should be viewed as a way to “embrace diversification” in a province that has too many eggs in the energy basket. “When the oil and gas sector goes south, everyone turns to agriculture as an example of how we’re diversifying the economy. And in the livestock industry, I think we’re all concerned that we make sure we make the proper investments in the future infrastructure of this province.” jennifer.blair@fbcpublishing.com
Bryan Walton
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Albertafarmexpress.ca • April 27, 2015
Farm Vote: Risk management funding Pulse Growers chair cites tightened eligibility qualifications By Jennifer Blair af staff
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aintaining Alberta’s risk management funding is “critical” for farmers who are facing “extreme uncertainty,” said the chair of Alberta Pulse Growers. “Money has been steadily reduced in a lot of the risk management programs at AFSC,” said Allison Ammeter. “Farmers need that if we’re going to be able to stay in the industry and keep at agriculture long term.” Government-supported risk management programs are “a key way that farmers protect our production.” But in recent years, producers have seen “incremental” changes to the qualification thresholds in programs offered by AFSC — a provincial Crown corporation that delivers provincial and federal risk management programs like crop insurance.
“It’s not so much that the government has dropped programs. It’s that it has dropped your qualification for them,” said Ammeter. “There are some programs that, if you drop the qualifications enough, they become useless.” One such program is AgriStability, a federal program that receives provincial support. “AgriStability has very much had its levels changed. A lot of people have opted out because it’s not going to work anymore.” Other risk management programs — including crop and straight hail insurance — aren’t immune to these kinds of changes, said Ammeter. And farmers can’t carry all the risks themselves. “A farmer has to be able to cover their risk in order to continue on,” she said. “If there are extreme weather situations, we need to be able to manage against that, or we can’t continue to take the risk of putting seed in the ground every year.” The recent closure of nine AFSC offices
AG MATTERS } from page 3 The pork sector helps its foreign workers apply to the Alberta Immigrant Nominee Program and get on the path to permanent residency. But the program only accepts 5,500 applicants province-wide each year, and that’s nowhere near enough, he said. “Five thousand a year is nothing,” said Fitzgerald. The next government has to make the labour shortage a top priority, he said. “The provincial government doesn’t have a lot of jurisdiction there, but hopefully it can be our champion and help us move it forward.”
Land and water rights Allison Ammeter across the province “certainly isn’t helping,” said Ammeter. “If your nearest insurance office has gone from being 30 miles away to 80 miles away, your service is more limited,” she said. “We need those people.” jennifer.blair@fbcpublishing.com
Urban and rural Albertans need to learn to share the land, and that starts with better land and water use policies. “Land and water use is likely one of the single biggest provincial issues that we’re facing — making sure producers continue to have access to the land and water resources of this province,” said Rich Smith, executive director of Alberta Beef Producers.
“In an economy where we’re trying to diversify Alberta and stop relying solely on the oil and gas sector as the driver of the province, bolstering our industry makes sound economic sense.”
Ian Murray
The Land Use Framework and regional land use plans are a “good first step,” but they’re not enough, he said. “We need more action there to make sure we don’t have regional plans that infringe on property rights.” Smith calls this a “huge concern” for producers affected by the two regional plans already in place — the South Saskatchewan Regional Plan in southern Alberta and the Lower Athabasca Regional Plan in northern Alberta. “The South Saskatchewan Regional Plan itself seems to be OK in terms of watching water rights, but they’re doing a surface water quality framework under it, an air quality framework, and a biodiversity framework,” said Smith. “We need to be sure that these frameworks don’t start to infringe on people’s ability to use the land.” Competing for resources will become tougher and tougher for all producers if the government doesn’t strengthen land and water use rights for farmers, he predicted. “As an industry, we’re quite prepared to look at an appropriate balance of economic, environmental, and social objectives, but we think it needs to be truly balanced,” said Smith. “We can’t have a situation where the economic use of land is subjugated by social and environmental pressures. “We need a true balance among all three of them.” jennifer.blair@fbcpublishing.com
NEWS » Markets
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APRIL 27, 2015 • ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA
Insights into moving food products
Beef branding in Mexico
Alberta Agriculture and Rural Development has four new fact sheets on distribution. “These fact sheets present innovative thinking and practical tips to help agricultural food producers and processors transport their goods to market,” said new venture specialist Kathy Bosse. The fact sheets are Distribution Partners: Working with Regional Carriers; Distribution Logistics: Getting Your Products to Market; Distribution DIY (do-it-yourself): Building a Solid Foundation; and Distribution Consolidation: Working Together Along the Value Chain. They can be found at agric.gov.ab.ca (search for ‘distribution fact sheets’). — AARD release
Canada Beef launched its first brand series in Mexico City earlier this month. The agency hosted some of the country’s top chefs, as well as the business community, at the two-day event. “Mexico is an innovative culinary leader in beef and at the forefront of new and interesting flavours,” said Jorge Mendez, Canada Beef’s director of business development in Latin America. “In our strategic pursuit of culinary excellence, we have found innovative ways to bring the Canadian beef brand to these influencers and instil loyalty.” The producer-funded agency has hosted similar events in Asia and the Middle East. — Canada Beef release
Rise in Canadian dollar pressures canola values How a new CWB owner affects markets remains to be seen By Phil Franz-Warkentin
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CE Futures Canada canola contracts dropped hard on Thursday, April 16 but managed to claw back some of those losses by Friday. The old-crop May and July contracts were both lower on the week, as a strengthening Canadian dollar provided the catalyst for a round of fund selling. The currency climbed by over two cents relative to its U.S. counterpart during the week, which cuts into crush margins and makes exports less attractive to international buyers. Canola did not stay down for long, as oversold price sentiment and spillover from the firmer tone in the CBOT (Chicago Board of Trade) soy complex provided some support. The old-crop months were well off their weekly lows by Friday, and the new-crop months were steady to slightly higher on the week. Some of that relative strength in the new-crop months is likely tied to the underlying uncertainty over the size of a crop that hasn’t even been seeded yet and the need to keep some weather premiums in the futures. With an early spring across the Prairies, seeding operations are also getting started a bit quicker than normal. Statistics Canada releases its first survey-based acreage estimates on April 23. Opinions in the trade are divided over whether canola area will be up or down from the 20.3 million acres seeded in 2014, although average guesses call for a slight increase, just given the fact that much of the land flooded out in Saskatchewan in recent years should be back in production.
Great expectations
In the U.S., soybeans moved higher during the week, with soymeal pulling the rest of the soy complex higher as demand remains solid for the livestock feed. However, any upside may be limited in soybeans, with big South American crops starting to become a larger factor in the international market and expectations mounting for a big U.S. crop as well. Corn found some modest support from seeding delays in parts of the southern U.S. However, planting conditions were good in other areas, and the moisture slowing operations in some cases will also be good for yields in the long run. Wheat was down across the board during the week, with the Kansas City and Minneapolis hard wheat contracts hitting fresh lows. For winter wheat, some muchneeded rainfall across the southern Plains should help improve the condition ratings for the crops there. Meanwhile, weather in the northern-tier states was good for seed-
Opinions in the trade are divided on whether canola will be up or down from last year’s 20.3 million acres. Photo: Thinkstock ing the spring wheat crop, with planting operations running well ahead of normal. The big news from a Canadian wheat standpoint during the week was the announcement that the former Canadian Wheat Board (now known simply as CWB) is to be purchased by the newly created G3
Global Grain Group. G3, a joint venture between Bunge Canada and Saudi Arabia’s SALIC Canada, will buy 50.1 per cent of the company for $250 million, with the minority stake going to farmers who deliver to CWB. However, G3 has the option to buy out that farmer equity in seven years’ time.
For three-times-daily market reports from Resource News International, visit “ICE Futures Canada updates” at www.albertafarmexpress.ca.
There will obviously be some heated ideological debates over the details of the CWB sale to foreign interests. However, from a marketing perspective, whether any new ownership leads to a significant change in grain pricing in the Prairie landscape remains to be seen. The corporate and government line was that the creation of a new company would be “a win” for farmers, bringing in more competition for their grain. While more competition can’t hurt, it’s also worth noting that the G3 deal doesn’t include any new infrastructure (aside from the previously announced CWB terminals already being built). Rather, it’s more of a reshuffling of what’s already there. Phil Franz-Warkentin writes for Commodity News Service Canada, a Winnipeg company specializing in grain and commodity market reporting.
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ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA • APRIL 27, 2015
Budget cuts have applied research associations reeling Producer-run research groups raised salaries and upped spending when funding doubled, but now that extra money has been taken away By Jennifer Blair af staff
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lberta’s applied research organizations are facing a financial crisis following the government’s “clawback” of two funds earmarked for research and innovation. “We realize that with the drop in oil prices and the model that the government is funded under, everything had to take a hit,” said Ian Murray, chair of the Agricultural Research and Extension Council of Alberta (ARECA). “We were prepared for a hit just like everybody else was, but our hit was 50 per cent of our budget.” The Agriculture Opportunity Fund is the primary funding source for the forage and applied research associations, said Murray, a rancher from Acme. That fund has been “static” at $1.5 million for nearly 10 years. Last July, the province doubled that funding to $3 million, retroactive to March, with a request that ARECA’s nine
“There are some groups that are in a lot better position than others to weather this storm, but I do know that there are others that are having serious financial challenges.”
Ian Murray
forage and applied research associations “do more than we had already been doing,” said Murray. “We were encouraged to hire more staff so that we could take on more initiatives and do more work, concentrating on areas that they referred to as ‘gap areas,’ whether it be areas geographically that we didn’t have a presence in, or topically,” he said.
“We were also encouraged to increase salaries to our staff to encourage staff retention, less turnover, and more productivity.” More money was expected from the $200-million Agriculture and Food Innovation Endowment Fund announced in last year’s budget. In October, the day after his byelection win, Premier Jim Prentice reannounced the endowment fund
and the doubling of the Agriculture Opportunity Fund. “That was the second time we had heard the same announcement, so we figured things must be really rolling along here now,” said Murray.
Funding disappears
But in December, the government cancelled the endowment fund, and as the price of oil continued to plunge, the groups — which are producer driven and collectively have about 1,500 members — began to worry that the Agriculture Opportunity Fund wasn’t as secure as they thought it was. “We were given some assurance that the work we were doing was really good and that we would still be able to count on that doubled funding,” said Murray. By February, the message was, “‘Don’t expect much’ — that we’d likely see that budget amount cut back considerably. “When the final budget came through in March, it was cut back to the initial $1.5 million,” said Murray.
While the groups did get extra funding for a year, they are now in a worse position, he added. “We’re back to the level of funding that we’ve been at for the last significant period of time, but we’re not back to where we were last June because, on the initiative of the province, we’ve increased salaries to our staff, hired more staff in several instances, and taken on significantly more expenses,” said Murray. Some groups have money set aside in “rainy day funds,” but after years of chronic underfunding, other groups are struggling to stay afloat. “There are some groups that are in a lot better position than others to weather this storm, but I do know that there are others that are having serious financial challenges as to how they’re going to make their operation remain viable going forward,” he said. “I’m hoping that, when the dust settles, whoever happens to be in charge of this portfolio will see the value that we’re bringing to the table.” jennifer.blair@fbcpublishing.com
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news » livestock
APRIL 27, 2015 • ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA
Temple Grandin in Calgary
Silage testing results available
Renowned animal welfare expert Temple Grandin will be the keynote speaker at the Canadian Livestock Transport conference in Calgary on May 5-6. Grandin will speak about overcoming adversity on May 5 and give a presentation on animal welfare the following day. The Innovation, Education and Awareness conference will also have sessions on hog transport research, animal welfare expectations of the European Union and U.K. during transport, new innovations in livestock transport, and welfare expectations at the plant level. The cost is $225 for CLT members and $300 for non-members. For more info, visit www.livestocktransport.ca. — AARD release
This year’s version of Silage Varieties for Alberta is now available. Under the umbrella of the Agricultural Research and Extension Council of Alberta, eight applied research groups performed forage testing of various varieties at 12 locations throughout the province. This was the sixth year of tests. “Varieties of barley, oats, triticale and peas commonly used for silage, greenfeed and swath grazing were included in the trial, as well as new varieties showing good potential for these uses,” said Carla Rhyant of the West Central Forage Association. For more information, go to www.agric.gov.ab.ca (search for ‘silage varieties’). — AARD release
Bovine big brother: Surveillance network gives researchers priceless data Network will yield insights into improving production and herd health — and reassure customers if there’s a sudden disease concern By Alexis Kienlen af staff
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ou can’t pick them out from the road, but 120 herds of cattle across the Prairies are special. They’re participants in a “living laboratory” experiment that is advancing knowledge about the health of the western herd in a host of ways. “We have a mixture of small and large herds, somewhat representative of the number of different herds in the different areas of the provinces,” said project leader John Campbell, a vet and professor at the University of Saskatchewan’s Western College of Veterinary Medicine. There are numerous projects at his university and elsewhere where researchers need a representative sample of western Canadian cattle, and that’s where the Beef Cattle Surveillance Network comes in. Now in its third year, the initiative enables researchers to learn more about the health of Canada’s cow-calf herd out in the field. Researchers and technicians at the U of S, its counterpart at the University of Calgary, and at the Western Beef Development Centre take the herd data and analyze it, and also survey their owners three to four times a year on topics as wide ranging as productivity, calving, winter feeding, mineral management, antimicrobial use, and marketing. This past year, local veterinarians collected about 20 blood and fecal samples from each herd during preg. checking. “We’re in the process of testing those for a variety of things,” said Campbell. “We looked at trace mineral status of the cows, so we should have some good data on the different areas of Western Canada and trace mineral status.”
Connecting the dots
Since researchers have details of antimicrobial use from the surveys, they will be able to track both mineral challenges and the development of antimicrobial resistance on cattle farms. That sort of information could be critical in two different ways. The first is on the health front.
Keeping an eye on — and collecting physical samples from — a network of herds is giving researchers an unprecedented look into Prairie cattle production. Photo: Thinkstock “We’ll know the prevalence of copper deficiency and how many cows are low in trace minerals,” said Campbell. “We’ll have the data put together this year, and we can look at geographic differences. We know a lot of the health issues that we deal with are associated with trace mineral status.” As well, having this knowledge can be very useful in marketing efforts.
“Because we’re an export industry, there are often questions about the things Canadians do,” noted Campbell. “This gives us evidence to show what we’re actually doing and how we deal with it, whatever the case may be.” And as the past has shown, disease issues can burst onto the scene in a heartbeat. “You can imagine that in 2003, when BSE was first detected in Canada, it would have been nice
“We can find out what’s going on in the industry and how people are dealing with these issues. We can get really good data that way.” John Campbell
to know what percentage of producers had meat and bone meal in their ration,” said Campbell. “There’s no easy way of knowing that, and it would be hard to get that information quickly. But right now, with a surveillance network, I could find that out in a matter of weeks. I could do a quick survey, send it out to our producers, and we could get answers fairly quickly.”
Many applications
Researchers have created a serum bank from the samples. “If someone sees a new disease or problem in cow-calf herds and wants to see if it was around a few years ago, we can actually pull that blood out of the freezer and test for it. We can compare and sample them again in a couple of years.” The blood will also be tested for Johne’s disease, the Neospora parasite, and other productionrelated diseases. Since the researchers have been collecting data on calf losses and
abortion rates and other production information every year, they will be able to figure out where they can make improvements. “We can put some economics to that down the road,” said Campbell. The program has opened doors for all kinds of research projects, he added. “Most of the credit has to go to the producers and to the local vets who collect samples for us. Producers are giving us ideas for projects and what we should be looking at next. As we continue to roll out the surveys, we find we have too many topics to ask about. We can find out what’s going on in the industry and how people are dealing with these issues. We can get really good data that way.” The network, which is funded by the Beef Cattle Research Council using Growing Forward dollars, follows the model of the U.S. National Animal Health Monitoring Service. akienlen@fbcpublishing.com
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ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA • APRIL 27, 2015
The last thing you want to see in a prized bull beef 911 } Injuries that prevent a bull from breeding can be
successfully treated, and about 50 per cent of cases will heal
By Roy Lewis DVM
N
umerous times during the breeding season, calls come in to veterinary clinics in regards to swellings along the sheath of bulls. In many instances, a favourable outcome is highly attainable. And with today’s bull prices this may be good news. The location of the swelling says a lot about its cause. Generally if the penis has been broken the swelling is just ahead of the scrotum. Swellings lower down on the sheath are common with lacerations to either the penis or the prepuce. A broken penis is the result of a rent created in the sinus of the penis. Blood accumulates in the sinus causing the erection. A sudden bend to an erect penis such as being hit when breeding will cause such a break. Then in subsequent breeding attempts, blood is pumped out through this defect. The blood is trapped in this location causing the visible swelling. The degree of swelling
therefore depends on how many breeding attempts have been made before the producer can pull the bull from the breeding herd. Some bulls will be turned off sexually and may not attempt further breeding. To diagnose a cut penis, your veterinarian will either sedate the bull to have a good look at his penis or use an electro ejaculator to be able to visualize it. Cuts are the result of breeding in bush, over fences, etc. Some bulls are more prone because of their aggressive nature. A few polled bulls have a tendency to have their sheath prolapsed constantly. All these things greatly increase the likelihood of lacerations and tears. Complications involve several scenarios, which can be vastly different in each case. Large cuts can result in infection and subsequent scarring which could prevent the bull from extending his penis, therefore not achieving intromission. I personally have seen a case where 100 per cent of a herd was open because the herd bull had a scarred-down penis
Responsible antimicrobial use to avoid resistance
from an injury the previous year. This is another very good reason to semen evaluate and make sure the penis can be fully extended. If severe swelling has occurred, the prepuce may be prolapsed. This can also occur with broken penises and the resulting drying, swelling and cracking of the prolapsed prepuce causes a serious complication. Hydrotherapy with medicating ointments is often prescribed. The swelling must be brought down to allow retraction of the prepuce back into the sheath. In all these cases the bulls can be immediately shipped for emergency slaughter as long as no medication has been given. However, a vast majority can be treated so depending on age of bull and his value to your herd this option is always available. Treatment is not complicated or costly; some labour and the tincture of time with sexual rest resolve many of them. Broken penises require hydrotherapy initially and then a long sexual rest. A few months later the bull may be tested to see if erection is possible. About 50 per cent of the cases will
heal (if caught early before large swellings have occurred), but they do have a higher incidence of reoccurring than normal bulls. Surgery was tried more often in the past but because of the large blood clot that formed, infection is a very real complication. Prognosis is no better than the conservative medical approach. The blood clot is absorbed over time and as long as adhesions are minimized with hydrotherapy, infection is unlikely. Cut penises involve careful scrutinization by your veterinarian. Flushing medication up the sheath along with hydrotherapy and systemic drugs are used in bad cases. Minor cases will be left with just sexual rest and time. If breeding is allowed, the laceration may be extended. As well, blood is very detrimental to sperm. With fresh cuts this mixing of blood and sperm can result in very poor fertility. Many minor cuts heal on their own as we see from the scars on penises at semen evaluation in subsequent years. These cuts most likely occurred the previ-
ous breeding season. The seriousness of the injury will determine prognosis and estimated return to function. Some minor cuts will be healed and the bull ready to use in two to three weeks, but they should be checked to make sure complete healing has occurred. A high percentage of cuts will heal however, keeping that bull till the next breeding season may be warranted depending on the value of the bull. Again, that choice is made based on the value of the bull, his age, and when in the breeding season the laceration occurred. When checking your bulls during the breeding season watch for full extension when breeding, blood on breeding, and keep a careful watch of the sheath area for any abnormal swellings. If anything is noticed, pull them immediately and get them attended to. Roy Lewis practised large-animal veterinary medicine for more than 30 years and now works part time as a technical services veterinarian for Merck Animal Health.
Responsible use can not only save production costs, it reduces the chance of important antimicrobial drugs becoming less effective in animal and human medicine.
TIPS: Using antimicrobials responsibly • Have an accurate diagnosis before using antimicrobials • Follow all veterinary and/or label instructions (dosage, treatment time, withdrawal time, etc.) • Monitor cattle health on an ongoing basis to provide prompt and appropriate treatment or care
Watch this video to see why responsible use is important at beefresearch.ca/AMR
• Ask your veterinarian whether a tetracycline-based antibiotic should be used first
(e.g. Oxytetracycline, Liquamycin, Biomycin) before moving to an antibiotic of High Importance
(e.g. Micotil, Draxxin, Zuprevo, Zactran) or Very High Importance (e.g. Baytril, A180, Excenel, Excede) in human medicine
a/AMR BeefResearch.c u rmation yo has the info t w abou need to kno istance s avoiding re onsible p through res l use ia antimicrob le. tt in beef ca
TIPS: Preventing cattle illness to reduce the need for antimicrobial use • Implement a practical vaccination program for your herd • Use biosecurity practices to reduce spread of infection among animals • Reduce stress on animals to keep their immune systems strong. Consider practices such as: •
Low stress cattle handling
•
Low stress weaning techniques such as fence-line or two-stage
•
Preconditioning calves
Try our economics of preconditioning calculator at beefresearch.ca/AMR
The BCRC manages the research allocation of the national check-off and funds leading edge research through Canada’s Beef Cattle Industry Science Cluster.
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APRIL 27, 2015 • ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA
What’s a fair rent for a pasture? Higher cattle prices and a decline in available pastures putting upward pressure on rental rates Alberta Agriculture and Rural Development release
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If the rented pasture is used to graze steers, the tenant should consider the price of feeder cattle in the spring. Photo: Thinkstock
igher cattle prices have some producers and landowners revisiting their pasture leases. “Pasture rental rates can be difficult to figure out because there are many factors to consider such as local availability of land and pasture, localized demand, quality of the pasture, condition of the existing fences and water, and bargaining,” said Dean Dyck, a farm business management specialist with the Alberta Ag-Info Centre in Stettler. “Preliminary indications for 2015 grazing season are that demand for pasture will continue to be strong, even though the recent Statistics Canada cattle inventory shows a decline of beef cows of three per cent and replacement heifers of 2.7
per cent in Alberta,” said Dyck. “Grass cattle numbers are also down due in part to the large price slides seen in the past few years. An expected increase in pasture rent this year can be attributed to the higher prices for calves, the lack of grassers, and the decline in available pasture in the province.” Usually variations in rent are small, and have ranged between $18 and $26 per animal unit month since 2005, said Dyck. A fair rental rate should be a balance between who will be supervising the cattle, how much can the landlord charge, how much the tenant can afford to pay, and the carrying capacity of the pasture, he said. “The landowner’s goal should be to recover land taxes, the cost of any fence repairs, and a return on land investment,” said Dyck. “Conversely, the tenant should calculate what they could afford to pay based
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The Expo is operated by Glacier FarmMedia, who owns Canada’s Outdoor Farm Show, the country’s largest outdoor farm show held annually near Woodstock, Ontario. Also part of Glacier FarmMedia are Western Producer, Manitoba Co-operator, Grainews, Country Guide, Canadian Cattlemen, Alberta Farmer Express and AgDealer. The team knows what’s involved in delivering an outdoor show, and the potential such a venue provides. Now in its 22nd year, Canada’s Outdoor Farm Show delivers 750 exhibitors and 42,000 visitors each year. Most attendees come to see the newest technologies in agriculture. Its success is based on the fact that active farmers attend to do business – make decisions – and the show is dedicated solely to agricultural products, equipment and services.
Ag in motion is applying the same model and will become a must-see event by showcasing cutting-edge agricultural advancements that empower Canadian farmers to help meet their goals in producing high quality, safe food in a competitive marketplace. To learn more about how an outdoor show looks and operates, view the videos on the Ag in motion website, www.aginmotion.ca. Live Demos and Interactive Exhibits The number of Ag in motion exhibitors is growing steadily each week and includes seed and crop protection companies, field equipment and livestock handling manufacturers, financial services, nutrition, baling products, tires, fertilizers and much more.
on projected costs and returns. For example, if the rented pasture will be used to graze steers, the tenant should consider the price for feeder cattle in the spring, what the expected selling price will be in the fall, and what some of the costs of pasturing will be, including mineral and salt, medication, and interest on investment in cattle.” Labour and possible travel costs should be estimated if the home place is far from the cattle, and the quality of pasture and location of the water supply should also be factored in. “Even though owners and renters want a definitive answer when asking about pasture rental rates, the best answer may be ‘It depends,’” said Dyck. “It should start with a survey of the local market rates, calculating expected return for both parties, negotiating a fair rate, and end with a written agreement.”
Alberta Agriculture’s information catalogue now available Alberta Agriculture and Rural Development’s 2015 Information Catalogue is now available. The catalogue lists over 600 free and priced books, DVDs and CD-ROMs distributed through the department’s publications office. These materials provide up-to-date information on a wide range of agricultural subjects. “We’ve got products on just about every subject you can think of,” said information management director Gerard Vaillancourt. “They cover topics ranging from new ventures to crop and livestock production, to agritourism, and much more.” The catalogue also lists webbased materials, including decision-making tools (such as the barley silage calculator) and videos. “This year’s edition includes a complete listing of all the new and revised material that has been added to the collection over the year, including the new Commercial Vegetable Production on the Prairies manual,” said Vaillancourt. The catalogue can be ordered by calling 780-427-0391, emailing publications.office@gov.ab.ca, or by downloading at www. agric.gov.ab.ca (search for ‘InfoCat2015’). — AARD release
Alberta Forage Manual Contains extensive descriptions of forage species and their growth habits to help in planning forage management programs. Fully illustrated with over 350 colour images, plus line drawings, tables, charts and graphs, this forage reference work provides a wealth of information. 350 pages.
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The fourth edition of The Beef Cow-calf Manual features 282 pages of the most up-to-date information available for cow-calf producers. Over 250 colour photos, tables and figures help make this book a great resource for both the new and the experienced producer.
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Weeds of the Prairies This book is a comprehensive field guide to the common weeds across the Canadian Prairie provinces. Detailing 112 weeds, this book gives you over 500 full-colour photos of the weeds at different growth stages. Weeds are colour-coded by flower colour for easy reference. 266 pages. Agdex 640-4 $25
Commercial Vegetable Production on the Prairies A resource and reference tool for new and experienced vegetable growers at all scales of commercial production. Growers can plan every step of their production, from seeding/transplanting to harvesting and storage. Full colour images in all chapters, especially pest management, along with details on each vegetable crop cover all the topics. 300 pages. Agdex 250/13-1 $20
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15
ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA • APRIL 27, 2015
Is your premise identification profile up to date? Premise identification became mandatory in 2009, and is required to complete transport documents such as manifests and permits, sell livestock at auction markets, apply for government grants, and buy over-the-counter medication at retail outlets. Premise identification is an important component of traceability, and is crucial during a disease outbreak or other emergency situation. Have you looked at your premise identification profile lately? If the profile’s information is not current, you run the risk of not being contacted in an emergency or missing out on crucial information. To update your profile (or just double-check that the information is correct), go to www.agric.gov.ab.ca and type ‘traceability alberta’ in the search box. Consider adding your email address to your profile if you have not yet done so. In a situation when time is of the essence, email communication is much more efficient than other methods. — From Alberta Beef Producers Grass Routes newsletter
Forage stands can be terminated in spring — if done right Herbicide timing is key, and soil moisture and fertility must also be evaluated Alberta Agriculture and Rural Development release
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raditionally, forage stands are terminated in the fall so a good seedbed can be established and the sod root system has some time to decompose. However, hay stands can also be terminated in the spring. Producers just need to be aware of a number of factors that can impact success. “Spring termination of hay land will delay the seeding date two to three weeks,” said Barry Yaremcio, beef and forage specialist with the Alberta Ag-Info Centre in Stettler. “In order for herbicide applications to be effective, sufficient plant material must be present. Grasses should be at the three- to four-leaf stage and legumes need to be actively growing to allow for good herbicide coverage. Seeding will need to be delayed three to five days after the herbicide application to allow thorough translocation into the forage plants and newly germinated weeds.” A number of factors influence the type of annual crop to be seeded, said Yaremcio. “With sod seeding, the most consistent results have occurred with cereal crops such as barley or oats. The larger seed size with cereals allows seeds to be placed beneath
Termination with glyphosate is more effective if done in the fall. PHOTo: Thinkstock the thatch layer into soil where good soil-to-seed contact occurs. Crop competitiveness must also be considered. Seed quality, seeding rate, seeding depth, crop height and fertilizer placement are all factors that producers need to consider.” In many areas of the province, conservation of spring moisture is essential for crop establishment. Direct seeding into sod will retain available soil moisture that would be lost if multiple tillage operations were used to prepare a seedbed. Even with direct seed-
ing, available soil moisture will be reduced as the forage species grows to an appropriate stage for spraying. Soil fertility must also be evaluated. “Remember that late-seeded crops will have a shorter growing season to produce grain. In these situations, seeding a crop that can be used for silage or greenfeed offers a viable end use for these fields.” Controlling perennial species with a glyphosate product is not as effective as fall application, said Yaremcio.
“There is a 15 to 20 per cent reduction in control when spring applied. This could be caused by the plants emerging after the application or if the thatch is thick, the herbicide does not come into contact with the new growth. It’s likely that a fall application of glyphosate pre-harvest will be required to get the level of control that’s required.” For a fact sheet on spring termination of hay land go to www.agriculture.alberta.ca and search for ‘hay termination.’
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APRIL 27, 2015 • ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA
Water woes to worsen
California farmers under fire
Meagre precipitation and a premature spring thaw have left the U.S. western mountain snowpack, a key source of fresh surface water for the region, at record-low levels. Melting of winter snows began much earlier than usual this year, leaving much of the western snowpack greatly diminished or gone by early April, when it is typically at its peak. As a consequence, western states will experience reduced stream flows from mountain run-off this spring and summer, leaving reservoirs — already well-below-average capacity in several states — that much more depleted, says a new government report. — Reuters
California officials are hitting back against criticism that new drought conservation measures apply to consumers, but not the state’s $45-billion agriculture business. Environmentalists say agriculture, which accounts for 80 per cent of water use, should also be required to conserve. “Agriculture in California produces the food we all rely on,” said Secretary for Natural Resources John Laird. “Folks want to point fingers, but we’re all in this together.” He said farmers experienced cutbacks last year that forced them to fallow 400,000 acres and lay off 17,000 workers. — Reuters
Beginning our look at severe summer weather Knowing an alert from a watch or a warning will help keep you informed, and safe By Daniel Bezte af contributor
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sually around this time of the year I start my annual look at severe summer weather, but before we dive into that topic, the global March temperatures are in and the planet has beat another record. March 2015, according to the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), was the warmest March since records began in 1880. It was the thirdwarmest March, according to NASA, and the lower atmosphere recorded the fifthwarmest March in the 37-year satellite record, according to the University of Alabama Huntsville. According to the Weather Underground, the NASA database showed March 2015 as having the fifth-greatest departure from average and so far we have seen five of the top 10 monthly departures from average occur over the last year. In NOAA’s data, the last 12 months have been the warmest 12-month period on record, with seven of the past 11 months tying or setting a global monthly record. Personally, I am still sticking to my opinion that the cool pattern that has been keeping eastern North America below average will continue to slowly shift eastward, setting the stage for a very warm late spring and summer across central North America.
This issue’s map shows the total precipitation across agricultural parts of the province over the 30-day period ending April 16. It is an interesting pattern — while the extreme north and central regions saw very dry conditions, the Peace, parts of the northern region, and along the southern foothills received significant amounts of rain.
Alert Ready
OK, now on to this issue’s topic: severe summer weather. It seems appropriate to start this off by talking about the federal government’s recent announcement about a new emergency alert system, Alert Ready. It is basically a distribution infrastructure that will allow for the rapid dissemination of information about imminent danger coming from any source. The technology for this new system has been in place for years and was voluntary, but as of March 31, it now has to be used by all broadcasters. Check out alertready.ca for more information. When it comes to severe summer weather, or any severe weather, there are three levels of alert. Knowing these levels and what they mean is the first step to keeping yourself informed and safe. Personally, it drives me crazy when I hear people talking about different alerts, because often they get them all mixed up! The first level is a special weather statement. These are issued when unusual weather is expected to develop, but isn’t expected to meet or exceed severe weather levels. This type of alert means the weather will likely affect your day, but probably won’t cause a serious disruption to your daily routine. The next level is a weather watch.
Severe weather on the Prairies • Dust storm — Blowing dust reducing visibility to less than 800 metres for more than one hour. • Heat — Temperature or humidex values expected to reach 40 C. • Rainfall (short duration) — 50 mm or more rain is expected to fall within one hour. • Rainfall (long duration) — 50 mm or more rain is expected in 24 hours or 75 mm or more in 48 hours.
This means severe weather conditions have not yet developed, but forecasters feel there is a good chance that they will develop. This is the one most people get mixed up. When a watch is issued, it means you should pay attention to the weather around you and keep an eye on the weather around you. You should keep track of weather reports and other online weather sources. Be prepared to take safety precautions and to take
• Severe thunderstorm — One or more of the following conditions is imminent or occurring: Wind gusts of greater than 90 km/h; hail two centimetres in diameter; heavy rainfall as per rainfall criteria. • Tornado — A tornado has been reported or there is evidence on radar of a tornado. • Wind — Sustained winds of 70 km/h or more, and/or gusts to 90 km/h or more. (Source: Environment Canada)
action quickly should severe weather develop and a warning is issued. You guessed it: the final level is a weather warning. This means severe weather has developed and is occurring. When dealing with severe summer weather, warnings can sometimes be issued in advance, but due to the nature of summer severe weather the lead time is often very short, sometimes giving you only a few minutes. This is
why you need to be paying attention when there is a weather watch issued. If you hear of a warning for your area, take action immediately.
What’s severe here?
So, what kind of severe summer weather affects our region of the world? The table here shows Environment Canada’s list of the different weather warnings we could see across the Prairies during the summer, along with brief descriptions. This year I’m going to take a little bit of a different slant on examining these conditions. While we will still take a closer look at the main severe weather culprit, thunderstorms, I am going to take a wider view by examining the weather pattern and conditions needed for these seven different types of warnings to develop. So stay tuned, and let’s hope that severe summer weather holds off for a little while yet! Daniel Bezte is a teacher by profession with a BA (Hon.) in geography, specializing in climatology, from the U of W. He operates a computerized weather station near Birds Hill Park. Contact him with your questions and comments at daniel@bezte.ca.
} GROWING
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ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA • APRIL 27, 2015
Washington to push organic The U.S. government will boost support for production of organic crops and produce this year to meet growing consumer demand and boost rural incomes. Growing demand for organic goods could be especially helpful to smaller family operations, said U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack. The more diverse the operations and the more growing market sectors there were in American agriculture, the better off the U.S. rural economy would be, he said. The USDA will create a new Organic Integrity Database to provide up-to-date information on certified organic production, sellers, and buyers to speed market development. — Reuters
Pick the right tool for the job when creating cover crop blends Using a diverse blend of cover crops — including cool- and warm-season grasses and broadleaf crops — covers the bases while targeting soil issues By Jennifer Blair af staff
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Trim: 15.58”
hen it comes to choosing the right cover crops for your farm, one size definitely doesn’t fit all. “Growers need to have an objective in mind in terms of what they want to get out of a cover crop,” said Bob Blackshaw, a research scientist with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada. “You have to choose the cover crop that will address what you hope to improve on your farm.” Cover crops improve farmland and that allows producers to “make more money in subsequent years,” said Blackshaw. Depending on the species, cover crops can prevent soil erosion, improve soil quality, reduce soil compaction, fix nitrogen, and suppress weeds. The first step to picking the right cover crops is to choose plants from “the four different categories — warm-season broadleaf and grasses, and cool-season broadleaf and grasses,” said Nora Paulovich, manager of Northern Peace Applied Research Association. That level of diversity brings in different benefits for the land, including a variety of rooting systems and nutrients for the soil, said Paulovich. “We used to think that every plant you put in there was competing with other plants for moisture and nutrients,” she said. “But we’re really seeing now that with the diversity of roots, you’re
really increasing the diversity of the microflora in the soil, and there really is a synergistic effect.” That’s why Kevin Elmy blends up to 20 different species of cover crops on his farm near Saltcoats, Sask. “In a monoculture, you’ve got the roots growing at the same speed, same direction, same depth, and competing for the same nutrients and moisture,” said Elmy, who has been growing cover crops for six years. “When you grow a polyculture, you’re not competing for all the same nutrients.”
The right tool
Choosing the right species to add to the blend “really depends on the type of goals that the producer has,” said Elmy. If soil nitrogen is an issue, for instance, legumes are a must-have. “If a person’s looking at fixing nitrogen, we can use things like sun hemp, crimson clover, red clover, and annual alfalfas,” said Elmy, adding that soybeans, faba beans, chickpeas, peas, and lentils are other options. Crops that provide a lot of cover — like grasses and legumes — can help prevent soil erosion, and “scavengers” like hybrid brassicas, turnips, radishes, and buckwheat are “really good” at drawing nutrients out of the soil for other crops. For salinity issues, Elmy recommends fall rye, barley, sunflower, sugar beets, and safflower. Cover crops can also be used to combat drought by increasing the soil’s water infiltration and waterholding capacity, he said.
A blend of cover crops — like this mix of proso millet, crimson clover, and tillage radish — will bring a variety of benefits to the soil. Photo: Courtesy Kevin Elmy “If that’s your main goal, the way you’re going to get to it is by increasing organic matter and breaking up that hardpan,” said Elmy. To build organic matter in the soil, pick species with higher root biomass, he said. “That will be a lot of your grasses — oats, triticale, annual ryegrass, sorghum, corn.” For breaking up hardpan, tillage radish is his go-to cover crop. “You want to include some deeprooted species like chicory and tillage radish so you’ve got some roots that are going to chip away at the hardpan,” he said. “The roots will exert 290 psi and will break up the hardpan, and once it goes through that hardpan, it’s going to keep drilling down. They’ll go down past where
the normal annual cropping roots will go and get the nutrients those crops can’t get.” Creating the right blend involves “a lot of research” and trial and error, said Elmy, who uses two different blends on his own farm. “We bring in different species from around the world — India, South Africa, United States — to get enough diversity of warm- and cool-season grasses, broad leaves, and legumes, and then we have to see how they adapt when they’re grown here,” he said. “This year, I’m bringing in eight new crops for trials. The only way we’re going to know how they work is by putting them in the ground, doing some blends, and getting some experience with them.” jennifer.blair@fbcpublishing.com
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18
APRIL 27, 2015 • ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA
Winter wheat weathered Alberta’s wacky winter Itching to check your winter wheat crop? Wait until spring seeding to give it time to recover, says Janine Paly By Jennifer Blair af staff
A
Alberta’s winter wheat fields seem to have survived the wintertime highs and lows seen across the province. Photo: Courtesy Janine Paly
lberta’s weird winter weather conditions didn’t seem to wreck winter wheat crops across the province, says a local winter wheat agronomist. “From our spring assessment, the majority of the fields has very little damage, even with the unusual winter conditions we experienced across the Prairies,” said Janine Paly of Ducks Unlimited Canada. The Ducks Unlimited agronomy team conducted a cross-country check of winter wheat fields throughout March — earlier than normal — because so many producers were worried, said Paly. “This is a very early spring assessment, but we’ve had many inquiries on winter survival from growers and industry. We thought it would be useful to know how the winter wheat crop fared.”
A number of “compounding factors” affect winter wheat survival, she said. While some varieties are hardier than others, plant stage is what counts. “A well-established plant at the three-leaf stage in the fall has a better chance of surviving the winter than a plant at the one-leaf stage,” said Paly. “The well-established plant has had more time in the fall to develop a healthy crown than the oneleaf plant. “The crown of the plant is its lifeline. If the crown is damaged, the risk of injury is greater.” Adequate snow cover reduces the risk of injury. “Winter wheat reaches its max hardiness early winter, which correlates with cold winter temperatures,” said Paly. “At that point, snow cover is ideal as it protects the plant from the harsh elements of winter, but in some regions this January, the snow melted, exposing the plant to the environment.”
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Even so, soil temperatures at the crown have to reach “a very low temperature for injury to occur,” she said. And by all accounts, that didn’t happen. Using the Winter Cereal Survival Model, a tool developed by the University of Saskatchewan, the Ducks Unlimited agronomists found the temperature at crown level didn’t dip below “a critical point for severe damage to occur.”
Wait to assess
January’s warm temperatures also had producers asking if their plants have dehardened, or come out of dormancy. The answer to that is “most likely not.” “Wet, frozen grounds warm up slowly, and it may take several weeks of warm air temperatures for the ground at the crown level to reach a certain temperature in order for the plant to deharden,” said Paly. “Where we might see more damage occur is where snow melted and ice formed in the low-lying regions of the field.” And though producers may be tempted to get out in their fields to check on the crop, they should start scouting in early May and conduct a “proper assessment” midway through spring seeding, she said. “This allows for the crop to recover but also time for the producer to decide if he should keep the crop or terminate,” said Paly. Producers should be targeting a plant population of between 20 to 30 plants, but crops with lower plant populations — between 10 and 15 plants per square foot — can still be profitable, she said. “Winter wheat has the ability to tiller and to make up yield lost due to a decrease in plant stand, but the crop will then act similar to a spring wheat crop, with later maturity and less competitiveness against weeds,” said Paly. “The grower will have to manage the field differently.” Top dressing nitrogen “as early in the spring as possible” will help the crop get off to a good start, especially if the plants aren’t doing well. “If a producer decides to keep a struggling crop, an application of a wild oat herbicide may also be warranted, since the winter wheat crop will not be as competitive.” Producers conducting an early assessment should dig up some plants, wash off the dirt, and place them in a wet paper towel in the sun. “Within two or three days, the grower should see new roots develop. If in six days there is no root development or top growth, the plant did not survive.” During an in-field assessment, producers should dig up the plant and examine the crown tissue — not the leaves. “Brown leaves may not be a sign of a dead plant. The only way to be sure is to examine the crown region,” she said. “A white crown means the plant survived and brown indicates it did not.” But for the moment, Paly’s advice to growers is to “be patient and give the plant time to recover. “This winter was particularly harsh, and the plants may require more time to recover than a normal year.” jennifer.blair@fbcpublishing.com
19
ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA • APRIL 27, 2015
Faller, Prosper receive three-year interim registration in time for seeding The Canadian Grain Commission hopes to assign them to a wheat class before harvest By Allan Dawson staff
F
armers have been given the go-ahead to plant American Dark Northern Spring wheats Faller and Prosper this spring after the Canadian Food Inspection Agency granted the varieties threeyear interim registrations earlier this month. But it’s not yet clear which quality class they’ll be placed in. The Canadian Grain Commission expects to announce that before harvest. Western Canada currently has eight milling wheat classes used to segregate wheat varieties based on their milling and baking attributes. “The CGC will not assign Prosper and Faller to a wheat class until such time as the consultation on our wheat class modernization proposal is complete and that feedback received has been assessed, reviewed and considered,” said Rémi Gosselin, the commission’s director of corporate services. Industry observers are betting the commission will create the proposed new class. While there’s a remote chance Faller and Prosper will be “classless” come fall, growers will be subjected to more market risk than those who were growing them in the past when still unregistered. “With a 25 per cent yield advantage (over Canada Western Red Spring varieties) growers are almost in the driver’s seat when it comes to marketing because you’re ahead so much (on yield),” said John Smith president of Seed Depot, the company with the Canadian distribution rights to both varieties developed at North Dakota State University.
Western Red Spring (CWRS), he said. In Manitoba last year, Faller averaged 72 bushels an acre compared to the CWRS at 50. That’s a difference of 22 bushels or 44 per cent. And last year doesn’t appear to have been a fluke. The last three years Faller averaged 72 bushels an acre compared to CWRS at 51. The yield gap was narrowed to 31 Seed Depot’s John Smith says Faller per cent for Faller when compared and Prosper outyield Canada Western to the last three years against the Spring wheats, but also produce less popular CWRS wheats Kane, Carprotein, which farmers need to keep berry, Glenn and Harvest. in mind when considering what to While Faller competes with CWRS grow. photo: allan dawson in world milling wheat markets, Faller and most CWRS wheats are Big yields different — the latter usually has One Manitoba grain company is more protein. And as Smith noted, offering new-crop Faller (12 per cent there’s a direct correlation between protein) prices at a 40-cent-a-bushel higher protein content and lower B:8.125” discount to 13.5 per cent Canada yield. T:8.125”
But if the CGC does create a new wheat class for Faller and other lower-gluten-strength milling wheats, Canadian plant breeders are sure to develop new varieties that meet and beat Faller yields, Smith predicted. “If it happens, it will be the first time a new class has come up and not been guided from birth and loved and cared for by the CWB (Canadian Wheat Board),” he said. “It just made sure it all worked. Now… it’s the private trade that’s got to nurture it and try and help it along.” A new Faller class will give western Canadian farmers other variety options, while protecting and strengthening the integrity of the CWRS class, known for its milling and baking quality, Smith said. allan@fbcpublishing.com
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Interim registration gives a variety the same benefits as full registration for a set period of time. In the meantime, varieties with interim registration continue to be tested to see if they meet the end-use, agronomic and disease standards required for registration. Faller and Prosper have been grown in Western Canada for British baker Warburtons the past two years under identity-preserved contracts and will be again this year, Smith said. But now farmers can buy certified seed and grow the varieties for any buyer without an identity-preserved contract. Still, Smith advises farmers to go slowly.
BayerCropScience.ca/Folicur or 1 888-283-6847 or contact your Bayer CropScience representative. Always read and follow label directions. Folicur® is a registered trademark of the Bayer Group. Bayer CropScience is a member of CropLife Canada. *Compared to 2014 SRP at the 200 mL/ac. rate
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“The CGC will not assign Prosper and Faller to a wheat class until such time as the consultation on our wheat class modernization proposal is complete and that feedback received has been assessed, reviewed and considered.”
“The enthusiasm for low-protein wheat is not as high as a year ago,” Smith warned. “The marketplace has more discount in there this year so I don’t think the acres will grow at all from last year — at the most 10 per cent.” In years when high-protein wheat is in short supply, lowerprotein wheat prices can be heavily discounted. “I spent the last five years trying to talk people out of growing Faller,” Smith said. “I was thinking now that it’s registered I can turn the other way, yet I find myself being so conservative in nature I’m telling guys, ‘go slow... If you throw your whole farm into it and there’s a huge protein discount in the fall (it could hurt you). Be cautious here. Don’t go crazy with it.’”
20
APRIL 27, 2015 • ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA
Canola growers get grim warning on clubroot threat No varieties have strong resistance to new pathotypes, longer rotations are ‘the best management option left’ “Resistance breakdown is a numbers game... most bets would be placed on clubroot’s ability to adapt.” Canola Watch newsletter
on clubroot’s ability to adapt. Longer rotation is necessary to slow the pathogen shift that is occurring in these fields.” It notes University of Alberta plant pathologist Stephen Strelkov tested soil samples from 27 fields in Alberta that were seeded to resistant varieties in 2014 and experienced higher-thanexpected levels of gall formation. “Of those 27 fields, 16 have clubroot pathotypes that suggest the clubroot population in those fields had shifted to overcome the resistance trait in the variety grown,” the newsletter says. “These fields are at very high risk of developing high spore loads of a new pathotype that current resistance won’t con-
trol. The patches currently range from 10 acres to a few square feet, but can spread quickly without immediate rotation action, reduced tillage, and equipment sanitation. Even with a four-year break, these fields could still be at risk of increasing spore loads leading to an economic level of infection. What the four-year break provides, in the case of these fields with the new pathotypes and those with heavy spore loads, is time for a solution to come forward — hopefully.” Growers in areas known to have clubroot should scout closely for clubroot when using resistant varieties; avoid tillage; and control canola volunteers and weeds that can host clubroot. The newsletter also makes a renewed pitch for cleaning equipment before moving to another field. “Few growers are taking time to disinfect (final misting with bleach, EcoClear, or HyperOx) equipment because of the time it takes. But growers in these higher-risk zones must at least knock the dirt off equipment before leaving fields. At least 90 per cent of clubroot spores that move from field to field can be stopped by scraping off dirt.”
Canola growers in the red, blue, and yellow counties are being urged to institute a “comprehensive management plan” to contain the spread of clubroot. Graphic: Alberta Agriculture/University of Alberta
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he Alberta Canola Producers Commission is urging producers to step up their efforts to contain clubroot in the province. “Since new data indicates some forms of clubroot resistance are no longer functioning well against new clubroot pathotypes in some of the heavily infested fields, we encourage you to consider a comprehensive management plan that includes all of these aspects of clubroot management on your farm,” the commission said in a news release. The news release contains an article from the April 2 issue of Canola Watch newsletter that states “the best management option left” is a four-year rotation as “no current varieties have strong resistance to (new clubroot) pathotypes.” “If growers have used resistant canola two or three times already on fields that were moderately to highly infested with clubroot, these fields are at high risk for having one or more of the different pathotypes,” says the Canola Council of Canada newsletter. “Resistance breakdown is a numbers game, and with the number of spores a serious clubroot patch contributes to the soil, most bets would be placed
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21
ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA • APRIL 27, 2015
ROCKY TOP
This band of horses stays on high ground along the Livingstone Range in the Rockies, north of Lundbreck in southern Alberta. Photo: Wendy Dudley
Trim: 8.125”
Asian grain mills stick with containers Containers preferred by smaller mills, door-to-door delivery
R CROP SELECT YOU
By Naveen Thukral Singapore / Reuters
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ss movement la -c in ts e B • ns rotection tive disease p under a variety of conditio va o n in & l u rf flexible • Powe nd apid uptake & nthracnose a R a , • w s e ie d rt il e m p ry ro p t, powde tinia, leaf rus ro e cl S : s e s a Dise many more.
Trim: 10”
Rapid growth in the use of containers to ship grains and oilseeds to Southeast Asia could take a step back this year after a fall in bulk freight rates to record lows, although smaller mills will mostly stick with containers, traders said. Containers accounted for about 20 per cent of Southeast Asia’s grain and oilseed shipments in 2014, grain traders said, up from 10-15 per cent the year before. However, an expansion in the global bulker fleet and a steep drop in crude oil prices dragged global bulk shipping rates to record lows in February. The quoted rate for a 50,000tonne bulk vessel from the western U.S. to Malaysia has fallen to around $20-$25 per tonne, while the container rate has held largely steady at around $40-$45 a tonne, shipping sources said. The widening difference has pushed some users back to bulk shipments, traders said, but the gap would need to widen by a further $10 to $15 a tonne to erode the benefits of containers for most smaller mills. “The volume shipped in containers has kept more or less intact,” said Voytek Chelkowski, managing director of Singaporebased freight consulting firm Seamind. “While we expect that the depressed bulk market may temporarily reduce the volume of grains shipped in containers, the value and opportunities of this mode of transportation will keep this segment vibrant,” he said. Small millers in countries such as Indonesia, Vietnam, Thailand and the Philippines want lower volumes than a bulk carrier load. Containers also allowed for easy shipment and tracking of non-genetically modified grains and organic food.
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22
APRIL 27, 2015 • ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA
Canola growers want province to push biodiesel
Don’t just grow crops, grow food processing By Jennifer Blair
By Jennifer Blair
af staff
T
af staff
hink big picture, says the general manager of the Alberta Wheat Commis-
sion. “We’ve seen the ministry roll out a rural development strategy, and we support that,” said Tom Steve. “But if you look at who the wealth creators are in rural communities, it tends to be the farmer... we need to find a way to leverage that wealth creation.” The result would be a more diverse economy and stronger agriculture industry. “We think a good companion to the rural development strategy is to focus on the crop sector and start to think about our vision for the major crops that we grow. How do we grow our market share? How do we expand into value-added processing? How do we tackle logistical issues?” Right now, each of the four major crop commissions — wheat, barley, canola, and pulses — are working together when possible, but without a common strategy. That ‘siloing’ is a missed opportunity, he said. “We’ve worked very hard to find areas of common interest
T Tom Steve with the other commissions, but more and more, we’re looking at how we can leverage the four major crop commissions in terms of our priorities.” And priority No. 1 is more domestic food processing. “We need to be taking greater advantage of our ability to do something with the grains before they’re shipped out on rail or by truck to an export market,” said Steve. “We grow high-quality wheat and canola and pulse crops, and we haven’t fully realized the potential of value-added processing. It creates jobs. It creates tax revenues.” jennifer.blair@fbcpublishing.com
he new provincial government needs to walk the walk — not just talk the talk — on climate change, starting with better support for renewable energy sources, says the general manager of Alberta Canola Producers Commission. “In their election platforms, almost all political parties talk about climate change and greenhouse gas reduction,” said Ward Toma. “Biodiesel is a low-carbon fuel, compared with some of the other ones, so it does help with greenhouse gas and carbon emissions.” And Toma is quite specific about what government should do: Hike the percentage of biodiesel blended with regular diesel to five per cent (up from the current two per cent) by 2020; set tougher greenhouse gas reduction and biomass production targets; and extend the bioenergy producer credit program (set to expire in March 2016). Those changes would be a win-win for both the province and growers, he said. “One of the things biodiesels can do is create another demand stream for the crop sector, but we can also help with greenhouse gas target reductions and have a sustainable biomass,” said Toma.
Hike biodiesel component from two per cent to five per cent, says ACPC. PHOTo: Thinkstock
Alberta’s alternative energy framework is a good first step, but renewable sources of energy, such as biodiesel, need to “continue to be a focus in the future.” “We’ll have to see once the election is over where they rank this with the rest of the policy reviews that the government is going to do,” he said. “We want to make sure that this program doesn’t get overlooked or fall by the wayside.” jennifer.blair@fbcpublishing.com
Ward Toma
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ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA • APRIL 27, 2015
Emergency Preparedness Week encourages Canadians to be prepared You should be able to cope for at least 72 hours while rescue workers help those in urgent need Agri-News
N
atural disasters may be beyond our control, but there are ways to reduce the risk and the impact of whatever emergency we might face — whether natural or human induced. Emergency Preparedness Week (May 3-9, 2015) encourages Canadians to be prepared to cope on their own for at least the first 72 hours of an emergency while rescue workers help those in urgent need. This week is a national effort of provincial and territorial emergency management organizations, and Public Safety Canada. By taking a few simple steps, you can become better prepared to face a range of emergencies — any time, anywhere. It is important to: • K now the risks — Although the consequences of disasters can be similar,
knowing the risks specific to our community and our region can help you better prepare. • Make a plan — It will help you and your family know what to do. • G et an emergency kit — During an emergency, we will all need some basic supplies. We may need to get by without power or tap water. Be prepared to be self-sufficient for at least 72 hours in an emergency. “This week, I encourage you to take concrete actions to be better prepared,” says Brad Andres, director of emergency planning, Alberta Agriculture and Rural Development, Edmonton. “Experience has shown that individual preparedness goes a long way to help people cope better — both during and after a major disaster. Get an emergency kit now — it can make a world of difference.” For more information on emergency preparations, go to www.GetPrepared.ca.
Taking a few simple steps to prepare can pay off if the power and water fail. Photo: Thinkstock
Basic emergency kit items Emergency Preparedness Canada
• Water — two litres of water per person per day (include small bottles that can be carried easily in case of an evacuation order); • Food that won’t spoil, such as canned food, energy bars and dried foods (remember to replace the food and water once a year); • Manual can opener; • Flashlight and batteries; • B a t t e r y - p o w e r e d o r windup radio; • Extra batteries; • F irst aid kit including special-needs items — prescription medications, infant formula or equipment for people with disabilities; • Extra keys for your car and house; • C ash — include smaller bills, such as $10 bills (travellers cheques are also useful) and change for pay phones; • Emergency plan — include a copy of it and ensure it contains in-town and outof-town contact information.
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APRIL 27, 2015 • ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA
China’s COFCO to enter global grain super-league State agency for world’s largest importer wants to rival the ‘ABCD’ group By Silvia Antonioli and Dmitry Zhdannikov Lausanne, Switzerland / Reuters
C
hina’s COFCO, the commodity consuming giant’s state-run grain-trading company, is planning to list to become publicly traded within three to five years, a move that would catapult it into the select stable of companies dominating global agricultural trade. In just over a year, COFCO has invested $2.8 billion to transform itself from a procurement operation into a global agricultural trader, via joint ventures with Noble Group Ltd.’s agribusiness and Dutch grain trader Nidera, after taking substantial stakes in the companies. “This should be not a Chinese, but a global company... the IPO will help us to achieve this
standard,” COFCO chairman Ning Gaoning said at the FT Commodities Global Summit. Ning told Reuters COFCO’s plan would be to list all of COFCO’s, Noble’s, and Nidera’s agricultural assets together. Its overall objective would likely be to rival the “ABCD” quartet of companies — Archer Daniels Midland, Bunge, Cargill and Louis Dreyfus — that dominate agricultural commodity trading. “After the integration with Noble Agri I think COFCO will invest again in other companies,” Ning said. “That is a place you cannot ignore,” he said when asked if COFCO could expand in North American markets. The investments marked the biggest overseas acquisitions in China’s grain sector, giving COFCO assets in some of the world’s top grain and vegetable oil-producing regions,
including Brazil, Argentina, Indonesia and the Black Sea area and enabling it to bring food supply to China independently of the dominant ABCD operators. “People ask me: are you going to be a buyer or a competitor in the future?... I think we will co-operate, sometimes we will compete,” Ning said. COFCO’s Nidera and Noble deals were considered a wake-up call for the grain industry as one of the world’s biggest customers turned into a competitor. “When they acquired Noble and Nidera they were already talking about an IPO, they said from the beginning that in due course they were considering an IPO,” said Karel Valken, global head of trade and commodity finance at Dutch bank Rabobank. “Clearly the priorities are to create synergies between the three (COFCO, Noble and
Nidera), by that time of course we would hope the stock market is more favourable than it is now.” He said the move would strengthen COFCO’s capital base and change the profile to a Chinese-international company. China agricultural stocks statistics are closely guarded, as changing inventory levels can move food markets sharply. It was unclear whether an IPO would mean more transparency given there are several state-owned entities involved in managing China’s food needs. China’s soybean imports are expected to grow faster than other products at around five per cent a year or more, Ning said. China currently consumes around a quarter of global soybean output. Over the longer term, he said China’s overall agricultural imports were set to rise to 200 million tonnesB:17.4” a year within 10 years from 120 million tonnesT:17.4” currently. S:17.4”
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25
Albertafarmexpress.ca • April 27, 2015
Clock ticking to get company co-operation for grain price transparency Gerry Ritz wants information posted starting Aug. 1 and John De Pape is confident the target can be met By Allan Dawson
staff / portage la prairie, Man.
J
ohn De Pape is trying to get all Prairie grain companies to give him their prices so he can post regional averages starting Aug. 1, but if they don’t the federal government might have to force them to. “It’s a stick the (agriculture) minister (Gerry Ritz) has,” De
Pape, president of FARMCO, told Manitoba’s Keystone Agricultural Producers (KAP) General Council meeting here April 16. “He’s reluctant to use it, but in all honesty if we fail in getting compliance voluntarily I’ll have to make that recommendation to the minister. “Nobody wants to do that, in my view anyway. If you regulate it you never get the same result as if you’d done it on your own.” De Pape and the Alberta Wheat
Commission, with funding from Growing Forward 2, are working to deliver better grain market transparency. A prototype website displaying daily prices based on data provided by a limited number of companies can be found at http:// www.pdqinfo.ca. Currently the site shows average prices in eight regions for four crops — Canada Western Red Spring wheat, Canada West-
ern Amber durum, Canada Prairie Spring wheat and canola. The goal is to post prices for all western crops, De Pape said. However, companies can be “pretty protective” of prices. “There is a large proportion of bids out there that are not available to everybody. I’m not going to name names but there are four companies that do not provide prices beyond their own customers. “When a company puts out a price as a bid, that, in my view, is a public good. But some companies say, ‘that’s my price, I’m not going to share it with everybody, just the people I deal with.’ Well, that’s not full disclosure.” Markets need information to work properly, to encourage competition and arbitrage prices, De Pape said. It’s not a new idea. Many grain markets, including in the United States, have better information, he said. “Better information makes for better decisions,” he said. For example, recently Manitoba canola prices were $36 a tonne higher than in northeast Saskatchewan. That might be enough to encourage some farmers to truck canola to Manitoba, De Pape said.
Port prices not visible
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LIGHT ’EM UP
Western Canadian farmers have been seeking more price information since the demise of the Canadian Wheat Board’s monopoly in 2012. But the wide gap between inland and port prices last crop year focused a light on the problem. At times farmers were getting $4 or $5 per bushel less for their wheat than what it was selling for in Vancouver, De Pape said. That’s also triggered demands for more information about grain prices at port. But getting accurate numbers there is a bigger problem, De Pape said. For starters not much grain changes ownership at port. In addition, there’s usually several months between when a sale is made and when the grain arrives at port, making it complicated to compare the port price with a country one. Moreover, the difference between the port and country price reveals how much a company is grossing. “I’m really not in favour of going to the companies and asking, ‘what did you sell for?’ I am sensitive to their competitive interests. I think the detriment of that is greater than the benefit.”
“It’s a stick the (agriculture) minister (Gerry Ritz) has. He’s reluctant to use it, but in all honesty if we fail in getting compliance voluntarily I’ll have to make that recommendation to the minister.” John De Pape
There are other ways to gauge whether port and inland prices are too far apart, including a demurrage index that would reflect delays in rail movement, which of late have been blamed for the wide basis (difference between cash and futures prices), he said. Market transparency also requires access to good data, including stocks and export reports and production estimates, De Pape said. He compared seven months of canola exports and found the Canadian Grain Commission (CGC) reported almost 250,000 fewer tonnes of canola exports than Statistics Canada. Export statistics are also almost two months old. Data needs to be accurate and timely, De Pape said. There are also gaps in the data. For example, the CGC doesn’t track the volume of grain exported from Canada in containers. (Amendments before the House of Commons are meant to fix that.) Last crop year 18 per cent of Canada’s grain exports was shipped in containers, he said. Meanwhile, De Pape continues to negotiate to get grain prices through the Western Grain Elevator Association, which represents the West’s major grain firms. “They have ideas and we have ideas and we’re trying to find common ground,” he told reporters. “There are a number of things that we agree on. They have not said no. They say they just want to make sure it’s done right. They have their own corporate interests in mind in terms of what is right. We may have a hard time agreeing on what is right.” allan@fbcpublishing.com
FARMCO president John De Pape, who is working with the Alberta Wheat Commission to bring price transparency to western Canadian grain markets, is still negotiating with companies to get prices voluntarily. photo: allan dawson
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APRIL 27, 2015 • ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA
Farmers delivering to CWB will automatically build equity Partnership of Bunge and a Saudi company can buy farmers out after seven years By Allan Dawson staff / winnipeg
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armers who deliver grain to a privatized CWB can collectively own up to 49.9 per cent through a farmers’ trust, but the control is with G3 Global Grain Group, which purchased 50.1 per cent of CWB for $250.5 million earlier this month. G3, newly formed for the deal, is a joint venture firm majority owned by multinational, publicly traded Bunge, the world’s third-largest grain and food company and state-owned Saudi Agricultural Livestock Investment Company (SALIC). G3’s money will stay with CWB instead of going to the seller. When combined with the farmers’ equity allocated at a rate of $5 for every tonne of grain delivered retroactive to Aug. 1, 2013, CWB has a book value of $500 million. The sale has been approved by Industry Canada and is pending by the Competition Bureau, he said. The deal should close by July.
Equity through patronage
Sold! CWB’s new elevator at Bloom, Manitoba will be part of the new privatized CWB owned 50.1 per cent by G3, a joint venture firm majority owned by multinational, publicly traded Bunge and state-owned Saudi Agricultural Livestock Investment Company. photo: allan dawson
The farmers’ equity has no guaranteed value but costs only patronage. Equity isn’t taxable until paid in cash. At a news conference announcing the sale, G3 chief executive officer Karl Gerrand said the new company will keep the CWB name and will offer pools. The former CEO of Can-Oat
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Milling also worked for Viterra before becoming Bunge Canada’s managing director. G3’s staff of 12 will join 100 CWB employees working out of two floors leased back from the building it sold in February. The new CWB will have two shareholders — G3 and the farmers’ equity trust. Farmers who deliver to CWB will own units in the trust and the trust will own CWB shares. CWB will be a private company, exempt from making financial reports public.
“Equity will be redeemed when a farmer quits, or dies, or if CWB is sold or launches a public share offering.”
Dayna Spiring
The trust will be overseen by three independent trustees selected by CWB. One trustee will sit on CWB’s seven-director board. After the farmers’ equity is fully allocated, or in seven years, G3 can buy the equity, but isn’t obliged to, said Dayna Spiring, CWB’s chief strategy officer and chief counsel. Gerrand said he can’t predict if G3 will eventually buy farmers
out. “What I can say today is we embrace this equity component and the farmer involvement in our business.” Equity will be redeemed when a farmer quits, or dies, or if CWB is sold or launches a public share offering, Spiring said. There won’t be a minority shareholder discount when shares are liquidated. Farmers’ equity can be diluted but if so, farmers will own a smaller piece of a bigger company, a CWB official said. Bunge Canada, through G3, will add one elevator in Ontario and three in Quebec, plus a port terminal in Quebec City. The new CWB plans “to build a coast-to-coast grain-handling network,” Ritz told the Winnipeg news conference. In the interim CWB will continue to move grain from the country and West Coast ports through handling agreements with other grain companies. “In addition to that we see possibilities and potential for development on the West Coast all of which we plan to look into,” Spiring said. CWB, which didn’t own any elevators or port terminals, has been buying and building facilities the last 18 months. It purchased port terminals at Thunder Bay and Trois-Rivières, bought inland Prairie West Terminal and Great Sandhills Terminal and is building four new country elevators, including at Bloom and near Ste. Agathe in Manitoba. allan@fbcpublishing.com
French farmers warn of losses as Total turns to biofuels Growers say switch to recycled oils will cut rapeseed production by more than a quarter Paris / Reuters
French oil major Total’s plans to turn a loss-making refinery into a biodiesel plant using mainly recycled oils will cut rapeseed production by more than a quarter and result in job losses, growers warned April 16. Rapeseed is the main crop used to make biodiesel in France. Total said April 16 it would halt crude refining at La Mede site near Marseille by the end of next year to create France’s first biorefinery to meet growing demand for biofuels. The biorefinery will produce biodiesel mainly from waste oils, Total said. This would mean less demand for rapeseed, Arnaud Rousseau, vice-president of France’s oilseed growers group FOP, said, and the total rapeseed area would shrink by more than 25 per cent or 400,000 hectares. “We are not speaking of a small point, this is something that will deeply change the French agricultural landscape,” he told Reuters, warning of job cuts in the sector.
“I imagine that if we cut rapeseed output by 25 per cent, there will be industrial consequences and a cut in production tools,” he said. “To solve Total’s job problem we’ll just move the issue and create an agricultural problem.” Rousseau said he would urge the French government to intervene. The biofuel industry has already been dealt a blow by European plans to limit the amount of crop-based biofuels that can be used in the transport sector, after claims they add to food price volatility and bring few environmental benefits. France’s overall biodiesel capacity is 2.1 million tonnes. Avril group, Europe’s largest biodiesel maker, owned by French oilseed growers and formerly known as Sofiproteol, controls 1.6 million tonnes. The group, which shut two plants in 2013 due to biodiesel overcapacity in Europe, declined to comment on Total’s plans. Oilseed producers said the oils used in the biorefinery would mostly be imported palm oil.
27
ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA • APRIL 27, 2015
Bunge boss of two years faces pressure to improve results The company has struggled with risk management, incurring huge hedging losses in soybeans By Tom Polansek chicago / reuters
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$250-million deal for Bunge Ltd. to take control of Canadian grain handler CWB may not help the head of the agribusiness firm in his drive to boost profits. The transaction was announced April 15 as Bunge chief executive Soren Schroder, 53, faces pressure to improve earnings after leading the world’s largest oilseed processor for nearly two years. Since he became CEO in June 2013, the company’s stock price has advanced 23 per cent, lagging gains of nearly 50 per cent for rival Archer Daniels Midland Co.
Investors and analysts are hoping Schroder on April 30 delivers strong first-quarter earnings after operating profits in Bunge’s core agribusiness segment fell 14 per cent in 2014. It should be easy for trading houses like Bunge and ADM to increase earnings as large harvests provide ample opportunity to make money out of their bread-and-butter business of transporting, storing and selling grain. However, Bunge has struggled with managing risk and hedging soybeans, with missteps in these areas repeatedly hurting profits. Bunge expects the CWB deal, which partners the company with Saudi Arabia’s state-owned agricultural investment firm, to
close in July, and it will not factor into first-quarter earnings. Once it is finalized, it will be too small to significantly impact results, said Jeff Stafford, senior analyst for Morningstar, noting Bunge’s market capitalization tops $12 billion. For the first quarter, Bunge is expected to earn $1.19 per share excluding certain items, up from a loss of 12 cents a year earlier, according to Thomson Reuters data. In the fourth quarter, profits fell short of expectations largely due to hedging losses. Bunge logged an $80-million loss on its books in the quarter because prices for oilseeds in North America and fuel shifted after the company locked in
margins. Schroder has said he will make this back in the first half of 2015. Bunge had a similar $80-million hedging loss in oilseed businesses in the third quarter of 2014, which it recouped in the fourth quarter. The company lost out further in the fourth quarter when the value of soybeans it was delivering to top importer China dropped $30 million below the amount the company had paid for them. “I don’t want to critique its hedging policy, other than it hasn’t worked,” said Brett Wong, senior research analyst for Piper Jaffray & Co., about Bunge. Last year, Schroder’s compen-
Trim: 8.125”
sation climbed 55 per cent to $10.1 million as his salary rose 20 per cent to $1.2 million and options awards increased, regulatory filings show. Privately held commodity trader Cargill Inc. has set the bar high for Bunge’s upcoming earnings, reporting last week that profits for the quarter ended Feb. 28 rose 33 per cent on the year. And Goldman Sachs recently raised its rating for Bunge to a buy, citing the best macro environment for the company in years. “Everybody’s benefiting from this environment, it’s just that Bunge keeps shooting itself in the foot,” Wong said last month, referring to hedging losses.
Farmland value increase moderated in 2014 Values in the province have continued to climb since 1993 Agri-News
Trim: 10”
Average farmland values in Canada continued to rise in 2014, but the climb wasn’t as steep as the previous year both nationally and in many key agriculture regions, according to the latest Farm Credit Canada Farmland Values Report. Alberta farmland values increased an average of 8.8 per cent in 2014, following gains of 12.9 per cent in 2013 and 13.3 per cent in 2012. Values in the province have continued to climb since 1993. The rapid growth of values in the Peace region has stabilized. Large grain producers in the central Peace continued to expand, but appeared to wait for smaller parcels closer to their main operation rather than aggressively purchasing in new markets. Dry conditions reduced the 2014 harvest in the Peace region, resulting in more cautious purchases. The Edmonton area saw moderate growth with most demand coming from competition for available grain land. In southern Alberta, demand for irrigated land remained strong, especially from specialty crop producers looking to expand. Traditional crop producers sought to purchase irrigated land due to the higher commodity prices seen in 2014. Dryland producers also contributed to a steady demand for farmland due to higher commodity prices and general optimism. Strong beef prices have increased the demand for pasture in the more traditional beef areas, especially in the central to northern east portions of the province.
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APRIL 27, 2015 • ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA
healthy crops.
HEALTHY PROFITS.
Fungicide: optional add-on or necessary yield enhancer?
ARD researchers planted small plot trials at five locations around Alberta to test the return on investment of a fungicide application. In the second year of a fouryear trial, the side-by-side comparisons of wheat grown with and without fungicide showed definitive results: in all but the driest sites, fungicide application offered a net economic benefit, with returns ranging from $14 to $110 per acre.
are there and they want to take their yields to the next level, growers need to have fungicide as part of their standard management program, just as they would expect to include herbicide.” Throughout the 2014 growing season, the three sites in southern and central Alberta received between 10.4 and 16.7 inches of precipitation—average or above average for the area. This moisture supported both strong crop growth and high disease development. The two wettest sites—one moistened via precipitation and one via irrigation—saw a yield increase of 22 to 37 per cent from a single application of fungicide versus the untreated control, and 30 to 48 per cent from a dual fungicide application. The trial site in
“
“I think the data from our trials might convince those growers who are still on the fence,” says Dr. Sheri Strydhorst, an agronomy research scientist with Alberta Agriculture and Rural Development and the lead researcher in the fungicide trials. “If the risk factors for disease development
If they want to take their yields to the next level, growers need to have fungicide as part of their standard management program.
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04/15-43312
northern Alberta that faced near-drought conditions, on the other hand, had little yield response—not surprising given that conditions were not conducive to disease. According to the study, a single fungicide application cost $18.41 to $25.59 per acre. Based on that cost and a wheat price of $4.68 per bushel, ARD’s Production Crops Economist, Rawlin Thangaraj, calculated the net economic benefit of a single fungicide application was between $75 and $77 per acre at the trial site hit hardest by disease. With two applications of fungicide at the same location, at a total cost of $44 per acre, the net economic benefit was $92 per acre. At the irrigated trial location, net economic benefit was even higher: $103 to $110 per acre for the early and late single fungicide applications respectively. “When you have warm, moist conditions that suit disease development and you’re growing a variety that doesn’t have really strong disease resistance, you will see a tremendous yield response from the use of fungicide,” says Strydhorst. “In those types of conditions, a fungicide’s return on investment will be huge even at lower commodity prices.”
“
When commodity prices are high, it’s easy to justify investing in crop inputs to maximize yield. When commodity prices drop, however, many producers look for ways to save. Fungicide applications are often among the first inputs to be omitted. But is the decision to drop your fungicide based on good economics and sound science? Not unless you’re growing in near-drought conditions, according to new research from Alberta Agriculture and Rural Development (ARD).
29
ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA • APRIL 27, 2015
Protect your crops from yield-destroying diseases with a fungicide solution from UFA. UFA carries a wide variety of effective treatments including:
To learn more about how we can help you get the most from your crop’s potential, contact your local UFA customer account manager, or our customer service centre at 1-877-258-4500 (option 1), or email customer.support@UFA.com
UFA.com 4/20/15 11:14 AM
30
APRIL 27, 2015 • ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA
AT HOME ON THE RANGE
Cattle prices remain high, as southern Alberta ranchers come through an easy winter, with little snow and moderate temperatures. Photo: Wendy Dudley
Bird flu hits share prices Virulent strain of flu is creating ‘significant challenges’ for turkey supply
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By P.J. Huffstutter Reuters
The spread of a deadly strain of bird flu into an Iowa egg farm accelerated market concerns over how big of a bite the current outbreak could take from the United States’ egg and poultry businesses, sending shares of several leading meat companies down on Tuesday last week. Hormel Foods Corp. shares were down more than three per cent in early afternoon trading after the Minnesota-based company said the impact of the virulent strain of avian influenza may drag its fiscal 2015 earnings toward the lower end of forecasts. Flocks have been infected in 12 states. The virus has been identified at a facility west of Minneapolis that is owned by a subsidiary of Hormel. Minnesota, the largest turkey-producing state in the country, has been the hardest hit so far, followed by farms in Arkansas, Missouri, the Dakotas, Wisconsin and Iowa. Hormel chief executive officer Jeffrey M. Ettinger said in a statement the company was seeing “significant challenges” to its turkey supply chain because of the highly pathogenic avian influenza outbreaks in Wisconsin and Minnesota, where its Hormel and Jennie-O Turkey Store units are based. The company said that while it expected the outbreak to potentially ease as the weather turned warmer, tight meat supplies and operational challenges in its turkey business as a result of the bird flu outbreak would put pressure on its earnings. Poultry producer Pilgrim’s Pride share prices were down 1.2 per cent, and leading chicken producer Tyson Foods Inc. and Sanderson Farms were down less than one per cent.
31
ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA • APRIL 27, 2015
Deciding whether to use an AFSC Spring Price Endorsement Payout triggered if the average price in October falls by more than 10 per cent from the spring price Agri-News
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any Alberta crop producers are making their crop insurance decisions, and one of those decisions is whether to get the Spring Price Endorsement (SPE). “The SPE endorsement, a supplementary election to production insurance, is a form of price insurance to protect against a price drop for that crop,” says Neil Blue, marketing specialist, Alberta Agriculture and Rural Development, Vermilion. “A spring price is set for each crop during the winter. If the calculated average price during the month of October for that crop falls by more than 10 per cent from the spring price for that crop, a payout will be triggered under the Spring Price Endorsement. This SPE payout would be the
difference between the spring price and the average October price on the covered yield to a maximum drop of one-half of the spring price. A claim under SPE can occur regardless of whether there is a production claim.” Alternatives to the Spring Price Endorsement are price contracts signed with a physical buyer or, for crops with a related futures market like canola, buying a put option with the farmer’s own account.
Example
Blue says these price risk management alternatives are not identical, and cites an example of the comparison to a put option. The spring price for canola is $9.53/bushel, so the trigger for a payout under SPE is an average October price of $8.58/bushel, using the average November futures closing prices for October
minus a $20/tonne basis. Using a 40-bu./acre average yield, the SPE premium at 70 per cent coverage rate is about 30 cents/bushel. Alternatively, a $430/tonne put option currently costs about the same 30 cents a bushel. So, assuming the same $20/tonne basis, that $430/tonne put option would lock in a minimum cash price of $410/tonne, or $9.30/bushel, leave price upside open, and have no delivery commitment to a physical canola buyer. “Another consideration when deciding is the convenience of dealing with SPE through AFSC versus the need with an option position to have your own futures account, although you do have more timing flexibility and price decision choice with your own futures (options) account.” For more information on Spring Price Endorsement contact any AFSC office or the
AFSC website www.afsc.ca. The website contains a calculator with which to test different scenarios for production insurance, Spring Price Endorsement and the Variable Price Benefit. Grain buyers can provide information on their price contracts, which will include a delivery commitment. “Some farmers are finalizing their crop choice decisions and a good resource to help with those decisions is Crop Choice$ on the ARD website,” adds Blue. “This software program helps crop producers predict revenues and margins for their crop enterprise, and includes crop insurance considerations.” For more information on these price risk management topics call the Alberta Ag-Info Center at 310-FARM (310-3276) and ask to speak with a farm management or market specialist.
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APRIL 27, 2015 • ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA
Saskatchewan government to review land ownership rules Consultations for a review of the legislation will be announced this spring toronto / reuters
T
he Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB), the country’s largest pension fund manager, said April 13 it is concerned about the Saskatchewan government’s decision to temporarily ban certain institutional investors from buying farmland in the province. The western province said it plans a review of farmland ownership rules under the Saskatchewan Farm Security Act. Pension plans and other institutional investors will be
unable to purchase farmland in Saskatchewan while the review is ongoing. No completion date was given for the review. In January, Reuters reported the province, whose plains grow more wheat than Argentina, is likely to tighten what are already some of North America’s strictest rules for buying farmland as Saskatchewan looks to fend off big money managers hungry for what they see as a winning investment. Saskatchewan law already requires that companies that invest in farmland be 100 per cent owned by Canadians. Purchases by pension funds are
also banned, but the Saskatchewan Farm Land Security Board allowed CPPIB to buy 115,000 acres in 2013 on the basis that its corporate structure was unique. “Our goal is not to limit investment but to ensure the long-term success of Saskatchewan’s agriculture industry and economy,” Lyle Stewart, the province’s agriculture minister, said in a statement. The province plans to release details on the consultation process later this spring. The CPPIB, which manages contributions from 18 million Canadians to support the B:10.25”
Canada Pension Plan, said it had ensured it was a qualified buyer before it bought farmland in the province and notified Saskatchewan’s Farm Land Security Board about its plans in advance. CPPIB said it did not receive any indication at the time that its investments in farmland were not welcome. “We are confident that our farmland investments will generate returns for the CPP Fund while doing no harm to Saskatchewan, its farmland market or the farmers,” CPPIB’s senior managing director Michel Leduc said in a statement.
“We are confident that our farmland investments will generate returns for the CPP Fund while doing no harm to Saskatchewan, its farmland market or the farmers.” Michel Leduc CPP
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33
ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA • APRIL 27, 2015
Focus on irrigation
Alarm bells ringing in Alberta as invasive mussels move west The arrival of the devastating invaders in Manitoba has led to mandatory inspections here By Madeleine Baerg af contributor
A
lberta introduced tough new legislation last month requiring mandatory boat inspections — a ramping up of the effort to keep zebra and quagga mussels out of the province. But officials admit that what’s really needed is public buy-in — and a little luck — to keep these devastating waterway invaders at bay. “If we ‘miss the boat,’ so to speak and have an infestation, we estimate that these mussels would cost Albertans about $75 million every year,” said Kate Wilson, an aquatic invasive species program specialist with Alberta Environment and Sustainable Resource Development. “These mussels pose threats to everything from hydropower facilities and waste water plants to irrigation systems and native fisheries, to tourism and property values. Prevention is definitely our best management option.” Zebra and quagga mussels are thumbnail-sized (or smaller) freshwater species native to the Black Sea region. Adaptable, incredibly prolific, and tiny enough in larval stages to spread through even small waterworks
These samples, collected at Lake Mead in Nevada, show the growth of quagga mussels on a pipe after two, four, and six months. Photo: National Park Service, Lake Mead such as irrigation pipes, these invasive species are virtually unstoppable once they gain access to a new body of water. Unlike native mussels that live on lake bottoms, adult zebra and quagga mussels attach to substrates, clogging pipes and waterways, smothering spawning grounds, and costing huge dollars as they spread.
Getting closer
One female can produce up to a million eggs every year. Although they arrived in North America less than 30 years ago and only moved west of the Mississippi in 2007, they’re now in most U.S. river systems. Nevada’s
Lake Mead now has more than 10 trillion mussels since they arrived in 2007. While zebra mussels have been present in Ontario for some time, their arrival in Manitoba’s Lake Winnipeg in 2013 set alarm bells ringing in this province. “This detection in Lake Winnipeg really changes the game,” said Wilson. “The highest-priority borders for us right now are the eastern and southern border.” That’s why it will now be mandatory for anyone transporting a boat to stop for inspection at stations located along Alberta’s major highways. The maximum fine for not stopping is a whopping $100,000.
The number of inspection stations will grow from four last year to between 10 and 14 this year. And after a successful trial using a mussel sniffer dog team out of Montana last year, Alberta is readying four of its own sniffer dog and handler teams to join the battle. But the task is challenging as zebra and quagga mussels are spectacular hitchhikers. Their microscopic larvae can easily hitch a ride in the standing water often found in the bilge, ballast or live well areas of boats. And larvae and adult mussels can survive as long as 30 days out of water. So a single boat with just a couple of inches of standing water or an unnoticed adult mussel tagalong could precipitate a devastating invasion.
Huge threat
The threat to Alberta’s irrigation districts — which has more than 50 water reservoirs and 8,000 kilometres of canals and buried irrigation pipeline — is huge. The Alberta Irrigation Projects Association is so concerned it’s helping to fund the sniffer dogs teams. “The larval stage of these mussels can go through anything, and the impact would be very fast,” said Wilson. “An infestation of mussels would probably require the replacement, and likely a regular replacement, of a lot of the irrigation sys-
tem water intakes, pipes, and pivots. The direct cost to farmers and consumers could be devastating.” The mandatory inspection is just one prong of the province’s prevention strategy. There’s also a Clean, Drain, Dry Your Boat campaign; a 24/7 reporting and information hotline (1-855-336 BOAT); and ongoing monitoring of water bodies. A response plan is also being developed and further policy and legislative changes are being considered. But the key is public support and vigilance, said Wilson. “We’re not talking about a hypothetical risk,” she said. “Last year, we inspected over 3,700 watercraft of which two were fouled with mussels. And we found an additional three boats carrying mussels outside of the inspection station season. The year before, seven fouled boats were intercepted.” Because this is the first year of mandatory inspections, the focus will be on education, said Wilson. “In other areas that have implemented mandatory inspections, boaters tend to be sold on the program by the second year because inspections tend to be relatively quick, they ultimately protect our resources, and stopping to ensure you’re not inadvertently transporting invasive species is the right thing to do.”
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34
APRIL 27, 2015 • ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA
Focus on irrigation
Investment sees producers get more crop from the drop A soon-to-be-published study estimates 170 million to 200 million cubic metres were saved from 1999 to 2012 By Kristi Cox af contributor
A
lberta producers and irrigation districts are making great strides toward conserving water, with both grants and individual investment producing tangible water and energy savings. Those efforts produced overall water savings of 170 million to 200 million cubic metres in Alberta’s 13 irrigation districts from 1999 to 2012, said Rod Bennett, director of Alberta Agriculture and Rural Development’s Irrigation Management Branch. In a paper about to be published in the Canadian Water Resources Journal, Bennett used data on irrigation infrastructure, system type, crop mix and weather information. About 50 million cubic metres of water savings came from conveyance — getting the water from the diversion source to the farm gates. This doesn’t vary greatly year to year, unlike the on-farm side of the demand, where the water savings range from 120 million to 150 million cubic metres. Part of these savings are due to programs like the Irrigation Rehabilitation Program.
The rehabilitation of the Secondary A Canal in the Western Irrigation District was completed last year, with 93 kilometres of the canal rehabilitated from 2001-14 at a cost of $52 million. Under the cost-sharing program, the province pays 75 per cent and irrigation districts 25 per cent of the cost for upgrading canals and infrastructure to reduce water losses from evaporation and seepage, as well as improved delivery. But the lion’s share of the water savings is from reduced on-farm demand. “It’s the private investment on the part of irrigation producers that have resulted in 70 to 75 per cent of the total reduction in water demand,” said Bennett.
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Low-pressure centre pivot systems greatly increase water-use efficiency. Photos: Western Irrigation District Low-pressure pivots have played a major role in that. In 2012, more than 68 per cent of the 13 irrigation districts were irrigated with low-pressure centre pivot systems. This is a huge jump from 35 per cent in use in 1999. Federal-provincial cost-share funding initiatives under the Growing Forward 2 irrigation efficiency program have helped to drive those changes. “This program provides 40 per cent rebates of up to $5,000 per producer for investments in new or upgraded low-pressure centre pivot irrigation equipment,” said Bennett. The list of eligible equipment is extensive, including new low-pressure centre pivot equipment, converting high-pressure systems, and upgrading existing low-pressure systems. Upgrades could include replacing worn-out nozzles, pressure regulators, and new control panels on pivots “The new panels allow producers to change their settings or turn systems on and off using their cellphones or a tablet,” Bennett said. Another option is to add variable-rate irrigation system components for precision irrigation. Initiatives under the Alberta Climate Change Strategy from 2008 to 2011 saw $700,000 in grants paid out to about 200 producers. In just the first year of the Growing
Forward 2 irrigation efficiency program, 156 producers were provided with more than $715,000 in grants. Year two saw 128 grant payments of about $560,000. But there is still a lot of room for improvement. As of 2012, there were still about 48,000 hectares irrigated with high-pressure systems, and 115,000 hectares with wheel move and gravity irrigation systems. “Not all wheel move or gravity systems will be replaced by low-pressure centre pivots because of field size, shape, or affordability,” Bennett said. “There’s no reason why highpressure systems shouldn’t be converted to low pressure, though. We estimate that they can save about one-third of their energy, going from high pressure to low pressure.” If moving from wheel move to low pressure, the energy costs savings could be more than 40 per cent. Further improvements are planned for the conveyance side. As of 2012, there was still more than 1,600 kilometres of canals left to be rehabilitated. Bennett’s paper (co-authored by Bob Riewe, Toby Entz, and Shelley Woods) Water Conveyance and On-farm Irrigation System Efficiency Gains in Southern Alberta Irrigation Districts from 1999 to 2012 will be published later this year.
CLEAN, DRAIN & DRY YOUR BOAT AND GET IT INSPECTED IF YOU ARE COMING FROM OUT OF PROVINCE STOP QUAGGA AND ZEBRA MUSSELS FROM ENTERING ALBERTA AND HELP PROTECT ALBERTA’S LAKES AND RESERVOIRS You don’t want mussels here.
t • Smart Data • Smart Rx
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Sharp shells on beaches, water pipes plugged with shells, shells on your boat, smell of rotting mussels at the lake, more large water weeds,
fishing
changed
forever – that’s what Quagga and Zebra Mussels do when they invade water. Let’s keep them out of Alberta. Get your boat inspected when you are coming back into the Province. For more information or to report something suspicious on your boat
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35
ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA • APRIL 27, 2015
Focus on irrigation
The big two irrigated crops seeing some competition Forages and cereals still dominate irrigated acreage, but oilseeds and specialty crops are growing in popularity By Kristi Cox af contributor
E
ach year, Alberta Agriculture and Rural Development publishes a compilation of all 13 of the province’s irrigation districts’ data for the previous year. The latest figures show cereals and forages (pasture, hay and silage crops) still account for two-thirds of the 1,390,000 acres in the districts, but the trend is clear — forage production isn’t what it used to be, and oilseeds and specialty crops are on the rise. “In 2003, BSE (bovine spongiform encephalopathy) was discovered in Alberta, and since then we’ve seen the proportion of forage crops declining over time,” said Shelley Woods, a soil and water scientist with Alberta Agriculture’s Irrigation and Farm Water Division. But some districts stray quite far from the provincial average. For example, the Lethbridge Northern Irrigation District is in an area of high feedlot density and forages account for 57 per cent of its irrigated acres, with cereals grown on 23 per cent of irrigated land and specialty crops on just three per cent. But overall, acreage of specialty crops (dry beans, potatoes, sugar beets, and seed canola) is slowly, but steadily growing and in recent years (2014 figures haven’t been compiled yet) have regained their lead over oilseeds (canola and flax, but also safflower and mustard). Specialty crops can be challenging as they require a great deal of expertise to grow successfully, have higher input costs, and frequently need special equipment for seeding and harvesting. But growers who get it right are often rewarded with the highest profits. In the Taber Irrigation District, specialty crops account for 37 per cent of production thanks to the region’s potato- and sugarprocessing plants. Its two potato-processing plants opened in 1999 and 2000, fuelling a doubling of potato acreage. Likewise, sugar beet production is driven by processor demand. “We can’t reach an unlimited amount of sugar beet acres because it’s grown under a contract determined by the processor and how much they want to purchase each year,” noted Woods.
One of the drivers across all irrigation districts is new varieties. Both silage and grain corn have been on the increase since about 2007, mainly because of new varieties that are better suited to shorter Prairie summers. And as silage corn rises, barley silage has decreased. “Corn can produce about 50 per cent more silage than barley on the same land base,” said Woods. “With the opening of the DuDont Pioneer corn research facility between Lethbridge and Coaldale, we will likely see greater increases in corn acres, for both silage and grain.” The stars have also lined up for faba beans, which have jumped from 1,400 acres in 2006 to more than 3,700 in 2013. Fabas produce well under irrigation, there’s been good market demand, and their nitrogen-fixing ability is prized. “We’ve had faba beans on irrigation for about eight years already, and had very good results with them,” said Richard Stamp, a pedigree seed grower near Enchant. “We needed to put a pulse crop back into our rotation.” Stamp turned to fabas after trying dry beans for a few years, which did not do well in their area. “They (fabas) grow very well under irrigation,” he said “They can tolerate a lot more water and respond well to moisture. So when you irrigate them later in the season you get a greater yield out of them.” Stamp has found them to be one of the lower-risk crops he grows, which adds to the incentive to grow them. In addition to acreage figures, the Alberta Irrigation Information Booklet has a host of other data, including what type of irrigation equipment is being used, weather patterns, and water usage. However, the data is just for the 13 irrigation districts. There are an additional 310,255 acres of private irrigation not covered by this survey. The booklet can be downloaded at www. agric.gov.ab.ca (type ‘irrigation information’ in the search box) or obtained by calling 310-FARM.
The trend has not been a friend for forages, which has lost acres to specialty crops and oilseeds. (The ‘Other’ category is summerfallow, fields with multi crops, and acres that were not reported.) Graphic: Alberta Agriculture and Rural Development
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36
APRIL 27, 2015 • ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA
Focus on irrigation
Variable-rate irrigation on the rise Not everyone is convinced the technology is where it needs to be, but advocates say ‘interest is growing exponentially’ By Madeleine Baerg af contributor
S
outhern Alberta’s irrigation system is on the cusp of going very high tech. Now that crop yield monitoring is commonplace and variable-rate crop-input technology making inroads, ag equipment companies and early adopters of advanced technology are setting their sights on micromanaging irrigation. “Variable-rate irrigation (VRI) is certainly here to stay,” said Jeff Bronsch, president of Sunrise Ag, an agronomic consulting firm in Taber focusing on data-driven agriculture. “Multiple companies now offer platforms, and interest is growing exponentially among growers. Right now, there are about 50 to 60 VRI systems in place in Alberta. But like any new technology, once it’s out there and guys can see the benefits, uptake is going to increase.” The goal is the same as in any variable-rate technology — applying different amounts of water to different areas of a field based on topography, soil variability, and other factors to maximize yield and quality while making the most efficient use of all inputs. “If you don’t irrigate optimally, you can’t achieve optimal yield or minimize losses,” said Bronsch. “If you fertilize a hilltop to grow 20 tonnes of potatoes, but can only irrigate it to achieve 15 tonnes, you’re wasting the money you invested in fertilizer.” And providing the right amount of water to each part of a field means it produces better uniformity, consistency, maturity, and size — and that’s especially impor-
Variable-rate irrigation adjusts the application of water based on topography, soil variability, and other factors. Photos: Sunrise Ag tant in a high-value crop like potatoes, he added. “Water is a pretty cheap input but it has a very big impact on a crop’s outcome.” In 2014, Bronsch conducted a side-by-side comparison of two fields, both with the same soil types, topographical challenges, planting and harvesting dates. The field with variable irrigation was harvested down to the very last acre, whereas the field with traditional irrigation was left with approximately eight acres of lowquality, undersized, unharvestable potatoes. While his study is hardly of a large enough scale to be considered scientific, the results are still turning heads.
Flattening the field
“I call VRI the flattening out of the field,” said Bronsch. “You use VRI to eliminate topographical challenges and improve the maturity and size profile. In our side-by-side comparison, the grower saw a gross revenue increase of $70,000 off the field with VRI compared to the field without. “The investment in the VRI system for this field was about $50,000, which is a bit higher than a standard pivot because this pivot had a corner arm. So he essentially paid for the system in one year and put $20,000 in his jeans.” That said, a study conducted by Alberta Agriculture and Rural Development researcher Ted Harms in 2012 and 2013 showed less stellar results. Although the
Variable-rate irrigation can ‘flatten out the field,’ says Jeff Bronsch of Sunrise Ag. concept makes sense, implementing variable rate was a challenge, he found. “It was just way too much work with the instrumentation we had,” Harms said in the study. “It could take you most of your day to manage two pivots, (the test areas) have 19. We need to have some kind of a program or computer modelling to make this work. If we got to that point, variable-rate irrigation could have very real possibilities for many fields.” While there may still be a debate over whether the technology is ready now for implementation, one thing is certain: How we use water will be an increasing focus over the coming years. With aquifer levels dropping pre-
cariously low in many parts of the U.S., water demand growing, and drought seeming to be increasingly common in many areas, experts say water will not be cheap and easily accessible for long. “Thinking about water as an important commodity is sound and rational, but no one seems to be recognizing that yet,” said Bronsch. “People aren’t rewarded in society for being conservationists with water. Water use is usually tied to some economic number. But I really think growers who use less water should be rewarded or awarded — recognized for doing something above and beyond. “Their efforts to conserve water by investing in technology need to be recognized.”
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ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA • APRIL 27, 2015
Seed Row and Foliar Alpine liquid nutrition Tackles the Water Use efficiency (WUe) Challenge Water Use Efficiency (WUE) is crop production per inch of available water during the growing season.
“Applying seed row AlpinE produces better Water Use Efficiency. placing the liquid fertilizer in the seed row improves the chance for the seed when competing with fertilizer for moisture.” Says Professional Agrologist, Gerald Anderson, P. Ag.”
WUe the Key to increasing profits on irrigation and Dry land For maximum WUE the place to start is in the seed row. It is critical to get adequate moisture to the seed in the row as soon as possible after seeding. The seed must have access to adequate moisture and nutrtion for best WUE at germination and emergence. Any lost vigour of the plant at emergence is difficult and costly to recover later in the growing season. Today’s farmer has access to the field equipment to increase production through improved WUE. Both through the seed drill and the sprayer. Current fertilizer application practices often have seed competing with fertilizer for early season moisture. Professional Agrologist, Gerald Anderson says, “Applying seed row AlPInE produces better Water Use Efficiency. Placing the liquid fertilizer in the seed row improves the chance for the seed when competing with fertilizer for moisture. When seeding into dry or moderate moisture soil the seed and fertilizer do not have to compete for moisture.” He says the best delivery vehicle for feeding micronutrients to the plant is AlPInE liquid starter. Because liquid AlPInE G22® is seed safe, an AlPInE kit on the drill is an excellent means to distribute nutrition more evenly in the seedrow right with the seed. This is also a very effective method for delivering micronutrients by adding them to the AlPInE starter solution.
WUe may also be improved through the Sprayer Balanced Nutrition “Balanced nutrition is important if you wish to optimize crop production and reach genetic potential. AlPInE G22® is an excellent way to help address this need. “Balanced nutrition is also important for Water Use Efficiency. It allows the plant to function properly in the uptake of water and nutrition.”
Consistent Blend; Even Distribution The fact that AlPInE is safe to apply with the seed or as a foliar offers valuable flexibility, says Anderson. “Plants have different demands at different stages of growth. If we want to keep pushing yields, we have to feed crops the right nutrition at the right time, and replace the nutrients we remove each year. It’s all about balanced nutrition.” Says Anderson
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38
APRIL 27, 2015 • ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA
RUDE AWAKENING
Calving almost always guarantees a spring snowstorm, as these young ones discovered on a ranch west of High River, Alta. Snowfall warnings were issued for much of southwest Alberta over the Easter long weekend, keeping cattle and sheep ranchers busy. Photo: Wendy Dudley
New executive director appointed for CFGA
STOP
resistant weeds IN THEIR TRACKS.
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Avoid glyphosate resistance by mixing and rotating herbicides.
“
Since glyphosate-resistant (GR) kochia was first identified in southern Alberta in 2011, it has reared its ugly head in several new counties each year. While it is this province’s biggest, most-concerning weed issue to date, most scientists agree that GR kochia is only Alberta’s first taste of what may soon be many glyphosate-defying superweeds. Luckily, growers have effective tools available to slow the spread of glyphosate-resistant weeds and manage resistance as it appears—so long as they use these tools correctly.
“The answer is quite simple: to counter resistance, producers need to rotate herbicides with differing modes of action, and they need to mix products so they have multiple modes of action working at once,” says Dr. Chris Neeser, a weed research scientist with Alberta Agriculture and Rural Development. “Yes, glyphosate is really cheap. But, you’ve got to think: we’re not talking about a huge investment to add a second mode of action to your tank or to change to a combined product. If there is glyphosate-resistant kochia in your area, the value of even just delaying it getting a start in your field is certainly worth the money of a tank mix. And if you do already have
“
T
he Canadian Forage & Grassland Asso ciation (CFGA) has appointed Cedric MacLeod of Fredericton, N.B. as its new executive director. “We are very excited to have Cedric coming on as our executive director,” says Doug Wray, CFGA chair. “He brings a strong background in forages, and experience working in organizations to successfully advance their goals and agendas. We look forward to his leadership as we promote the forage and grassland industry and address the challenges and opportunities going forward.” MacLeod received his post-secondary degree from Nova Scotia Agriculture College and his master’s degree in soil science from the University of Manitoba, with a focus on Canadian Prairie agricultural production systems including extension, consulting and research. He has been president of MacLeod Agronomics, an agri-environmental consulting firm specializing in the analysis and integration of sustainable agricultural practices. MacLeod and his wife also own and operate Local Valley Beef, a grass-fed beef ranch in western New Brunswick. MacLeod takes up his new post in the first week of June.
The answer is quite simple: to counter resistance, producers need to rotate herbicides with differing modes of action...
resistance, spraying a combination product will stop the resistant weed population from having an opportunity to build up.” Glyphosate resistance can appear in one of two ways. Firstly, it can be introduced from elsewhere via transported seed. Kochia’s tumbleweed nature is ideal for dispersing each plant’s 15,000 to 25,000 seeds an impressive distance from its original growing location. Secondly, it can evolve independently in any location. Growers’ overreliance on a single mode of action fosters the natural selection of herbicide-tolerant weed biotypes, leading to much greater chance of new glyphosate resistance spontaneously occurring.
While GR kochia is the devil we currently know, there is much speculation that GR Canada fleabane (already highly resistant in Ontario), wild oats, green foxtail or cleavers could be introduced or evolve in Alberta next. For these reasons, all farmers should follow Neeser’s ‘mix and rotate’ advice. Included are those who have experienced GR kochia and those who have not; those who farm near fields with known GR kochia and those who farm far from the nearest known resistance. “Dealing with glyphosate resistance is similar to the question of crop rotation,” says Neeser. “Growing canola on canola may be the most profitable option in the short term but it is certainly not the best thing in the long term. Unless you are only worried about this year’s profits and you’re planning to sell the farm at the end of the season, the right thing to do is to mix a second herbicide with a different mode of action in with your glyphosate.”
39
Albertafarmexpress.ca • April 27, 2015
California drought causes cattle and elk to lock horns over pasture A reintroduced herd of tule elk is seen by farmers as an ‘invasive species’ By Mary Papenfuss Point Reyes National Seashore, Calif. / Reuters
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California’s tule elk population shrank in the 1800s, but reintroduction and protection has helped it recover in some areas. Photo: Thinkstock
herd of tule elk move warily along a California coastal hill as a herd of Black Angus cattle graze nearby. Despite the apparent peaceful coexistence, the animals are at the centre of a battle for precious grasslands reduced by the state’s drought. Ranchers and farmers who live and work within the 71,000-acre Point Reyes National Seashore, 56 km northwest of San Francisco, want the free-roaming elk fenced in so their livestock do not have to compete for grass. Wildlife advocates and many park users are opposed after
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almost half of the majestic elk died while living in a 2,600-acre fenced-in area in the northern part of the park. The park has not yet determined how much land the free-ranging elk herd might be confined to — or even if they would be fenced in. The Point Reyes National Seashore is one of the few parks in America with agricultural operations, some of them dating back to the 1800s. They were purchased by the federal government to create the preserve and the lands were leased back to the same families for agriculture. In the 1970s, tule elk were reintroduced to the park. “If we can’t protect the elk in a national park, where will they be safe?” asked California wildlife photographer Jim Coda, one of thousands who sent in comments to the National Park Service opposing fencing them in. The parks agency is caught in the middle and is attempting to devise a plan that will balance public resources with the needs of 24 dairy and beef commercial operations, numbering close to 6,000 animals, that occupy nearly a quarter of the seashore lands. The seashore is the only national park with tule elk, which are not found outside California. “There’s no perfect solution,” Parks Services wildlife ecologist Daniel Press told Reuters. “We’re committed to the wildlife, but we’re also committed to agriculture,” said Press. “These aren’t show farms. They’re functioning businesses. Every blade of grass counts, especially for the six organic dairies, which have to purchase expensive feed when the grazing runs short.” Some critics want to evict the ranchers but the park is committed to keeping agricultural operations on the preserve. In a sharply worded 39-page letter to the parks agency, the Point Reyes Seashore Ranchers Association called the tule elk an “invasive species” creating an “emergency” as animals compete for forage, particularly during California’s record drought. “Elk do not belong in the pastoral zone and their current existence should be temporary,” the letter states, adding: “Seashore ranchers are more endangered than the tule elk.” Wildlife advocate Jeff Miller of the non-profit Center for Biological Diversity says that, because of the lease-back arrangement, the ranchers “should be expected to make accommodations for wildlife, and not continue to treat the space like their private property and dictate park policy.” “That land belongs to everyone in America,” he said. The state’s tule elk population shrank by the 1800s to a handful of animals in southern California. As the population gradually rebounded, 10 elk were reintroduced in 1978 to the northern end of Point Reyes. In 1998 park workers transported 28 of the growing herd farther south. Those elk, which now number 212, split into two groups, including the 92 that migrated to grazing lands on three farms.
40
APRIL 27, 2015 • ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA
Australia beef exports to fall on lower slaughter rate An easing drought means farmers will start to rebuild their herds By Colin Packham sydney / reuters
E
FARMING IS ENOUGH OF A GAMBLE...
The Australian Bureau of Meteorology sees a more than 60 per cent chance of better-than-average rains across key production regions in Queensland between April and June, which should replenish pasture and dams. Photo: Thinkstock
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Farming is risky. If you’re a farmer, you know you have absolutely no control over most of that risk. Volatile markets can throw commodity prices for a loop. Wild weather can decimate a prime crop. Spring can come late or winter early, ruining the best-laid plans. But some farming risk can be managed easily and inexpensively. If you’d like to maximize returns from your crop—and sleep better at night—experts recommend you consider a seed treatment. Seed treatments start seedlings strong by mitigating many kinds of disease and insect risk, leading to faster emergence, stronger plant stands and improved yield. “We see seed treatments as a best management practice and recommend that all farmers across Alberta use them,” says Lorena Pahl, executive director of the Alberta Seed Growers Association. “Many factors can ruin a crop; a seed treatment can ensure that a problem at germination or emergence isn’t one of those factors.”
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“Many factors can ruin a crop; a seed treatment can ensure that a problem at germination or emergence isn’t one of those factors.”
shorter crop rotations, have caused more disease inoculum to accumulate in the soil,” says Neil Whatley, a crop specialist with Alberta Agriculture and Rural Development. “[This] is an indicator that seed treatment may be cheap insurance for many growers in the spring of 2015.”
Under ideal conditions, seedlings can achieve a good start on their own. Many times, however, a variety of factors conspire against a seedling’s growth, including seeding early into cold soil, excessive or insufficient moisture or disease and insect pressure. When the crop can’t grow quickly enough to protect itself, a seed If you haven’t ever or don’t usually apply a seed treatment will give the seed a 10- to 14-day treatment, you may want to reconsider for 2015. protective head-start. “Higher-than-average moisture conditions over the last few years around Alberta, coupled with
Seed treatments protect crops from pathogens present in and on the soil, on infected residue, or carried within the seed. While some seed treatments protect young plants from early leaf disease and root rot infection, the main role of a seed treatment is to protect seeds from seed rot and seedling blights. Some treatment brands also contain insecticides that help control insects such as flea beetle and wireworm. Protection against these pests helps to ensure a stronger seedling and higher plant population, thereby promoting a strong crop that is better able to compete against later stressors including weeds, foliar diseases, insects and harsh weather.
“
xports of Australian beef are likely to fall faster than previously expected as slaughter rates drop off as a two-year drought eases, threatening to add fuel to a rally in U.S. beef prices. A record slaughter rate has dropped nearly a fifth in the last two weeks, as farmers start to rebuild a herd that has fallen to the smallest in 17 years. Farmers typically send more cattle to slaughter in drought conditions given a lack of pasture and to cut feed costs. A drop in slaughter rates will mean lower exports from the world’s third-largest beef seller and risks boosting U.S. beef prices that have jumped nearly a fifth since January 2014. U.S. prices soared after drought in California wilted pasture, cutting the national herd to a 63-year low in 2014. Australian imports helped fill the gap and while cheaper feed is allowing the U.S. herd to recover, imports are set to stay high. “The liquidation of Australian cattle cannot continue and this will pose a question for the U.S. How much will it be willing to pay for supplies, particularly given the much cheaper alternate protein sources available?” said Matt Costello, an animal proteins analyst at Rabobank. In the first two weeks of April, just shy of 280,000 head of cattle were slaughtered, more than 17 per cent lower than the twoweek period one month earlier, data from industry body, Meat and Livestock Australia, showed. Further falls are likely should a favourable forecast from the Australian Bureau of Meteorology materialize. Between April and June, it sees a more than 60 per cent chance of better-than-average rains across key production regions in Queensland, which should replenish pasture and dams. Australian beef exports have had three record years, peaking last season at 1.223 million tonnes, but the government is predicting exports will fall five per cent in the 2015-16 season. However, with wetter weather, exports could fall more sharply leaving the United States short of beef. More than a third of Australian beef exports go to the United States, while Japan is also a big buyer, according to the Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics and Sciences.
A seed treatment is only as good as its coverage. Buying professionally treated seed from a certified seed producer or retailer or having it processed and treated through a seed cleaning plant is highly recommended. If you choose to apply treatment to your own seeds, ensure you have the proper equipment and your machine is calibrated for the specific product.
41
Albertafarmexpress.ca • April 27, 2015
U.S. meat industry bought more human antibiotics to 2013 Up 20 per cent in four years, but may be levelling or dropping By P.J. Huffstutter chicago / reuters
S
ales of medically important antibiotics in the United States for use in livestock jumped by 20 per cent between 2009 and 2013, federal regulators said April 9, although recent statements by producers suggest those figures could be dropping. Between 2012 and 2013, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration said its annual report, domestic sales and distribution of antibiotics approved for use in food animals increased three per cent. Companies such as Tyson Foods Inc. and Perdue Farms
have said in the past year, however, they have either reduced or eliminated the use in chicken barns and poultry hatcheries of antibiotics used on humans. “A lot of these announcements came in either late 2013 or in 2014, so we don’t really expect to see that reflected in the data we’re looking at right now,” said Gail Hansen, a senior officer for Pew Charitable Trusts’ antibiotic-resistance project. “At some point, though, we should be seeing a decrease.” What specific antibiotics are being fed to which animals, and in what volume and for what reasons, is not clear. Trade group North American Meat Institute told Reuters it
supports the voluntary guidelines FDA released in 2013 for drug makers and agricultural companies to phase out antibiotic use as a growth enhancer in livestock. However, “it is hard to glean much information about what the (FDA) report means as far as the key issue of antibiotic resistance is concerned,” said Betsy Booren, the group’s vicepresident of scientific affairs. Public health advocates, along with some lawmakers and scientists, have criticized the long-standing practice of using antibiotics in livestock, saying it is fuelling the rise of antibiotic-resistant bacteria. Agribusinesses defend the
practice, saying animal drugs are needed to help keep cattle, pigs and chickens healthy, and increase production of meat for U.S. consumers. Though the FDA sales data is not current, Hansen said it will help federal regulators create a baseline for their current research efforts. The U.S. Department of Agriculture plans to begin collecting more detailed data on antibiotics used on farms in a potential precursor to reducing use of such drugs in livestock. The agency is awaiting funding approval for the research. The White House recently issued a sweeping plan to slow antibiotic resistance over the next five years.
With a seed treatment solution from UFA, your crop has a chance to get established before pests and disease can take over. UFA carries a wide variety of effective treatments including:
To learn more about how we can help you get the most from your crop’s potential, contact your local UFA Customer Account Manager, or our customer service centre at 1-877-258-4500 (option 1), or email customer.support@UFA.com
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©2015 UFA Cooperative Ltd. All Rights Reserved. Always read and follow label directions. Cruiser®, Cruiser Maxx® and Vibrance® are trademarks of a Syngenta Group Company. All other products are trademarks of their respective companies. 03/15-43310 AFE
World’s largest cattle farm for sale Australia’s largest private landowner is getting out of the cattle business By Colin Packham sydney / reuters
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ustralia’s largest private landowner will sell its cattle operations, including the world’s largest ranch and an area equivalent in size to South Korea, to raise cash for other businesses and investments. S. Kidman & Co. said it will sell its privately owned 11 cattle stations and a feedlot, complete with more than 200,000 head of cattle and more than 100,000 square kilometres (25 million acres) of land spread across Western Australia, the Northern Territory, Queensland and South Australia. The announcement of the sale — which is expected to attract significant foreign interest — comes a month after the government said it would clamp down on foreign ownership of agricultural land. The cattle stations on offer include Anna Creek, the world’s largest cattle farm at more than 23,000 sq. km. S. Kidman & Co. managing director, Greg Campbell, said the sales decision by the Kidman family was driven by a desire to capitalize on demand for Australian agricultural assets. “Many of the family have other existing investments in Australian agriculture and elsewhere and the sale will allow them to convert long-term capital gains into cash to support their other businesses and investments,” Campbell said. Australia is the world’s thirdlargest exporter of beef — selling more than 1.5 million tonnes a year of the red meat — according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Australian agricultural assets have become increasingly desirable despite the often volatile incomes, and some industry experts estimate more than 20 per cent of Australian agricultural land is owned by overseas investors. Concerned it is losing control of its own food security, Australia in February slashed the amount beyond which land purchases would require regulatory approval. From March 1, foreign purchases of agricultural land over A$15 million (US$12.5 million) are subject to regulatory approval from Australia’s Foreign Investment Review Board. London-based private equity company Terra Firma was last year rumoured to be interested in purchasing a 50 per cent stake in S. Kidman & Co. in a deal valuing the Australian beef producer at between A$250 million and A$300 million. “The company is in excellent financial shape, being debt free with no mortgages over any assets,” said Campbell. S. Kidman & Co.’s business produces an average 15,000 tonnes of beef each year, supplying 1.3 per cent of Australia’s slaughtered beef exports, the company said.
42
APRIL 27, 2015 • ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA
Community news and events from across the province
The tradition continues for famous Innisfail rodeo family
what’s
up
Send agriculture-related meeting and event announcements to: glenn.cheater@fbcpublishing.com April 28: Generating Electricity from the Sun, Rochester Ag Society Hall, Rochester. Contact: Christine 780-349-4546 April 28: Getting into Farmers Markets workshop, Olds Provincial Building, Olds. Contact: Delores Serafin 780-427-4611 April 28-29: Aggie Days, Exhibition Park (South & North Pavilions), Lethbridge. Contact: Shawna Joel 403-317-3214 April 29: Marketing and Pricing for Profit workshop, Provincial Building, Olds. Contact: Shelley Hall 780-538-6209 April 29: Sprayer Information Day with Tom Wolf, Manning Legion Hall, Manning. Contact: Nora 780-836-3354 April 30: Working Well Workshop, Grovedale (also May 5 in Strathcona County; May 13 in Parkland County; May 26 in Bonnyville; June 4 in Caroline; and June 11 in Buffalo Lake). Contact: Melissa 780-422-1791
Agriculture and rodeo are a way of life for her family, says Rayel Daines, shown here with her go-to horse Rev. Photos: Courtesy Rayel Daines By Tessa Nybo AF contributor
G
rowing up with the last name Daines in the town of Innisfail leaves a person with big boots to fill. With legends like Jack, Ivan, and Duane Daines (just to name a few) on your family tree, there is little doubt that a passion for agriculture and rodeo should run in your blood. That’s certainly the case for Rayel Daines, who is carrying on the family tradition and making her mark on the rodeo circuit, most recently at the Canadian College Finals Rodeo. Roping and riding have always been a part of the 20-year-old cowgirl’s life, although she didn’t start competing until Grade 9 after watching her first high school rodeo. There’s been many awards since then, including a scholarship and a spot on Western Oklahoma State College’s rodeo team. She gives a lot of credit to her father Michael, a former professional calf roper. “My dad is my mentor,” said Daines. “He was the one who taught me how to rope and has been my biggest supporter in my rodeo journey. Even when I was far from home in Oklahoma, he was the person I called.” She took business administration and has been furthering her business education at Red Deer College after returning home last year. And, of course, she continued competing, earning a spot at last month’s Canadian College Finals Rodeo in both the goat-tying and breakaway-roping events.
“The few weeks before the rodeo I was very anxious,” said Daines. “I did a lot of mental preparation and actually surprised myself at how well I handled the pressure. Coming in my game plan for both events was to be solid, nothing extraordinary. But after the first round the heat was on and I knew I needed to bring my A game.” That A game included posting the fastest time in both competitions en route to winning the goat-tying event and taking second in breakaway roping, along with scooping the high point champion award and being the high money earner. “Scuff (my breakaway horse) was bought for $800 out of the Innisfail Auction Market, and the two of us have learned the ropes together. My dad and I turned him into a breakaway horse when I first started roping, and every year we advance as a team.” Her other horse, Rev, was purchased from her uncle and has become a jack of all trades as her go-to horse for pole bending, bar-
rel racing, and goat tying. He was named the goat-tying horse of the year at the college rodeo finals, which is held in conjunction with the annual Farm & Ranch Show in Edmonton.
Although years have passed since her father and extended family were top contestants in the rodeo arena, the camaraderie within the sport has remained the same. “Rodeo is one big family. Everyone knows everyone, and your paths are constantly crossing. It is the only one, or one of few, sports that you will find competitors cheering, assisting, and encouraging each other on. We all want to see one another do well.” Her recent success may be the peak of her rodeo career thus far, but Daines isn’t about to hang up her spurs yet. “I am 100 per cent sure that I want agriculture and rodeo to play large roles in my life in the future,” she said. “Anyone who has ever had the honour of being involved in agriculture in any way will tell you that there is a large sense of pride and accomplishment that comes with it. It’s not a hobby; it’s a way of life.”
April 30-May 1: Alberta Agricultural Economics Association: Visions 2015 conference, Radisson 67 Street, Red Deer. Contact: Catalina Solano 780-638-1929 May 2: Heritage Livestock 101, Lacombe Ag Society. Contact: Kathy hawthorn@xplornet.com May 5-6: Livestock Transport Conference, Delta Bow Valley, Calgary. Contact: Geraldine Auston 604-820-4451 May 27-28: Ingredients for Success: The Conference on Food Innovation 2015, Deerfoot Inn and Casino, Calgary. Contact: Marie Cusack 780-638-4060 May 28: Crop Walk, Farming Smarter Lethbridge Field Site, Lethbridge (also June 4, 11, and 18, same site). Contact: Jamie 403-381-5118
AdFarm founder receives distinguished agrologist award
K
im McConnell has received the 2015 distinguished agrologist award from the Alberta Institute of Agrologists. The founder of AdFarm, one of North America’s largest agricultural communications and marketing firms, has been a champion of agriculture, said David Lloyd, CEO of the institute. “Kim continues to be an industry pioneer where he is relentless at enhancing
agriculture’s awareness with stakeholders, media and the general public, particularly urban consumers,” Lloyd said in a press release. McConnell, David Andrews and John Kolk were the three ‘straw men’ in the Straw Man Beef Industry Initiative, which called for a ranch-to-retail information system, improved beef marketing, and an end to the “silos” in the often fractured beef sector. The former
CEO of AdFarm, McConnell is now a senior adviser to the firm and a director on several boards, including the Farm & Food Care Foundation. The foundation recently launched the Real Dirt On Farming campaign targeted at Canadian consumers. Alberta Institute of Agrologists is a professional regulatory body representing 2,500 professional agrologists. — Staff
43
ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA • APRIL 27, 2015
Federal government unveils plans to tackle drug resistance Federal Health Minister Rona Ambrose has held a workshop with industry to discuss the plan By Alex Binkley AF contributor
T
he federal government has unveiled a national plan for tackling the growing threat from bacteria increasingly resistant to antibiotics. Late on April 17, the Department of Health issued a press release saying it would propose regulations under the Food and Drugs Act to end growth-promoting claims and bulk imports. It didn’t provide any details on the contents of the regulations. “There’s a lot of detail in it that needs to be fleshed out,” Jim Fairles, past president of the Canadian Veterinary Medicine Association, said in an interview after participating in a recent workshop with Health Minister Rona Ambrose and her officials on the plan. “Along with the farm commodity groups, we discussed the steps we’ve already taken and what more we need to do. We’ll need a lot more discussion on human and livestock medicines.” Back in 2008, the veterinary association and the Canadian Animal Health Institute (CAHI), which represents drug manufacturers, launched a prudent use campaign to teach farmers about the appropriate use of antibiotics to control sickness in their animals without jeopardizing their effectiveness in treating humans. The program was embraced by the major livestock associations and is included in their sustainable agriculture guidelines. The issue gained a higher profile last year when U.S. President Obama announced a $44-million program to combat antimicrobial resistance, which he said causes at least two million illnesses and 23,000 deaths in the U.S. annually. Comparable numbers for Canada are not available. The Ontario Medical Association last year called for tighter controls over the use of medicines in livestock production to prevent a worsening AMR situation.
CAHI president Jean Szkotnicki said in an interview that Canada needs to “harmonize its antimicrobial-resistance (AMR) policies with the rest of the world. Otherwise we could lose trade opportunities.” Last year, her association voluntarily offered to stop labelling about 60 medicines for use as livestock growth promoters, which comes into effect next year. It also urged the federal government to stop allowing farmers to import medicines from the U.S., which they can administer without veterinary supervision. It now is urging Health Canada to end the import of bulk active pharmaceutical ingredients, which are unregulated. “There are no controls on where these products come from or on the quality of the ingredients.” The own-use and bulk imports account for about 30 per cent of the antibiotics used on farms. The veterinary association agrees that both types of imports should be ended. At the workshop, Ambrose acknowledged that AMR is a global challenge and said Canada will contribute US$250,000 to support a World Bank study of the economic impacts of AMR. Health Canada will work closely with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration on an AMR approach “given the high degree of integration of the meat and livestock production markets in both countries.” Health Canada and the Public Health Agency will begin a project to collect data to create “an integrated, national picture of antimicrobial use and resistance across Canada.” As well, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency and Agriculture Canada will develop a plan for monitoring antibiotic use in livestock production. The Public Health Agency says that more than three-quarters of antimicrobials are administered in Canada, mostly to promote growth by reducing illness. “Using antibiotics in animals should be limited to treating infection.”
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he latest Chase “Superman” Duffy graphic novel is a tribute to the International Year of Soils. The Chase Duffy series chronicles the adventures of an elementary school track-and-field athlete as he navigates his way around his grandfather’s farm in central Alberta to learn about food, agriculture, and the only ‘Made in Canada’ crop — canola. Written for eight- to 11-yearolds, the graphic novel series was developed to help parents and teachers introduce children to local agriculture, food production, and science. The latest novel is a thriller that sees Chase learn about the importance of soil and the many living organisms that exist in it.
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© 2014 CNH Industrial America LLC. All rights reserved. New Holland is a trademark registered in the United States and many other countries, owned by or licensed to CNH Industrial N.V., its subsidiaries or affiliates. New Holland is a trademark in the United States and many other countries, owned by or , , licensed to CNH Industrial N.V., its subsidiaries or affiliates.
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The full list of Chase “Superman” Duffy books can be found at www.learncanola.ca and are available for schools and educational purposes at no cost. — Alberta Canola Producers Commission release
Claresholm, AB 403-625-3321
1-800-852-7270 www.challengernh.ca
44
APRIL 27, 2015 • ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA
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Photograph of model is for illustrative purposes only.
emp continues to draw interest as an alternative cropping option in Western Canada, but the slow pace in moving towards deregulation may be limiting the upside acreage potential. Early expectations are for planted area of about 100,000 acres this year, which would be slightly above what was seeded in 2014 and a new record, according to Kim Shukla, of the Canadian Hemp Trade Alliance. She said the area could be even larger, but governmental delays in dealing with the regulatory issues surrounding the crop were hindering growth. Due to industrial hemp’s association with its cousin marijuana, farmers need to be licensed through Health Canada and pass a criminal record check in order to grow the crop. Testing is also required to confirm THC levels, the psychoactive ingredient in marijuana, are below the allowable 0.3 per cent. Canadian farmers have now been growing hemp for nearly 20 years, and with “hundreds of thousands of samples” taken over that time none of the original concerns over THC levels or other linkages with marijuana have ever been borne out, said Shukla. As a result, the industry has requested that the crop be deregulated. But that process has been very slow. After a number of delays over the past few years, Shukla had been expecting to hear something back from the regulatory review process by this upcoming September, but with a loom-
ing federal election in the fall, “we very much doubt that that will happen.” On a provincial level, both the Alberta and Manitoba governments have shown support to the hemp sector, which Shukla said was somewhat supportive as efforts are made to move forward on the federal level. She added that the Saskatchewan government was relatively quiet, but noted that the province still accounted for the most of the hemp grown in Western Canada. In addition to the desire for deregulation, the hemp sector is also in need of more processing capacity. “This is the one crop where we can say it is completely processed in Canada,” said Shukla adding that there was a large untapped demand, especially from the U.S., for hemp seed and related products. Current laws restrict crossborder movement of unprocessed hemp seed, said Shukla. The Canadian Hemp Trade Alliance is also in the process of applying to the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) to get hemp approved as a poultry feed ingredient, which would open up new markets for any lower-quality production. “People who grow it continue to grow it, and every year there are new people on board,” said Shukla, noting that contracted prices over the past few years remain favourable for producers. She said a number of demonstration plots were being set up across Western Canada this year to introduce hemp to new growers. From a rotation standpoint, hemp does well following a legume, as it is a heavy nitrogen feeder.
Candid modern farmers featured in videos Third instalment in videos from Farming Smarter Agri-News
BAD INVESTMENTS AREN’T ALWAYS THIS OBVIOUS. The Alberta Securities Commission is here to help you protect your financial future. We can provide you with questions to ask to help ensure that an investment is right for you, and show you how to identify “red flags” that could indicate investment fraud – and much more.
F
arming Smarter has released the third instalment in its trio of stewardship videos. Entitled Candid Modern Farmers, it joins the previously released Farming in the Wild and Not Grandpa’s Farm. What does sustainability mean to a southern Alberta farmer? It means a prosperous and healthy livelihood for future generations. This is no small thing. It means protecting natural resources through intelligent farm practices that recognize renewable is only true if you make it so. In Candid Modern Farmers, Alberta farmers discuss their love of
the land and how they consider themselves stewards on behalf of all Albertans. All three videos are available for viewing from the Farming Smarter webpage www.farm ingsmarter.com.
A screenshot from the video Not Grandpa’s Farm.
45
ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA • APRIL 27, 2015
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46
APRIL 27, 2015 • ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA
BUILDINGS
FARM MACHINERY Machinery Miscellaneous
BUILDINGS
RON SAUER
MACHINERY LTD. (403) 540-7691 ronsauer@shaw.ca
40’ X 60’ X 16’ RIGID FRAME STEEL BUILDING
$29,418 When you go with steel you get the right deals!
Pioneer One Steel Buildings
Call toll free 1 (877) 525-2004 or see us online at www.pioneeronesteel.com STEEL STORAGE CONTAINERS, 20-ft & 40-ft. Wind, water & rodent proof. 1-866-517-8335, (403)540-4164, (403)226-1722 magnate@telus.net
BUSINESS SERVICES BUSINESS SERVICES Crop Consulting
FARMING IS ENOUGH OF A GAMBLE...
FARM CHEMICAL SEED COMPLAINTS We also specialize in: Crop Insurance appeals; Chemical drift; Residual herbicide; Custom operator issues; Equipment malfunction; Yield comparisons, Plus Private Investigations of any nature. With our assistance the majority of our clients have received compensation previously denied. Back-Track Investigations investigates, documents your loss and assists in settling your claim. Licensed Agrologist on Staff. For more information Please call 1-866-882-4779
Advertise in the Alberta Farmer Express Classifieds, it’s a Sure Thing!
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(3) CIH High HP Tractors, 1 with pto.............................. CALL Wanted - JD 9450 Hoe Drills............... ........................ CALL 946 Versatile Ford Tractor, 4,994 hrs, 24.5 x 32 D....$50,000 8070 AC Tractor, FWA, wheel base extended, duals .. $22,500 275 MF Tractor, diesel, multi power, 3 pth, new 18.4 x 30, front weights, loader available, looks and runs great ......... $12,500 B275 IHC Tractor & Loader .....................................$3,500 (2) NH P1060 TBH Air Tanks, as new .............EA $69,500 40’ Salford RTS 570 Vertical Till, as new ............ $73,500 35’ 4590 EEZE-ON Double Disc, good condition .... $36,000 62’ 820 F.C. Deep Till Cultivator, c/w 4 Bar Harrow & Raven NH3 kit, excellent condition.......................... $46,000 44’ 820 F.C. Deep Till Cultivator, harrows ............... CALL 40’ 340 F.C. Chisel Plow & 75 Packer Bar, P30’s... $33,000 62’ F.C. S75 Packer BAR P30’s, good condition .... $11,000 48’ F.C. S75 Packer Bar, P30, as new ....................... $35,000 2003 4300 IHC Service Truck, 466 diesel, 5 speed Allison auto, crane, compressor, welder, nice ................ $50,000 51’ Degelman Landroller, as new.... ...................... $40,000 Degelman Dozer Frame MF 4000 Series 4WD .....$1,000 41’ Flexicoil 300 B Chisel Plow, 3 bar harrows ..... $12,500 Flexicoil 6 Run Seed Treater....................................$1,000 100’ 65XL Flexicoil Sprayer, complete with windguards, elec. end nozzles single tips, auto rate, excellent condition ... $12,500 10 Wheel MATR (Italy) Trailer Type V-Hayrake, hyd. fold, as new ........................................................$5,000 7 x 1200 (39.37’) Sakundiak Auger, 18 HP Koehler engine, c/w hyd. pump for bin sweep ...........................$2,500 225 DOW Kello-Bilt Tandem Disc, 28” smooth front & rear blades, 10.5” spacing, oil, bath bearings, as new ........ $62,500 47’ 820 Flexicoil Chisel Plow, 4 bar harrows ......... $67,500 60’ S82 F.C. Harrow Bar, like new............................$5,500 New E-Kay 7”, 8”, 9” Bin Sweeps available ............ Call 8” Wheat Heart Transfer Auger, hydraulic drive .......$1,500 New Outback RTK BASE stn.......................................... Call New Outback MAX & STX guidance & mapping ........In Stock New Outback E-Drive, TC’s......................................In Stock New Outback E-Drive X, c/w free E turns.................In Stock New Outback S-Lite guidance .................**In Stock** $900 New Outback VSI Swather Steering Kit...............In Stock Used Outback E-Drive Hyd. kits .................................. $500 Used Outback S2 Guidance........................................$1,000 Used Outback S2, c/w 360 Mapping ...........................$1,500 **NuVision (Spray Air) & Meridian-Sakundiak Augers, Outback GPS Systems, EK Auger Movers, Belt Tighteners, Bin Sweeps & Crop Dividers, Kohler, Robin Subaru & Generac Engines, Headsight Harvesting Solutions, Greentronics Sprayer Auto Boom Height, Kello-Bilt Discs**
Go public with an ad in the Alberta Farmer Express classifieds. Phone 1-800-665-1362.
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENT
FARM MACHINERY
2004 NH RG200B GRADER air, dozer & ripper, 5,000-hrs; 2003 Hitachi ZX200LC track hoe & thumb; Case 621 3-yd loader; D7F dozer ripper, PWR shift; New Quonset in crate 52x35x18-ft. $17,000; 1999 GMC T8500 Cat DSL, tow truck, 20ft. tilt & wheel lift, $14,500; 1977 IHC 1700 series floater w/tiler fertilizer spreader, $5,000; 3-Ton fertilizer spread $1,500; Rotex SR7 Pwr parachute needs frame, as is, $3,000; Ford Major DSL loader 3-PTH bale fork, $6,700. (306)236-8023
FARM MACHINERY Machinery Miscellaneous
Search news. Read stories. Find insight.
2003 NH TM190 FEL grapple joy stick, 3-pt., 3,810-hrs, $53,000. Call:(403)665-2341, Craigmyle, AB.
FARM MACHINERY Machinery Wanted
ACREAGE EQUIPMENT: 3-PT. CULTIVATORS, Discs, Plows, Blades, Harrows, Etc. (780)892-3092, Wabamun, AB.
WANTED: NH BALE WAGONS & retrievers, any condition. Farm Equipment Finding Service, P.O. Box 1363, Polson, MT 59860. (406)883-2118
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yOUR PORtaBle eQUiPment sOURCe!!
SPRAYING EQUIPMENT Sprayers
SPRAYING EQUIPMENT Sprayers
JD 9400, 9420, 9520, 8970 JD 9860, 9760, 9750, 9650, 9600 JD 9430, 9530, 9630 Case STX 375, 425, 430, 450, 480, 500, 530 CIH 8010-2388, 2188 combine CIH 435Q, 535Q, 450Q, 550Q, 600Q pto avail. JD 4710, 4720, 4730, 4830, 4920, 4930 SP sprayers JD 9770 & 9870 w/CM & duals CIH 3185, 3230, 3330, 4430, 4420 sprayers
4955 JD low hrs, 3 pth, very clean S670/680/690 JD Combine low hrs 4730 JD Sprayer, 100 ft. JD 8770, 4WD, 24 speed with PTO Case IH 9170, 4WD 854 Rogator SP Sprayer, complete with JD auto steer, swath pro GOOD SELECTION OF JD & CASE SP SPRAYERS AND 4WD TRACTORS
“LIKE MANY BEFORE, WE’LL HAVE YOU SAYING THERE’S NO DEAL LIKE A KEN DEAL” • Phone: (403)526-9644 • Cell: (403)504-4929 • Email: kendeal@shaw.ca TRACTORS Various
HAYING & HARVESTING HAYING & HARVESTING Baling Equipment WANTED: JD 7810 c/w FEL & 3-PTH; sp or PTO bale wagon; JD or IHC end wheel drills. Small square baler. (403)394-4401
Combines COMBINES Accessories RECONDITIONED COMBINE HEADERS. RIGID & flex, most makes & sizes; also header transports. Ed Lorenz, (306)344-4811 or Website: www.straightcutheaders.com Paradise Hill, SK.
JD 1840 complete with 3 pth JD 2130 with loader, 3 pth JD 2950 FWA, with 3 pth JD 4255 2 WD, ldr. available JD 4440, loader available JD 7130 FWA, with loader 3 pth JD 7600 FWA, 740 loader with 3 pth JD 7800 FWA, with 3 pth JD 7810 FWA, 740 loader Clamp on Duals, 20.8x38-18.4x38 FINANCE, TRADES WELCOME 780-696-3527, BRETON, AB
Tillage & Seeding
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TILLAGE & SEEDING Tillage Various
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6200 IH PRESS DRILL 24-ft, factory transport, rubber packers; 510 IH wheel drill; #10 IH wheel drill; 14-ft deep tillage cultivator; 97 Ford 150 ext. cab truck. (780)919-9985.
AG EQUIPMENT DEALS on your PHONE
TracTors TRACTORS John Deere 2003 JD 9420, 1,605-HRS, 24spd, 710/70R/42, cast weights front & rear, GreenStar ready, full diff., extra lights, shedded, excellent, $186,000. Olds, AB. Phone Mike:(403)335-9205.
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47
ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA • APRIL 27, 2015
TRACTORS Various
REAL ESTATE
Big Tractor Parts, Inc.
REAL ESTATE Land For Sale
Geared For The Future
STEIGER TRACTOR SPECIALIST
RED OR GREEN 1. 10-25% savings on new replacement parts for your Steiger drive train. 2. We rebuild axles, transmissions and dropboxes with ONE YEAR WARRANTY. 3. 50% savings on used parts.
1-800-982-1769 www.bigtractorparts.com
HEAT & AIR CONDITIONING
The Icynene Insulation System® • Sprayed foam insulation • Ideal for shops, barns or homes • Healthier, Quieter, More Energy Efficient®
NOW
18-ACRE LOT FOR SALE. Located in NW Montana. Lincoln County Hwy-56, in the cabinet mountains. Easy access to a private pine wooded paradise with a blue ribbon trout river. 549-ft river frontage, fishing, hunting, kayaking, floating. Build your dream cabin surrounded by mountains! Land is set up for 1 or 2 lots, private financing available. $199,000. Call Mark (507)402-7405.
AVA ILA
BLE
SEED / FEED / GRAIN SEED/ FEED/GRAIN Feed Grain BUYING ALL TYPES OF feed grain. Also have market for light offgrade or heated, picked up on the farm. Eisses Grain Marketing 1-888-882-7803, Lacombe. FEED GRAIN WANTED! ALSO buying; Light, tough, or offgrade grains. “On Farm Pickup” Westcan Feed & Grain 1-877-250-5252
SEED/ FEED/GRAIN Grain Wanted BUYING HEATED/DAMAGED PEAS, FLAX & GRAIN “On Farm Pickup” Westcan Feed & Grain 1-877-250-5252
BOW VALLEY TRADING LTD.
WE BUY DAMAGED GRAIN Wheat, Barley, Oats, Peas, etc. Green or Heated Canola/Flax
1-877-641-2798
www.penta.ca
1-800-587-4711
LIVESTOCK LIVESTOCK Cattle – Angus LIGHT BIRTHWEIGHT RED & Black Angus yearling bulls. $2500 Bellshill Red Angus & Davidson Angus. Lougheed, AB. Ph:(780)384-2354 or (780)888-2123, Cell:(780)888-7585 .
LIVESTOCK Cattle – Red Angus REGISTERED RED ANGUS BULLS Quiet, Easy Calving, Low to Moderate Birth Weights, Good Growth, E.P.D’s available Guaranteed Breeders (Vet Checked & Semen Tested). Excellent Bulls for Heifers or Cows. Cleveley Cattle Company (780)689-2754.
LIVESTOCK Cattle – Hereford HEREFORD BULLS, YEARLINGS & two year olds, dehorned, & polled, excellent quality, low birth weights suitable for heifers, catalogue online at couleecrest.ca Coulee Crest Herefords, Bowden, AB. (403)227-2259 or (403)588-6160.
LIVESTOCK Sheep For Sale PLAN TO ATTEND THE 9th Annual Pound Maker Ram Sale. 110 yearling rams sell by auction. Thursday May 21, 2015 at Ford Macleod Alberta. Suffolk, Dorset, Hampshire, Charollais, Ile de France, Rambouillet, North Country Cheviot & Coloured. Catalogue on the website after May 10th. For details, call Warren:(403)625-6519 or check our website: www.poundmakerrams.com
LIVESTOCK EQUIPMENT CALF CATCHER Catch process & transport your newborn calves all w/the safety of your Quad Roper calf catcher. www.calfcatcher.ca (780)688-2496
ORGANIC ORGANIC Organic – Certified WANT THE ORGANIC ADVANTAGE? Contact an organic Agrologist at Pro-Cert for information on organic farming: prospects, transition, barriers, benefits, certification & marketing. Call:(306)382-1299, Saskatoon, SK or at info@pro-cert.org
Watch your profits grow! ADVERTISE with AFE Classifieds
1-800-665-1362 Place your ad today call
BUYING:
HEATED CANOLA & FLAX • Competitive Prices • Prompt Movement • Spring Thrashed
“ON FARM PICK UP”
1-877-250-5252 TRAVEL
AGRICULTURAL TOURS Ireland/Scotland ~ June 2015 NWT/Yukon ~ July 2015 Alaska Cruise ~ July 2015 Australia/New Zealand ~ Jan 2016 Kenya/Tanzania ~ Jan 2016 South America ~ Feb 2016 South Africa ~ 2016 India ~ 2016 *Portion of tours may be Tax Deductible
Select Holidays 1-800-661-4326
www.selectholidays.com
KING SALMON
Introducing Weatherfarm Mobile Available FREE for iPhone & Android
Weather from hundreds of stations available on your smartphone! The new Weatherfarm Mobile app gives you instant access to an extensive, live-updating network with current and forecasted weather data for your farm or surrounding area. App features include: Current conditions Hourly, 6 hour and 10 day forecast data Radar & satellite data Weather news & facts
Weather alerts Market and ag news Intuitive interface with large, easy-to-read text More to Come
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APRIL 27, 2015 • ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA
Nominate and pay tribute to the success and innovation of Alberta’s export companies.
Searching for Alberta’s
2015 EXPORT CHAMPIONS With 50 million acres used for crop and livestock production, Alberta produces an abundant supply of agricultural commodities available for export and as input for Alberta’s processed products. We want you to play a part in honouring Canadian companies who have achieved export success, contributing to our provincial and national economies.
The 2015 winners will be announced and celebrated at an
embracing the opportunities “ By of a global marketplace, Alberta has built an international reputation as a reliable source of agricultural technology, expertise and agri-foods. — GOVERNMENT OF ALBERTA
PRESENTED BY:
awards luncheon taking place in Calgary in the fall. The Alberta Export Awards highlight Alberta’s most important export sectors and influential exporters with the following award categories: INDIVIDUAL AWARDS:
PREMIER SPONSORS:
Exporter of the Year
Leadership
Emerging Exporter
International Business Studies
SECTOR AWARDS:
Agriculture, Food/Beverage
Consumer Products
Manufacturing
Professional Services
Oil and Gas Service/Supply
Advanced Technology and Innovation
Clean Technology
AWARD SPONSORS:
Visit ALBERTAEXPORTAWARDS.COM before May 15, 2015, to cast your nomination.
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