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JULY 25, 2013 | WWW.PRODUCER.COM | THE WESTERN PRODUCER
LIVESTOCK
MAKE HAY WHILE THE SUN SHINES Everybody knows that old adage, but is it better to cut hay in the morning or the afternoon for best feed value? Researchers address the question. | Page 75
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ABOVE: Mackenzie Skeels of Rimbey, Alta., won the Young Canadian Simmental Association National Classic grand champion female with a fullblood. RIGHT: Wyatt Miller of Saskatoon won grand champion bull with this calf. | BARBARA DUCKWORTH PHOTOS SIMMENTAL SHOW | WINNERS
Show develops cattle skills of youth Youth event | Simmental association members take what they learned in grooming, judging and showing into the ring BY BARBARA DUCKWORTH CALGARY BUREAU
OKOTOKS, Alta. — A seasoned showman and a young woman attending her first big cattle show were the grand champions at the national youth Simmental show held in Okotoks July 18. Wyatt Miller of Saskatoon had the grand champion bull with a solid red calf. At 14, he has a firm handshake and talks like a seasoned cattleman. He was quick to point out his breeding decisions were responsible for
the resulting champion. “I bought the cow from Erixon (Simmentals near Saskatoon) and got her bred and got that calf,” he said. The cow with the bull calf was part of his 4-H project, where the pair was regional reserve champion. He has also shown cattle at the Saskatoon Fall Fair and in Prince Albert, Sask. Mackenzie Skeels of Rimbey, Alta., won grand champion female, while the bull calf at side was named reserve champion bull. She has shown cattle at 4-H but never attended a large event. Now that she has a
taste, she wants to continue. “I love cattle and I love showing,” she said. Her parents, Dan and Karen Skeels, gave her a cow when she was born, so she has been around livestock all her life. The family has 360 full-blood Fleckvieh Simmentals, and she was allowed the pick of the herd when it came time to select a 4-H heifer. The young Simmental event was also a good experience for sisters Loralee and Tannis Klys of Carstairs, Alta. Loralee’s cow had produced a set of
twin heifers, one red and one black. The two sisters showed them to the reserve champion position. The cow-calf set was Loralee’s 4-H project. She plans to keep the twins and breed them to build up her herd. She started showing cattle when she was five and is an avid junior member, where she has learned grooming, judging and showing. She has shown her Simmentals at E d m o nt o n ’s Fa r m f a i r a n d t h e national young cattlemen’s event at Bashaw, Alta., and participated in Summer Synergy, a major youth
event sponsored by the Calgary Stampede and the Olds Agriculture Society. Even with all her experience, she admits to getting the occasional case of the jitters. “It depends on the class,” she said. The Young Canadian Simmental Association focuses on education, teamwork and hands-on experience for young people between 10 and 25. Events are held throughout summer and fall across the country, where they learn showing, grooming, public speaking, marketing and judging.
LIVESTOCK PRICE INSURANCE | PILOT PROJECT
Livestock insurance premium must be affordable: Ritz BY BARRY WILSON OTTAWA BUREAU
HALIFAX, N.S. — Canada’s agriculture ministers have pledged to expedite creation of a western livestock price insurance pilot project on the way to including the sector in government-backed AgriRisk private insurance schemes. However, the timetable they have laid out to create a potential program takes agreement well into 2016 at the earliest. For several years, governments and the livestock industry have been promoting the concept of sector insurance coverage similar to well-established crop insurance programs. It would allow livestock producers to buy insurance coverage that would protect against the impact of sharp price declines. As a precursor, Alberta has operat-
ed pilot projects that have had limited success in attracting producers willing to pay the required premium. Agriculture ministers dangled the prospect again at the end of their annual federal-provincial meeting July 19. “Governments remain committed to engaging the private sector in expanding the range of risk management tools available to Canadian farmers,” said the final communiqué. At a news conference, federal minister Gerry Ritz said Alberta’s pilot projects have been gaining momentum and increased producer support. “They’re starting to get critical mass.” He also said he has been talking about involving global insurance underwriters that could reduce the premium cost. However, ministers acknowledged
GERRY RITZ FEDERAL AGRICULTURE MINISTER
that despite livestock sector interest in an insurance scheme, there have been problems convincing individual producers in Alberta to join. Alberta minister Verlyn Olson said the potential involvement of other provinces would expand the base and reduce costs, noting that high premium rates in the pilot project have been a problem. “It is true that it takes awhile for there to be enough uptake to make it attractive in terms of cost of premiums and so on,” he said.
“So if there were producers across Western Canada, obviously there will be more producers involved and that will tend to make the insurance more affordable for anyone.” However, Ritz flagged another problem beyond just premium costs. He said producers are reluctant to enroll in a new program whose details and success are uncertain. “The biggest hurdle we face at this point is getting people moving from programs that they understand,” he said, even if they may not like the programs because they are not bankable and predictable. He said crop insurance, which he called “bankable, predictable and timely,” also has fluctuating premium rates. “So we’re working on the right formula to make sure that when we do offer the livestock premium, it’s affordable and it’s something guys
will look at seriously.” Ritz stressed that the concept is for price insurance not connected to production costs. However, the timeline that ministers have discussed for making a proposal to industry indicates it is at least several years away, even if all goes well. The plan is to develop a proposal to present to industry by late next year, followed by up to seven months of consultation with producers. Ministers “will see if we have something that could be implemented at that point” during the mid-term review of the current five-year Growing Forward 2 program, likely at the federal-provincial ministers’ meeting in 2015. Even if governments and industry then move ahead, the program would almost certainly be delayed until late 2015 or 2016.