The Agri Post
March 25, 2016
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Promoting Genomic Technology in Cattle Sector By Dan Guetre
Canola Grown and Processed Like a Fine Wine By Les Kletke Canola is steeling a page from the book of wine or chocolate by differentiating the resulting oil grown from area to area. “It is just like with grapes the resulting products have a different taste because of the environment it is grown in,” said Megan Ellis an education student at the University of Manitoba who is looking forward to returning to the Canola Learning Center at Kelburn Farms this summer. The three oils she offered visitors to the booth at Agriculture Comes to the City were from the same variety of canola but grown in Grandview, East Selkirk and Winkler. Just as with wine, the difference is referred to as Terroir. “The difference comes from different weather conditions, soil types and a number of other factors,” said Ellis. The three oils were crushed in Manitoba at a cold press process plant. “Visitors ask about the cold crush process and like the difference in taste,” said Ellis. “They see that they might be used for different uses from salad dressing to dipping for
bread when mixed with some balsamic vinegar.” She said there are no plans from the Canola Growers to market a Christmas basket of the various oils but it is something a number of visitors have mentioned. “It is a bit like wine but different in that canola oil is not carried over from year to year, so we don’t see there being a specific vintage from year to year, but for special occasions consumers might enjoy the difference in oil and have a preference for one produced in a specific area,” said Ellis. She said that visitors were also interested in the recipe cards available at the booth that included an easy way to prepare fresh salad dressing. The three oils with distinctive labels are being carried by Red River Co-op stores and the marketing potential will be evaluated later. Ellis has not had many consumer questions about GMOs this year. “I had more questions about GMO production last year,” said Ellis. “This year the emphasis was much more on nutrition and the cold crush process.” “The fact that these oils were entirely produced in
Creating a better beef herd which in turn creates more value for ranchers in both domestic and export markets is the goal of a $1 million investment from the federal government to the Canadian Beef Breeds Council. Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food Lawrence MacAulay recently announced the $1 million investment by the Government of Canada to increase adoption of genomic technologies in Canada’s cattle sector. The Canadian Beef Breeds Council hopes to demonstrate to producers the use and value of improving beef herds through genotyping. The project will make genomic testing available for the various breeds at a reduced cost, increasing adoption by producers. Determining the right genetic mix in their herds will allow producers to increase their return on investment, while accurately predicting traits that benefit consumers and the environment. Improving the genetic beef seed stock sector could be a key factor in domestic and international competitiveness to an industry that is already worth $33 billion to the Canadian economy. “Canada produces some of the best genetics in the world and this is recognized around the globe,” said David Bolduc, President of the Canadian Beef Breeds Council. “It is important that we continue to invest in research in emerging technologies such as genomics so we can maintain this pole position and to give producers here in Canada tools with which they can accurately improve the efficiencies of their production.”
Federal Funding Enables Canadian Angus Association to Offer Members Reduced Genetic Testing Fee Megan Ellis explains the significance of subtle changes in Canola tastes due to the regional topography. Photo by Les Kletke
Manitoba made them more attractive, they were grown, crushed and bottled here was something visitors really liked.” The approval by the Heart and Stroke Foundation
has aided in canola oil approval from consumers as well. “We have been working with them and it is something that visitors ask about.”
Canada’s Angus breeders will benefit from the Government of Canada’s investment of $1 million to increase adoption of genomic technologies in Canada’s cattle sector according to their national association. Determining the right genetic mix in their herds will allow Canadian Angus producers to increase their return on investment, while accurately predicting traits that benefit consumers and the environment. As of April 1, the Canadian Angus Association will
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Angus continued... Continued from page 1 offer its members the Zoetis i50K genomic test which includes SNP parentage verification and a prediction of genetic merit for numerous traits at a reduced rate of $40 per test. Genomic information from the Zoetis i50K test is incorporated into animals’ Expected Progeny Differences (EPDs) to calculate more accurate EPDs for them. This is typically valuable on younger animals that have low accuracy EPDs. EPDs are expressions of the relative genetic merit of beef cattle for various traits. EPDs are used to compare the predicted progeny performance between two bulls (or females) within a breed, regardless of age or herd location. “The Canadian Angus Association is thrilled with how our members benefit from this funding,” says Kajal Devani, Director of Breed Development. “Genomic marker panels are used to increase the accuracies for EPDs on animals with little performance data. We are grateful to have government support to offer our members increased access to tools that can help them to make informed breeding decisions.” “We are always grateful to have government support towards the adoption of new technology,” adds CEO Rob Smith. “Reducing the rate of the Zoetis i50K test makes the test available to members who could not otherwise afford to test their young animals as well as allowing members to test more of their herd. Increased genetic testing and the resulting genetic improvements will help Canadian Angus Association members maintain or increase their competiveness in both the domestic and international seedstock markets.
Flax in Rotation Serves Well for Soil Health By Les Kletke Marcia Deneke is a Conservation Agronomist with the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) based in South Dakota working mainly with cover crops but at this time of year her work expands to include the overall health of soils. Deneke stresses that soil health is not a short-term issue. “Soil health is an ongoing process,” she said. “It is not a matter of a onetime tune up and then forgetting about it.” She said that at this time of year producers concentrate on seed selection and choose the best varieties to maximize production on their farm but the best crops begin before that. “It is about putting that good seed in a healthy soil, a soil that contains living organisms and has the structure to allow for proper drainage and movement of nutrients in the soil,” she explained. Deneke uses two soil samples in a demonstration accompanying her talk, one from a zero till farm and one from conventionally tilled soil that has a much great degree of compaction. She places clods from both soils
“...a soil that has binders in it is a healthy soil.”
in cylinders of water at the beginning of her presentation. The compacted solid breaks down and dissolves much more quickly. The minimum tilled soil clod keeps its shape for the half hour talk. “That is what we want,” she said. “It shows the soil has structure that is holding it together; a soil that has binders in it is a healthy soil.” Deneke said that increasing organic matter and living organisms in the soil cannot be achieved overnight or in one growing season but plans should be considered now for improving the health of the soil along with the crops produced and the tillage practices. Her recommendations are to consider crop rotations that will increase the organic matter as well as the living beings in the soil. “We sometimes count on commercial fertilizer to eat up crop residue, but if we have enough living beings in the soil that will happen naturally,” she said. She is not an opponent of commercial fertilizers but advocates for an overall program that includes a return of as much trash to the soil as possible and still having good conditions to plant in. She has done work with planting of cover crops seed at a lower rate to help hold snow on the field through the winter. One of the crops she said shows great promise, flax. “It is seeded at a low rate so you don’t have a lot of fibre to deal with in the spring but it does stand up tall and holds the snow well.
The Agri Post
March 25, 2016
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Biosecurity Has Farmers Concerned By Harry Siemens February 29, 2016, saw farmers on a field from the Co-op in Mitchell, 3 miles north down Centre Street, and 1 3/4 miles west on road 39N protesting, blocking Manitoba Hydro contractors’ equipment from moving from field to field. The Manitoban farmers created a human chain to block Manitoba Hydro from one site of Bipole III construction that weekend, arguing the work threatens their crops and livestock. The farm in question belongs to Tim Wiens and his father Alvin who are very much concerned about the spread of disease in crops and livestock operations. At issue for farmers are biosecurity protocols. While the protesters eventually left their posts, the protests continue. Jurgen Kohler, a farmer and Chair of the Manitoba Bipole III Landowners Committee said the reason for the protest is that Manitoba Hydro contractors are not living up to their own biosecurity protocol. “We’re trying to enforce the much higher standards than that, a negotiated biosecurity protocol standard. That is what we want to
Group of farmers protesting and blocking equipment from moving onto their field until Manitoba Hydro’s government contractors follow properly negotiated biosecurity protocols.
negotiate with Manitoba Hydro at the table, and we are still asking for that, to get to a negotiation table, but in the meantime we’re holding Hydro accountable for their own biosecurity rules,” said Kohler. What upsets him is the contractors are not even following Manitoba Hydro and government’s protocols. “It shouldn’t be our responsibility to enforce their contractors that is Manitoba Hydro’s responsibility,” said Kohler. “That is the big issue and that is what started the standoff. As you know that area has a large concentration of livestock, hog barns especially, and in this field that they’ve entered. Alvin Wiens senior
has confirmed that manure was applied in the fall, so the spread of the PEDv is a huge concern.” Farmers were appalled and concerned, especially on the Friday of that weekend, when the machines drove in the wet conditions as they crossed from field to field. Manitoba Hydro’s actions need addressing by applying rigorous cleaning procedures and the contractors are not doing all three cleaning steps. “They’re skipping sometimes the middle step, sometimes the first step, and just applying disinfectant and if you apply the disinfectant onto something that still has soil on it, that is no good and won’t be effective
at all,” he said. “That is our main objective right now to make sure they follow their own rules.” On Saturday night, the group of farmers blocked them from coming in because they refused to wash the drill bit moving from field to field. On Saturday, the group’s goal was to make sure the contractors’ wire-brush and cleaned the bit and equipment to remove the main dirt, then pressure wash it down, and then apply the disinfectant, he added. The contractors are not willing to do that so the bit just sat there resulting in no work. “They are causing their own problems, we’re just holding them accountable, there is no one else to hold them accountable because we don’t have a third party to do that,” said Kohler. Dan Mazier, President of Keystone Agricultural Producers, who farms near Brandon, said the whole biosecurity issue is what concerns everybody right from the start. As Bipole III, developments came down the line, probably up north there were not as many livestock operations. At first, they talked about club root, always present, making that the main concern as
The contractor’s equipment hired by Manitoba Hydro which farmers say are not getting cleaned by following biosecurity protocol.
far as spreading the disease. “Getting into intensive or any livestock operation for that matter, you’re starting to talk about spreading diseases,” said Mazier. “That is where it gets pretty tricky. You have to do the right thing; there are no ands, ifs, or buts about it.” Mazier said consumers and processors alike are asking
these industries to have a very high standard of biosecurity. Bipole III Landowners Committee Chair Kohler said it was supposed to be part of the negotiation, to have somebody independent monitoring this so the contractors are doing what they are supposed to do.
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Competitors or Co-operators How do you see other people in the same business as yourself? I attended the Love Manitoba Food event this past week and found it interesting that the event was organized by two of the provinces food processors. While talking about the event they indicated that it was not a great moneymaker, though they did charge vendors for the privilege of displaying and they did charge a $20 entrance fee for the 400 or so who choose to come and sample the wares. Pete indicated that it was mostly a break-even and the money if any left at the end provided a poor hourly wage. Bessie was honest and said it was about seeing the people again, and she viewed it has a house party that had gotten too big for her basement. Both agreed the group benefitted from working together and having a platform to promote and sell their products. How do you view those in the same business? I have been a member of a dozen or so professional organizations over the years, Broadcasters, Writers, Speakers and a few more. Many times, we have been bidding for the same jobs and in serious competition but nearly always, I have met great people and gained from the association. It became clearer to me when the president of the Speakers Association said the group was like a family and had some great people and some who were CENSORED. “Choose the ones you like and work with them learn from them, help them,” she said. It is great advice. The business of agriculture is getting smaller and smaller, we need to work together to tell our story, and there are great examples of that throughout this issue. Farmers have long viewed each other as the greatest source of information, and no one can deny watching what happens on the other side of the road and using it on your own farm. The best research is local research and what the neighbour does is as local as can be. We are also in competition with that guy across the road. If you ever doubt it, visit your real estate office and see what the price of land has done. Land prices are the input that has risen the most in cost in the last 40 years and the only one farmers are responsible for. You can’t blame the multinational seed companies for that. But when the bidding for land is over we have to work together to tell the story of this industry. The guy across the road really is our ally and a great source of information, although he may be tough to take at some times, like when spring run-off drains our way, but we do need to work together because a house divided cannot stand in these times.
Cattlemen RReceive eceive FFunding unding Support for PProjects rojects The Canadian Cattlemen’s Association (CCA) is receiving $4 million from the federal government for three innovative projects. The funds are intended to support a Canadian industry that is the world’s seventh largest beef exporter and the second largest exporter of grain-fed beef, with beef exports valued at $2.2 billion in 2015. The three projects include $2,601,500 million from the AgriMarketing Assurance Stream toward the development of tools to enable end-users (packers, retail food service), consumers and the industry to have easy access to beef product information. Under AgriRisk Initiatives, funding of $380,834 will be used for a feasibility study into the use of satellite-based technology to track and measure forage and pasture production for cattle producers. This study will lay the basis for developing field-level productionbased forage insurance for producers. An additional $1,045,510 under Agrilnnovation’s Research and Development (R&D) Stream will be used to work with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada scientists to enhance the quality of Canadian beef using Computer Vision Systems (CVS) measurements. The CVS will image beef carcasses to predict and measure the tenderness, dark cutting, lean yield, bruising, and fat colour of beef. “Innovation drives continuous improvement in the beef industry and funding forward-thinking projects like these ensures continued progress in key areas of sustainable production, quality, and business risk management to the benefit of the entire value chain, including consumers,” said CCA President, Dave Solverson.
Going Hand-in-Hand But in Opposite Directions While farmers in the Mitchell area spent around the clock standing out in their field protecting their livelihood and farming from diseases because of bad biosecurity protocols the last weekend in February, another group was announcing the winners of Manitoba’s Outstanding Young Farmers in Winnipeg. Jason and Laura Kehler of Carman, potato and grain farmers from the Carman area are Manitoba’s Outstanding Young Farmers. The other two nominated couples included Paige and Marcus Dueck of Kleefeld and Ben and Lisa Heide of Boissevain. The Kehlers say much of the passion on their farm focuses around family, referring to the work of past generations and the hope for their two children in the future. It is so good to see these young couples, most whose parents are my age or younger to see them carrying the farming and food production torch on and on, involving their children today, so they can feed those of tomorrow. At the same time, the other article about the peaceful protest near Mitchell in southeast Manitoba, the Alvin and Tim Wiens farm getting support from other farmers to help protect their soil and hog farms from getting contaminated with disease because government isn’t following the biosecurity protocol. It is sad when people in authority, on one hand would stand up on soapboxes, shouting loudly about safety, screaming about poor methods raising food, threatening court action so their contractors can dig bases for Bipole III hydro line, power from which isn’t to serve Manitobans, but sold maybe at discount rates to American interests. I asked for some pictures from Tim Wiens in this case, and received a response from his wife Roxanne. “I’m trying to support and help where I can but mostly I’m home with our 4 children aged 4, 2, 1 and 1 month old. So I’m up in the middle of the night still feeding the baby and lack sleep too. This morning [Monday] is because Tim was in and out of the house and all the interviews and he had to clear snow and his phone is always buzzing as he is trying to coordinate everything. Normally he is with us at breakfast lunch and supper and of course, these last 3 days he hasn’t
been. The kids miss him, he misses them too, and I see that and feel that. I know the kids don’t understand and this is just something we need to deal with now. We are doing this for them, their future. Even though I understand, it’s difficult for me too. I am thankful for the help of my mother in law and sister in law and my mom with the kids and thankful for all the supporters.” Let me take you back to only a few short years ago, when the first PED virus case broke out in Ontario, following shortly after that in Manitoba. Every hog producer and their next of kin, suppliers, and processors all kept their fingers crossed, praying if you like, that when you walk into your hog barn in the morning, there isn’t a virus outbreak. A horrible feeling, I’m sure, and then the industry mounts a combined effort, with the provincial NDP government to make sure the producers and industry alike, the transportation people, and pig handlers all design a biosecurity system, second to none, implementing that at all, levels and places you didn’t know existed. In fact, my daughter asked me on the weekend, dad when can you go to a pig farm so my boys can see the baby pgs like I did growing up. I say, I’m sorry because the days of me going into a pig barn are gone, for the most part. Then along comes Manitoba Hydro/NDP government with their contractors putting up this power line, designed to carry power to the United States, but crossing some of the best farmland in the world, reducing land values and the like. However, that isn’t so much the issue of this family protecting their land. The issue is the fact the contractors aren’t following their own biosecurity rules to make sure club root infecting canola, and PEDv affecting pigs isn’t transferred from one field to another. Jurgen Kohler, Chair of the Bipole Landowners Committee says when we asked the contractors for the cleaning records for this equipment, they said well we have them. “We said we want to see them and make sure you’re cleaning the equipment properly, well they tell us our standard operating procedures don’t require us to do that,” he says. On one hand, we celebrate the positive side, and we should, on the other hand, we’re fighting those same people on the other side. Go figure!
The Agri Post
Cattle’s
People Problem
Penners Points by Rolf Penner
rolfpenner@agripost.ca Raising cattle in Canada is challenging. On some days the troubles producers face seem endless. But two particular problems in the industry – a shortage of both labour and labour mobility – have caught the eye of Saskatchewan’s Carrie Kotylak. In a recent Ag-Econ thesis paper, she outlines the issue and predicts serious long-term consequences if the problem is not addressed. With her husband, Clayton, Ms. Kotylak has been an active partner in a mixed grain and cattle operation for 20 years. A misconception in the mind of the public and particularly policy makers leads them to think that unskilled labour can get the job done. Historically, because of the isolated nature of the way cattle production developed in western Canada, the required skill sets and knowledge were passed down from family members rather than through a more normal “employer-employee relationship”. Kotylak postulates that because of this people and politicians either “forgot” that skilled labour was required for cow-calf operations or maybe never realized it in the first place. She makes a good point and drives it home. “Working with and handling large livestock that have innate maternal and herding instincts and doing so under harsh and sometimes catastrophic conditions, requires specialized skills that are no longer in great supply on the Canadian Prairies.” Another misconception is that this labour shortage can be dealt with domestically. That would be nice, but it’s hard to find young people who want to work anywhere in rural Canada, regardless of whether or not they are skilled. The thesis paper points out, “In western Canada we have seen a consistent pull on our labour force from rural communities to resource-rich areas.” And let’s not forget about the pull from urban areas as well. Kotylak concludes that, “The domestic Canadian labour market simply cannot fulfill the need for the skilled and knowledgeable workers that are required in this sector.” Exacerbating this are both federal and provincial barriers to the movement of labour. Laws and regulations are generally set up, “In order to encourage local development and to protect the domestic labour markets.” The thesis proposes a sensible alternative. “Rather than ‘jurisdictional’ rights being enacted to regulate labour mobility, what is actually needed is ‘sector’ rights in order to compel labour mobility.” So what about immigration and foreign workers? Immigration built Canadian agriculture in the first place, but that was a long time ago. Simply put, current government policies are just not doing the job. As the Canadian Meat Council said in 2015, we need an, “Immigration program that permits access to foreigners who possess specialized knowledge and skills when there is a clear and chronic shortage of Canadians with the requisite knowledge and skills.” Rather than quick “knee-jerk” reactions, we need a long-term approach to tackle the problem. This presents both a problem and an opportunity. To satisfy both domestic and international consumption, the cattle industry in Canada has all sorts of potential for growth. It’s a hungry world. Kotylak believes that “There is virtually unlimited potential for Canada in this export market. This unrealized capacity and the accompanying inability to realize labour requirements, as it applies to the cow-calf production sector, is actually skewing the perception of the industry’s potential.” She’s probably right. In her concluding remarks, Carrie Kotylak makes an astute observation. In this problem, “We see a clear example once again of Canada’s agricultural industry being defined by non-farmers.” She is absolutely correct here, and the consequences go well beyond cattle. “This not only leads to faulty and misconceived definitions of the industry’s requirements, but it also leads to the unfair negative impact upon the development and competitive ability that this sector can achieve in both the domestic and international markets.”
FCC Adds $500 million to Young Farmer Loan Farm Credit Canada (FCC) is adding $500 million to its ongoing commitment to a loan program aimed at helping young farmers become established in the industry. Launched in March 2012, FCC’s commitment to the Young Farmer Loan has grown to $2 billion over four years, with almost 6,000 loans worth more than $1.3 billion approved, as of December 31, 2015. “FCC is proud to support the next generation of farmers through every stage of their career,” said FCC President and CEO Michael Hoffort. “Products like the Young Farmer Loan can make a real difference for producers looking to enter the industry or grow their business.” The Young Farmer Loan provides qualified producers, under age 40, with loans of up to $500,000 to purchase or improve farmland and buildings. The loan includes variable lending rates at prime plus 0.5 per cent, a special fixed rate if producers choose that avenue of repayment and no loan processing fees. Enabling young producers to borrow with no fees at affordable interest rates helps them develop a solid credit history and build their business. “The long-term success of Canadian agriculture relies heavily on our ability to attract and retain young, innovative people to the business of agriculture,” said Lawrence MacAulay, Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada. “By helping the next generation become established in this vital industry, FCC is fulfilling an important part of its mandate and a key commitment of this government.” In 2014-15, FCC approved more than $2.4 billion in financing to farmers under age 40, representing more than one-quarter of the $8.6 billion in disbursements last year. For more information on the FCC Young Farmer Loan, visit fcc.ca/youngfarmerloan or producers can call the local FCC office at 1-800-387-3232.
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Hog Barn Open House By Harry Siemens Suncrest Colony near Steinbach celebrated the opening of the first new barn in Manitoba in the last seven years on March 4. Jim Long, the President of Genesus Genetics said what makes the opening truly extraordinary is the fact the new Suncrest sow barn is the first new sow barn in Manitoba in seven years. “Seven years is a long time and it reflects some of the dynamics affecting the Manitoba industry, the US-Canada dollar exchange rate, MCOOL, industry low margins, and a moratorium on new sow barns imposed by the Manitoba government,” said Long. “These four points combined with general lack of enthusiasm in the Manitoba swine industry has led to next to no new barn infrastructure investment for the last decade.” He said this in itself leads to an aging barn and equipment inventory and if there is no new investment, it will naturally lower production as facilities go out of business. The price of new barns is going up as new
building codes, animal welfare, and environmental regulations, continue to add costs. Bob Kleinsasser, the Hog Boss at Suncrest, said they built the new barn with the latest technologies, Big Dutchman ESF system, Gestal-feeding system in lactation and the latest equipment and feeders from Crystal Springs, a close neighbour of Suncrest. Several hundred people came to the opening to see the latest in sow barn technology. “By nature, most if not all of us in the swine industry are optimistic people,” said Long. “We saw a new barn built to last with the best technology designed by people who know pigs. It was fantastic to be with the Suncrest Colony people as they celebrated a big investment in the future. Faith in themselves and in the swine industry.” Claude Vielfaure, the Chief Operating Officer with Hylife said, to maintain the viability of Manitoba’s pork production and processing industries, there is a need to replace older hog finishing
barns and add new ones. Vielfaure said Maple Leaf is running well below full capacity and, while Hylife is running close to capacity, it could also use more pigs, and with an aging infrastructure, maintaining those barns costs more money. ”It’s been quite a few years that we haven’t been able to build barns in Manitoba and so our facilities today are actually getting old,” he said. “You need to be replacing a certain portion of your faculties on a yearly basis so we’re way behind the 8-ball on that one.” Industry people at the Open House kept talking about the importance of finally getting a new barn built and operating, but one in seven years is a far cry from what one person said the province needs, which is more like 100, or even 200 new barns just to stay up with current production. Vielfaure said Manitoba Pork’s research on the cost of finishing barns shows it’s certainly at a bigger price than it was 10 years ago, because of cost of concrete, construction, wood and competitiveness out there on the construc-
tion side. “Cost of a finishing bam is probably close to double in the last 10 to 15 years and it’s a fairly significant number and so you need to be able to pay it off,” he said. “It’s not only about building a barn but being competitive and being able to pay for that facility.” While good to see a new
sow barn, and in Suncrest’s case, they didn’t have an option, but Vielfaure said it’s not so much about building sow barns or nurseries, it’s about finishing barns. Jason Manness, procurement manager of Maple Leaf Foods agrees with him. Building sow barns and shipping Isoweans, baby
Producers enjoyed touring the new sow barn with its new technology and equipment.
Bob Kleinsasser, Suncrest Colony Hog Boss, Jason Manness, Director of Procurement Maple Leaf Foods, and Jim Long President of Genesus Genetics at Suncrest Colony sow barn open house.
piglets and 50 and 80 pounds south, does nothing for the processing industry in Manitoba. “We have over 3 million pigs a year that go across the border to the US that could certainly be finished in Manitoba and make this industry a lot more sustainable and viable long term,” said Vielfaure.
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Bull Sale Prices in All Breeds Strong By Joan Airey More and more bull sales are accessible live on-line with such companies as Direct Livestock Marketing (DLMS) that bases their auction business on the technology and uses it to help both buyers and sellers connect. Many bulls are being videoed in the corral so prospective buyers can study them on-line. As a result, sales are becoming more high tech making it easier for cattlemen across the country to find the bull to suit their breeding operation. The 21st Cattleman’s Connection Black Angus Bull sale in Brandon was dedicated to the memory of Jack Hart who lost his battle with cancer recently. Jack and his wife Barb started the Cattleman’s Connection Bull sale twenty-one years ago and have been the backbone of the sale producing top quality bulls. “I’m honoured to have had the opportunity to get
A group of uniform bulls were available to buyers at the Cattleman Connection Bull Sale in Brandon on March 4. Photo by Joan Airey
to know Jack. In the few short years I have been acquainted with Jack; I have known him as a great cattleman, a mentor and a very special friend. Shall we have a moment of silence in his memory,” said Barb Airey when opening the sale for the Hart family. A huge crowd attended the sale of one hundred and twenty three bulls with
an average price of $6,013 and a sale gross of $739,600. Lot 61 ARY Classic Remitall Rage son sold to Merit Cattle Company for $16,000. Lot 83 HBH Cormac 33C Double Vision son sold to A & L Robbins for $15,000 and Lot 97 HBH Casino 8C Fortitude son sold to Triple J Farms for $14,000.
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Egg Producers Educate at Forks By Les Kletke Janet Irwin has a very direct strategy when speaking to consumers and representing the Egg Producers of Manitoba. “We try to engage them in a game where they are answering questions, and then they are more comfortable and begin to ask their own questions.” Irwin is the Marketing Specialist with the producer group and was staffing a display at Agriculture in the City. She said that consumers have questions about the nutritional value of eggs and how they are produced. “I did not encounter any confrontational people,” she said. “It was questions about how the hens are treated and people were willing to listen and had more questions.” She explained that there is an advantage to having a display in a place like the Forks where consumers are more at home. “They are comfortable in their surroundings and feel better asking questions,” she said. “It is not likely that they would visit a farm, or be familiar with production methods.” She also had a large carton of eggs that had question on the back about eggs and their nutritional value.
“Questions like. ‘Is there a difference in the nutritional value of brown eggs and white eggs’? I had one lady tell me she had never seen brown eggs,” said Irwin with a smile. Another question asked about different feeds affecting the colour of the yolk of an egg. Those with correct answers got a small foam egg as prize. They were popular with young and not so young visitors. “We had a High School come through the first day and they had passports that had to be singed by the booths they visited, it was almost like a scavenger hunt,” said Irwin. “And they had very good questions.” She puts great value in establishing a relationship with the consumers of tomorrow. “It is good to get them thinking about production methods because they are our clients of tomorrow and we have to have their confidence.” According to Irwin when producer groups pay to have a display space in a shopping centre, it may be one of the best and most cost effective ways of getting the message of today’s agricultural production methods to a consumer. She pointed out that now is the time, especially as consumers are becoming less trust-
Canada to Benefit from Expanded Canada-EU Organic Equivalency Arrangement The European Union (EU) has voted in favor of expanding the current scope of the Canada-EU Organic Equivalency Arrangement. Canadian certified organic processed products that include imported ingredients will now also be covered by the arrangement and will no longer require costly and time-consuming double certification. Once certified these imported products may bear the Canada Organic Logo. The expanded scope of the arrangement will also include mutual recognition of EU and Canadian organic wine standards as being equivalent. Some administrative steps remain before the amended EU regulation comes into force. It is anticipated that the regulation will be published in the EU Official Journal by the end of March 2016. The EU regulation enters into force seven days after its official publication, at which time the revised CanadaEU Equivalency Arrangement will also come into force. Other country equivalency arrangements that are currently in place are with Costa Rica, Japan, Switzerland and the US.
ing and more concerned about the nutrient value of their food. Irwin said that she found consumers who were also concerned about the traceability of their food. “They know that eggs are not laid with numbers on them but they are aware of the traceability that process provides, and the consumer of today is much more concerned about possible problems with their food.”
Janet Irwin engages consumers with a game to test their knowledge of eggs. Photo by Les Kletke
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Food Processors Better Together
Seed Companies TTaking aking PBR Enforcement Serious By Dan Guetre
Pete Fehr and Bessie Hatizitrifonos put the final touches to Love Manitoba Foods entrance at the Polo Park Inn. The event attracted 400 to sample and visit with processors of Manitoba food products. Photo by Les Kletke
By Les Kletke Manitoba’s small food processors are finding they can do things together. “There is a feeling of working together and seeing more efforts from the marketing, rather than seeing each other as competition,” said Pete Fehr who operates Gourmet Inspirations a company that sell sauces of his creation. “I love seeing these people again,” said Bessie Hatizitrifonos who along with Fehr organized the third annual Love Local Food event held at the Polo Park Inn on March 19. The two organize the event that attracts 40 Manitoba food processors and 400 attendees. Those attending the event pay $20 at the door to wander through the ballroom, sample the wares of the exhibitors, and enjoy a glass of wine. Hatizitrifonos said that she has met many of the people at
Farmer’s Markets and similar events over the past couple of years and there is a feeling of community in the group. She met Fehr at the St. Norbert Market 4 years ago, and decided to do something together. “He liked my energy,” she said with a chuckle.” And wanted to do something together so we decide to do an event that would help the small producers of Manitoba foods and this is what came of it.” They are both members of Food Matters Manitoba and contributors to the blog about the industry and what is new in Manitoba Food Processing. Both credit the Manitoba Department of Agriculture Food and Rural Development with helping them and many of their exhibitors get started. They both laugh at the name changes the Department has gone through with inclusion of Rural Development as well as
adding food, but they do not make light of the help they have gotten from people in the Department. “As well as the University of Manitoba,” said Hatizitrifonos. “I have worked with the Department of Food Science there and they have been great in helping me get a new product to market and having a kitchen to prepare it in.” While both have backgrounds in the restaurant business, it is very different. Fehr who competed the culinary arts program at W.C. Miller Collegiate in Altona went on to work at the St. Charles Country Club, “I was always back of the house, and Bessie was front of the house.” “I spent more than 20 years in the restaurant business as a hostess and manager,” said Hatizitrifonos who grew up and worked in Toronto before relocating to Manitoba and starting Bessie’s Best.
2015 was the busiest year on record for Plant Breeders’ Rights (PBR) related activities according to Todd Hyra, SeCan Business Manager for western Canada. SeCan works as a member of the Canadian Plant Technology Agency (CPTA), established to protect intellectual property rights pertaining to crop development. According to Hyra, last year CPTA found over 400 advertisements for selling seed on both online sites and printed publications that required investigation and follow-up to ensure the seller had legal rights to sell the seed. “SeCan alone had 40 cases that resulted in legal action and to date 20 of these cases have been completed,” explained Hyra. The balance of the cases are still in the process of awaiting a ruling. It takes from 6 months to over a year depending on the complexity. Financial penalties can be stiff. The largest case to date (in 2016) was settled for $150,000. With governments backing away from developing new seed varieties, private investment dollars are needed to improve seed stock, advancements in hardier breeds and improved crop yields. Research is expensive and the dollars will dry up if the financial return is eroded. While SeCan is taking enforcement seriously, educating the farming community on why it is a priority and it seems to be successful. “Feedback, by and large, has been positive,” said Hyra. From tradeshow booths to farmers’
yards, Hyra said the majority of producers understand the value of respecting intellectual rights. “There are some out there profiting on the backs of others and, generally, producers believe this to be unfair.” SeCan is a consortium of over 700 independent Canadian seed businesses engaged in seed production, processing and marketing. Hyra explains that about 650 of these are family owned seed operations.
“The goal of Plant Breeders’ Rights is to encourage investment in plant breeding in Canada. If farmers want access to the best varieties in the world, we need to reward breeders’ time and investment,” said Hyra. PBR is critically important for public breeders, including universities and smaller private breeders who may not have the resources or traits necessary to utilize other forms of protection.”
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Time to Think Gardening! have websites where you can find their catalogues on-line and they have a wealth of information on gardening for anyone who visits their website. The new Prairie Garden is available now and I
bought a copy at Lindenberg Seeds in Brandon. It is chalk full of fruit tree and berry information plus numerous recipes for prairie fruits. Last year I lost most of my fruit to a late June frost so I’m hoping
Potatoes planted in the first week of March growing under lights in a black nursery pot on March 17 take over the planter.
By Joan Airey Everyone is thinking spring and gardening. Our snow had disappeared but overnight we received a fresh blanket of it. I’m not complaining because we will need the moisture at some point. Has anyone checked out GrowVeg an English website I found on Facebook? My cousin tried one of the tips by cutting off the bottom of green onions and planting the roots, sounds like he got carried away and now his wife calls it his jungle, they have an endless supply of green onions to add to salads. I have started multiplier onions under grow lights using a 3’ by 3’ planter to grow them. I also decided to try growing green onions from the roots of ones I purchased in the store and it is working but mine aren’t as advanced as his are. Another idea I found on the site is growing potatoes in black tubs that trees come in from the nursery. Since I had, a few tubs around I decided to try it and they sprouted in the cold room. I couldn’t believe how quickly they grew. I purchased Commercial T5 EnviroGro lights last year from Vesey seeds to start my bedding plants. They are expensive to buy but I enjoy
growing plants and opening my greenhouse in March although most years it means an expensive heating bill. Sun Blaster lights are cheaper and you can grow plants under them, they are available locally at garden centres or through seed catalogues. Numerous seed companies
Green onions grown from green onion roots purchased in a grocery store, some already over five inches tall. Photos by Joan Airey
Mother Nature is kinder to us this year and gives us a bountiful crop of apples, cherries, pears and maybe a few apricots and saskatoons. My grandchildren enjoy eating raspberries and strawberries straight from the garden. This year I plan to try growing a fruit new to me, a Sunberry that I found the seed for in Vesey Seeds. It is supposed to be sweeter than a Huckleberry and good in pies. Rain Treasure is a strawberry you start it from seed that I’m trying to plant in containers and give some plants to my grandchildren to have on their decks. Lindenberg’s has a large variety of grapes this year in their catalogue I’m hoping to try the Concord and Sovereign Coronation. Last year my grapes produced a small crop once again because of the late frost.
Cantaloupe and Honeydew can be grown in Manitoba and taste so delicious ripened on the vine. They are easy to start indoors at the beginning of May. A gardening friend thinks it is economical to buy a couple at your local greenhouse to plant outdoors when any chance of frost has past. Hope everyone encourages their children and grandchildren to garden. The youngest two of our grandchildren who were five and two grew pumpkins and giant flowers in our garden last year. Every time they were in the garden they would count how many pumpkins they had on the plants and how much taller the giant sunflowers were. This year they are trying their hand at growing watermelon too. May everyone’s garden be bountiful this year.
Farm W oman Helps Others with PProfit rofit from Cookbooks Woman By Joan Airey
Elaine Edel and her Winning Ways cookbooks. Photo by Joan Airey
“I write under the pen name Winnie and formed the company ‘Winnie’s Winning Ways’ because my love of cooking started in my grandmother’s kitchen. We often made bread, buns and donuts together. On occasion, I remember going to deliver baking to less fortunate neighbours. Mom sensed my love of cooking and gave me plenty of opportunities to experiment with different recipes and ingredients. Those early positive experiences in the kitchen gave me a lifelong passion for cooking and sharing my knowledge of the art,” said Elaine Edel. Living on a farm gave Edel the space to grow a large garden when feeding her family of seven. From time to time, when struggling with floods Edel sold her baking at the Farmers Market and catered small groups. “When the drought of 1988 hit it was the beginning of my website “Winnie’s Winning Ways” and publishing cookbooks containing recipes I had created over the years. When our granddaughter developed diabetes at age thirteen I started creating recipes she could eat. Over the years I have published seven cookbooks,” said Edel. A new venture for Edel is selling one of her cookbooks to raise funds to help her niece and her husband who are helping with a sawmill going into Fiji so people can rebuild their
homes which were destroyed by a cyclone. “As there is no school near them, my niece, Brooke had to bring her oldest child back to Canada to attend grade two. While here she has decided to get all the material together for kindergarten to grade three and will home school her children when Zoola has finished grade two here. The village children in Fiji are always at their place playing with her children so she asked the government of Fiji if she could start an English school when they return to Fiji. They agreed to let her do this. In order to help Brooke move forward with her plans I have told her if she helps me promote the cookbooks I will give her the profit from the sales of the Soy Satisfied cookbook to help start the school. The village they live in is very poor and has no electricity so Brooke and Soni have been bringing in solar panels to run the sawmill and they have been living with the villagers. The mill was donated by a Canadian and is ready to go but the man who is planning to run it lost his house in the cyclone, too. There are many trees down so the wood is there and Soni is pulling it towards the village and getting it ready for cutting. And they have learned that everything is very slow happening to improve things there,” said Elaine Edel. You can learn more about the cookbooks and her blog at winnieswinningways.ca or contact her at 204-746-8162.
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Fresh Veggies to the Door By Les Kletke Philip Fenez is clear that Shared Agriculture is not for everyone. “We have customers who think they like vegetables and try it for a year, and find that they don’t like vegetables as much as they thought, or as much vegetables as they thought,” he said with a smile. Fenez and his wife Leanne operate Fenez Follies Farm at La Barriere southeast of Winnipeg and have nearly 2 acres of garden on which they produce vegetables for the clients who buy into the shared agriculture program. For $450, the client gets a box of vegetables delivered to their home weekly for 12 weeks. “It starts out quiet light with the leafy vegetables and gets heavier, finishing with potatoes and squash,” he said. “It changes Philip and Leanne Fenez produce vegetables for about 35 clients through the Community Shared Agriculture through the season and some Program. people aren’t ready for that.” Photo by Les Kletke The shared agriculture program not only gives clients a change in produce but returns them to the days of seasonality. “When cucumbers are in season you get a lot of cucumbers,” he said. “You have to be ready for that.” It also opens them to the vagaries of the business, including weather. “When we have a hail storm the clients feel the impact,” he said. “One year when we got hail the melons had some dents in them but people understand that.” “They also learn what to do with new vegetables, some people are not familiar with eggplant so when they get a few of them they need to find recipes that include eggplant and they do.” The farm not only produces vegetables but has free-range chickens and goats. “The animals are there for meat and also for fertilizer,” said Fenez. “We are not certified organic but try to be as natural in our production methods as possible so we use the manure for fertilizer.” Fenez has about 35 families that are part of the Community Shared Agriculture Program and some have been with him since the start, 7 years ago. “Others drop off because they find the box is more than they expected and nobody wants to waste food. So we have about a 50% turn over.” He said people are very understanding about the challenges of the weather and accept that it can change the contents of the weekly box. Good weather means the box contains more veggies every week as clients share in the bounty as well as the seasonality. It is just like real agriculture on the table.
Pass the Pork Please By Les Kletke Consumers want to know the pork they are eating was from happy pigs. They want to know the animals were raised in humane sustainable conditions. That is what Laurel Lyons who is the special events coordinator with Manitoba Pork found from staffing the Manitoba Pork display at Agriculture in the City, a two-day event held in mid March at the Forks in Winnipeg. Lyons said that visitors had questions about production method and in some cases; she was dispelling myths about animals being raised in individual cages with little room to move. “People have heard of the gestation stalls and some how project that the animal spends its entire Laurel Lyons assures consumers that pork comes from happy pigs during this year’s Agriculture in the life standing in a small cage,” she said. City event in Winnipeg. “When we show them the conditions that hogs are raised in and that they have room to move they are quiet happy and move on to questions about recipes and how to cook the product.” “People love the recipes from Manitoba Pork and want more information and recipes,” she said with a smile, “We get more questions about cooking than anything else.” One thing that she does caution consumers on is that pork of today is a very lean product and can be over cooked, which results in a dry hard product. “Pork today is leaner than it was even a few years ago,” she said. “That requires different cooking methods and times than it did before.” Cultural difference and expanding diets have meant that pork is included in more recipes and different foods than consumers were used to. “They want to try new things and they want information,” she said. “The consumer today wants more information on the nutritional value of their food as well.” She is armed for those questions too. “It is about engaging in a discussion with the consumer and if we can help them with some information about our product they are more inclined to include it in their diet.” The display backdrop features a large picture of pork cuts that might appear in a grocer’s cooler. “We emphasize that pork is fresh and high quality,” she said. “The consumer has to trust that they are getting a healthy product that came from a happy pig.” She reported no confrontational events where the visitor was challenging the production methods but rather people asking about how pork was produced.
The Agri Post
Garson Perogie Maker Buys Local for Freshness By Les Kletke James Aitkenhead does not rank with the major potato processors when it comes to the volume he buys but he is a significant user of Manitoba potatoes none the less. Aitkenhead operates Perfect Perogies at Garson and buys from 2,500 to 3,500 lbs. of potatoes every week for his production. That goes up to 5,000 at Christmas. “We have a great demand at Christmas time,” he said. “So we are buying more potatoes and have more people working at that time.” He employs the latest in technology and his production machinery measures dough to the 1/1000 of an inch. “To get the most stuffing we can in them.” He has converted the former Garson School to a production facility and employs from 16-18 people depending on the season. The business began as an offshoot of his mother’s catering business. “I have a fellow who was not happy with the frozen perogies he could get so he asked me to make some like my mom did for events that she catered, with another investor they partnered and we started the business. That was 10 years ago and today we sell both fresh and frozen perogies to stores across the province.” When it comes to potatoes, he varies the varieties through the year using mostly Yukon Gold but
James Aitkenhead says there are some secrets he cannot reveal about the family recipe for his Perfect Perogies. Photo by Les Kletke
moving to a red variety later in the year. Aitkenhead believes that the secret recipe has to use fresh ingredients to make his Perfect Perogies. “We don’t use any additives, we use the real thing. Onions are cooked in the facility, we don’t use garlic flakes. We use as much fresh product as we can,” he said smiling. “Just like grandma used to.” He adds there are some secrets that grandma passed on that he cannot share but does say that there is sour cream in the dough. While his recipe is traditional, he has added some new flavours that are not traditional perogie
flavours. “We have a feta and spinach one for the vegans, and I developed my favourite, a chilli and pepper one to kick it up a notch,” he said. The spicy chilli came about when he received an order of spicy chilli light jack cheese from the plant in New Bothell. “Was it a mistake or good marketing on their part?” he laughs. “But now we use it in the chilli and pepper perogies.” He plans to continue his business carrying on the tradition of using as much fresh product as he can get, and he said Manitoba producers are doing a good job of that.
Pulse Growers Unleash Kid Bean
To celebrate the 2016 International Year of Pulses, Manitoba Pulse and Soybean Growers’ Debuted Kid Bean with friends at Parkland Elementary in Winkler, Manitoba.
A six-foot tall kidney bean wearing sneakers and a baseball cap is now touring Manitoba with the message that pulses are good for people and good for the planet. Kid Bean is the new mascot for Manitoba Pulse and Soybean Growers (MPSG). Over the next six months, Kid Bean and the MPSG Bean Team will meet with school kids and community groups throughout the province, as part of the 2016 International Year of Pulses.
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Manitoba Opens Doors for Local Food Processors
By Les Kletke Bessie Hatzitrifonos credits her parents garden with getting her started on the road to creating new flavours and producing the best food she can. Ironic since she grew up in Toronto but that is what the owner of Bessie’s Best said got her hooked on the flavours of fresh food. She spent more than two decades in the restaurant trade in Toronto and travelled extensively always with an eye to new foods and now from
her kitchen in St. Adolphe she prepares the foods market under the Bessie’s Best label. Hatzitrifonos has the highest regard for her adopted province and credits the infrastructure here with giving her the opportunity to commercialize her Tapenades and Tzatziki. “The people at the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development have been great,” she said. “The help with the process and with getting into commercial kitchens so that I could take it to the next step.” She has twice been a Silver Medal winner at the Great Manitoba Food Fight, crediting the competition with opening doors to other food processors and the industry. “The prize money also helped move my products to the commercial level,” she said. She also worked with the Dairy Science Department at the University of Manitoba. “Arnie [Hydameka] has been very helpful and the whole staff has been great to work with,” she said. “There are so many things that need to be done, and so much information that these people provide it allows me to concentrate on
the production and the development of new recipes. Hatzitrifonos sources as much of her product as she can locally. “Of course the olives have to come from outside of Manitoba,” she said. “But quality of food products here is so good I wish that I could source more ingredients from Manitoba.” She sources her chickpeas, garlic and dill from local producers. She is a co-organizer of the Love Manitoba Food events and counts many of the exhibitors as her person friends. “These are my people,” said Hatzitrifonos waving at the exhibit floor that featured 40 Manitoba food processors. “We have met at local farmers markets and have become friends.” While her products are carried by some specialty stores, Hatzitrifonos said that attending farmers markets is a part of her business and personal life. “For me it is about meeting the people who buy my product and talking with them about food, yes, I need a product to sell but the actual manufacturing is hard work. The meeting people and discussing food is what drives us.”
Early Seeding Seen Quite Lik ely Likely By Elmer Heinrichs While a little snow last week may have put a damper on any quick moves to the fields, farm-
ers in southwestern Manitoba have been welcoming the warm weather with open arms. Pam de Rocquigny, a provincial cereal crops specialist, said, “I’m thinking that based on the recent precipitation and cooler temperatures forecasted for at least the next few days that there won’t be any wheat seeded before April 1.” “It’s not that bad a time of year to have things dry up,” said Dan Mazier, President of Keystone Agricultural Producers (KAP) and a farmer near Justice,
Manitoba. Mazier predicts producers in the southwest will be getting out a bit earlier than usual this year preparing fields for seeding. Typically, seeding occurs around the beginning of May, with fieldwork beginning in April after the ground thaws out. Even though fieldwork might start earlier this year, Mazier does not think many will actually start seeding until around the beginning of May, even if the weather continues with the warm trend.
Sorting Diets by Lactating Dairy Cows Can be Prevented Recently, I attended the 2016 Western Canadian Dairy Seminar and took in several excellent presentations. One of the talks discussed the mixing of the milk cow’s TMR by Tom Oelberg as well as some of the improper diets that are often put down in the feedbunk. This lecture made me think that we should always implement good mixing and feeding practices to prevent lactating cows from sorting out their diets. This is good pertinent TMR information, because I find that given the chance, lactating dairy cows can become skilled masters at sorting their rations. For example, I have literarily seen cows lay their heads flat against the concrete bunk floor and pick out the more tasty grain/concentrate particles and leave the rest of the diet. Unfortunately, when they gobble up this part of the diet, it tends to be low in effective fibre making them susceptible to subclinical acidosis or SARA. If left unchecked, SARA will eventually compromise their milk performance and health. From a dairy nutritionist’s standpoint, I believe that if I can reduce the conditions that cause cows to sort their bunk ration; SARA and other related feed problems are not likely to become a significant issue. Consequently, I find that there are two major reasons, which makes some TMR diets easier to sort than others by dairy cows: (1) a “dry” dairy diet and/or (2) large particle size variation amongst added feedstuffs. In the first case, an excessively dry TMR has a low physical density. This allows dairy cattle with a shake of their head, separate the finer grain and protein supplement material from coarser forage fibres. Subsequently, it is much harder for them to separate out a wellmixed lactating TMR that is about 50% moisture. In order to achieve this goal, dairy producers can add up to 7 kg (15 lbs) of water per lactating head into a TMR diet in order bring moisture content into this optimum range. Again, a dairy diet with various feed particle sizes makes it easy for cows to sort out dairy diets because they can literary “un-mix” their diet. One way to stop them is to add forages with a modest particle length of 4 – 7.5 cm (1.5 – 3.0”). The idea being that cows tend to sort and reject long particles, but are willing to eat medium-sized ones; those often long enough to help meet forage-fibre requirements. Given these two underlying reasons for sorting, most people either have a general sorting problem in the milking barn or one pops up on occasion (re: hot weather). Therefore, I have five associated suggestions that help us mix up a proper TMR and are harder for dairy cows to sort: 1. Moisture testing - It is a good idea to test the dry matter content of the major silages (re: corn and/or barley silage) and the other added wet by-products (re: wet distillers grains) added to the TMR and of the entire bunk ration fed to the cows. If water is added to the diet, the amount should be recorded. Such information is useful when future moisture adjustments are made. 2. Particle testing - Use the Penn State Particle separator to determine particle variations within the diet. A sample of the daily mix should be taken, separated out, and fractions calculated. Between 6 – 10% of the sample weight should lay on the top of the screen. It should also be something that the cows like to eat; not cobs or woody alfalfa stems. If more than 15% of the ration remains on the top screen, the chances are good that cows will sort this ration. 3. Grind forages - Long-stem hays should be coarse ground (ahead of time) to match the particle size of the other feed components of the TMR. This is most important when more than 2.0 kg of hay per head is fed. 4. Manage the Mixer - Many typical TMRs require about 3 – 6 minutes of actual mixing time to make a consistent uniform diet. Furthermore, dairy producers should make sure that their mixer-wagons are in good working order and consider a checklist for scheduled maintenance (Tom Oelberg, 2016 WCDS). 5. Measure Feed Refusal - Take a sample of the feed refused by the cows. As part of good bunk management practices, dairy cows should leave about 2 – 3% of the original feed put down. Although, it could be picked through, daily feed refusal should be similar in appearance to the fresh TMR. If particle profile of a sample is tested, the amount left on the top screen should not be greater than 10-points compared to the original TMR. It’s anybody’s guess why many cows sort TMR rations. Maybe it’s part of their natural grazing nature or a modern opportunity to eat the tasty treats in their feed. Regardless, dairy producers should follow these few practical steps when mixing up a dairy TMR, which should be eaten in its entirety by all cows coming up to the feed bunk.
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Building a Better Bee House Competition Underway Bees need better homes. As such, the University of Manitoba is currently hosting an international design competition challenging people to re-think houses for nesting bees. The competition aims to take action on a pressing ecological issue, the decline of bee populations. Bee houses were chosen as the focus of the competition because they offer an easy way for the bee-loving public to help bolster bee populations. “Around the world, pollinator insects are under threat from unintended consequences of parasites and pathogens, pesticide use, habitat loss and climate change, especially in urban areas,” said Robert Currie, Professor of Entomology at the U of M. “Bees play a critical role in ecosystems, including pollination of many food crops we rely on. In urban areas, creating artificial habitats like bee houses that are appealing to the public, easy to use and attractive
to bees can help support healthy and resilient pollinator communities.” The competition challenges participants to create a bee house for 80-100 solitary nesting bees. There are several species of these bees, which are different from honeybees, and the houses must accommodate these various species. “This project may sound simple because it is small, but entrants will be challenged to understand the needs of the home’s residents and then deliver excellent design in very tight space constraints,” said Jae-Sung Chon, competition coordinator and Instructor in environmental design in the Faculty of Architecture. Jurors Joyce Hwang, Associate Professor of architecture at the University at Buffalo, and Michael Loverich, CoDirector of a design farm in New York, will assess submissions, looking for function, innovation, excellence in design and constructability. The Faculty of Architecture’s FABLab will fabricate top submissions chosen for a field test, and real-world performance will be studied by the university’s department of entomology by installing more than 100 of the houses on the university campus through a partnership with the U of M Parks Canada Club student group. “The competition is an opportunity to highlight the role that universities and design can have in creating knowledge to address sustainability challenges,” said Ian Hall, Director of Sustainability at the U of M. “Engaging students, professionals and the community in creating solutions is exciting and empowering, and we are looking forward to some creative contest entries.” Full details about the competition are available at online at umanitoba.ca/sustainability/BeeHouseLab. Contest submissions are welcomed from March 31 to April 20, 2016, and winners will be announced on April 25.
The Cost of Pollutant Losses Can Escalate Today’s volumes of pesticides, fuel and manure combined with the ever-increasing environmental regulations and sensitivity to these issues makes this an important consideration. A hazardous materials cleanup crew, the long tail of environmental monitoring and environmental fines can really add up. Legal Liability coverage is readily available for little to no extra cost for sudden and accidental losses. This is for when you are being sued by another party for pollutants that damage property of others. However, fines and the costs related to cleaning up spills that affect only your property is not covered on the typical farm policy. On-Site pollutants coverage is a less common type of coverage to purchase. The best way to avoid
problems is to have a good understanding of your insurance policy. Here are some questions that you could ask your insurance broker: - What is the extent of coverage for pollutants cleanup? - How much cleanup coverage do I have? - Am I covered for spills from off-the-farm transportation accidents? - What is required of me if there is a chemical, fuel or manure spill? - Are there any actions I might take that would void coverage on my policy? There are insurance policies that do not cover any pollutants losses at all. Is yours one of them? Be sure to seek advice and purchase insurance from those who understand your business!
Andy Anderson is an Associate Insurance Broker specializing in General, Life and Group Benefits for Farm and Business P 204-746-5589, F 866-765-3351 andya@rempelinsurance.com / rempelinsurance.com / valleyfinancial.ca.
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Leader’s Farm Roots Taught Resourcefulness and Work Ethics By Les Kletke
Ergot in Egypt – One Event or Symptom? It is baffling. Egypt is a county facing food shortages yet they are blocking wheat shipments from around the world. Their quarantine agency has decided to impose a zero tolerance for ergot. This is despite the fact that the contracts signed by Egypt’s central buying agency recognize the international, science-based tolerance of 0.05 per cent. Some may think that 0.05 per cent is a pretty small number and not really a whole lot different from zero. “Some” would be wrong. Zero tolerance brings us into the realm of parts per billion and parts per trillion. A part per trillion is equivalent to one second in 32,000 years – a small number but one still bigger than zero. Why is this important? For Egyptians it might very well result in bread lines, since countries will simply not be willing to take the risk of arbitrary decisions by regulators and imperfect testing systems that can kick out false positives almost randomly when looking for such minute amounts. There are implications for Canadian farmers too. This is not just a “one off” event but also a symptom of a larger and growing problem. As tariff barriers fall some countries, use non science-based grain safety excuses blocking trade in an attempt to drive down prices or to prop up their own agriculture industry. The result is the same even if the application of arbitrary rules is well intentioned but misguided. Unscientific rules of trade impede or even stop the flow of grain. Canada has a strong reputation for consistently delivering safe, high quality grains, oilseeds and special crops to our domestic and international customers. The foundation of this reputation is our science based regulatory system. Our approach reduces the risk that exports will be blocked by sanitary and phyto-sanitary regulations. Maintaining “science-based” is not just a job for regulators and chemical companies. Farmers have responsibilities too. For example, the label on every crop protection product is determined by the Pest Management. Regulatory Agency based on in-depth research. Not following the label can result in increased residues. This puts our exports at greater risk from arbitrary decisions like the one we saw in Egypt because residues just might give some government an excuse to keep our grain out. Not following the label may also generate residues and could even bump residue levels above the science-based maximum residue limit, in which case importers have legitimate food safety concerns. The risk of these incidents is growing. It is not valid to think “they will never test” or “grain from my farm won’t make a difference”. They may test and when measurements are in parts per trillion, just a few farmers not following the rules may result in rejected shipments. Some basic things to ask before applying any crop protection product: - Am I applying at the rate indicated by the label? - Is the crop covered by the label? - Are there restrictions on when the product can be applied (too green, too late, etc.)? - Am I respecting the “swath to harvest” interval? - Have major markets approved this product (if you don’t know, ask your agri-retailer and grain buyer)? Following these rules will not eliminate risk. There is nothing that farmers could have done to prevent the arbitrary decisions by Egypt. But following the label, knowing if there are market risks from particular products, using best management practices to minimize disease infection all reduce market risk. As any marketer will tell you, risk comes with a cost and everything we can do to reduce costs improves our international competitiveness. Cam Dahl is President of Cereals Canada.
Rana Bokhari said growing up on a farm is the best thing that happened to her. As leader of the Liberal Party Bokhari’s schedule is not overrun with, rural events or those concentrated on, agriculture but she did take time to visit Agriculture in the City at the Forks on March 18. Bokhari grew up on a farm at Anola and counts those days as very important in shaping her. “We had a laying hen operation and it was a family operation,” she said. “Everyone [in the family] was a part of it and we all had our jobs.” “Living on the farm you learn so much more than just the day to day tasks,” she said. “You learn resourcefulness and you get a work ethic. I think that helped me in every aspect of my life.” Bokhari said the walk through Agriculture in the City served to remind her of the great food that is produced in Manitoba. “We need to tell the story of food production, and the availability of great food that we too often take for granted.”
Rana Bokhari Leader of the Manitoba Liberal Party attended the Agriculture in the City event at the Forks on March 18. Photo by Les Kletke
When asked, if in a position of power what she would do to help rural Manitoba she replied, “We have said that our policy would be that the extra money for the PST would go directly to Municipalities to aid in development,” said Bokhari. “We have talked about economic and social policies with AMM and see the value of work-
ing with them in the future.” She downplays the rural urban differences. “I see that growing up on a farm I learned more than farming, I learned about the social aspects and being a part of the community, as well as the business aspects of operating a farm. We need to keep those opportunities available to people.
MB Beef… Educating the Public By Les Kletke Consumers have not lost faith in Canadian beef and the demand continues as always. Chad Saxon is the Communications Officer for Manitoba Beef Producers and after staffing the organization’s booth at Agriculture Comes to the City, he said most questions he fielded were about the recipes that the organization provides. He said the organization has not seen a backlash because of beef prices increasing dramatically over the last year. “Consumers are happy with the product and they may be eating smaller cuts but they are not eliminating it from their diets,” said Saxon. The booth also had information about the use of hormones in cattle and another on antibiotic use. “We get people picking the brochures up and asking about information. During the time, this reporter visited the booth; one visitor said she has stopped eating meat be-
cause animals were fed GMO grains. “They have not been tested properly,” she said. “We don’t know about the impacts they will have. It is like smoking at one time everyone smoked and now we know the harmful effects.” When posed the question, “Would a hundred years of no harmful effects be enough to satisfy your concerns to prove there are no harmful effects? The answer was, “No probably not.” and “They are just not good for us.” Her partner then offered, “Farmers use much more pesticide on GMO plants, it is a well known fact.” He went on to explain that he did not eat meat raised on a commercial farm but was a hunter and ate the meat of wild animals he killed. “They are much healthier than the animals raised on commercial farms,” he explained. Saxon explained the couple was more of the exception than the typical visitor to the booth at the Forks during Agriculture comes to the City. “We get
most people asking about recipes and the cuts of meat,” he said. “We do have a board that tries to dispel many of the myths about the beef industry and people are quiet interested in the facts about the industry. Saxon said that last year there seemed to be more questions about the use of hormones in production of cattle. “Consumers seem to have confidence in the product and are looking for more about cooking, and that is a good thing. We are here to provide it,” said Saxon.
What the future holds for the next farming generation concerns Bokhari. “I have concerns for the next generation, for the people that want to go into farming,” said Bokhari. “Will they have the opportunity to take over a farm and provide the opportunities for their family?” Bokhari had the opportunity to visit many of the booths in the event at the Forks and did not face the security issues or crowds asking for selfies that her Federal Liberal counterpart does, but perhaps after the next provincial election it will be another matter.
The Agri Post
Winkler Sauces to the World By Les Kletke Peter Fehr grew up in a food conservative part of the province but is now ready to take on the world with his personally developed sauces. Fehr grew up south of Winkler and readily admits that the Mennonite approach is not the fusion that he brings to mixing and blending tastes. However, the background is heavy in rich sauces, which is what his Gourmet Inspirations brings to the market. Fehr is a graduate of the Culinary Arts program in W.C. Miller in Altona and speaks highly of his instructors and the influence they provided. He then moved on to work at the St. Charles Country Club in Winnipeg. Today his sauces are marketed throughout the province in Co-op stores and specialty food markets. He is also working on agreements to get his products into stores in Vancouver and Toronto. “They are sauces that would fit best in fine food stores and butcher shops,” he said. “They have been well received in Manitoba but I
Peter Fehr of Gourmet Inspirations credits the encouragement from a Texas woman visiting the fishing camp he was working in as the inspiration to commercializing his sauces. Photo by Les Kletke
need to get into the larger markets to make the business viable. That comes in
cities like Vancouver or Toronto.” He said it took encourage-
ment to make the leap from creativity in the kitchen to commercialization “I was working at a fishing camp in Northern Manitoba and had a client that loved one of my sauces tell me that I should put it in a bottle and sell it,” said Fehr. “She was from Texas and encouraged me to make the jump to commercialization.” He said it has been a process that involved a lot of education. “I learned about the process of taking a product to the market place and I had to educate people that it was a sauce to drizzle on meat or desserts not a salad dressing,” said Fehr. The meat sauce is a rich and creamy product that might have some influence from the cream gravy of his youth but has an ingredient not used in most Mennonite homes of the time, an alcohol flavour. He is working on a Whiskey Fight salad dressing that has no less than three alcohols in it. Fehr is committed to using as much Manitoba product as he can in his sauces. “Of course I can’t get Manitoba lemons for my Sweet and Spicy Lemon Sauce but I try to use as much Manitoba product as I can. The quality of Manitoba products is very good and with production here it is fresh so that is a big factor.” He plans to expand his line to include a series of products marketed in jars. “That will appeal to a different market segment.”
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Guinness World Records Officially Registers Harvesting Hope Event Manitoba is 150 days away from adding to their growing list of world records. Harvesting Hope: a World Record to Help the Hungry is officially registered to break the current Guinness World Records for the “most threshing machines operating simultaneously” held by Francois Latour of St. Albert, Ontario. Harvesting Hope plans to have at least 125 threshing machines at its event, operated by over 600 volunteers. “Harvesting Hope is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to take a step back in time, and see how people grew food over a hundred years ago,” said Ayn Wilcox, spokesperson for Harvesting Hope. “What makes it even more special is that it’s an opportunity to help make a difference for some of the millions of people around the world who are hungry.” To set the new record, all threshing machines must operate simultaneously for at least 5 minutes. Harvesting Hope’s organizing committee plans to run all threshing machines for at least 20 minutes and thresh 75 acres of wheat. A steam engine, tractor or stationary engine built between 1890 and 1950 will drive each machine. When operating, the machines will require over four football fields of space. Prior to last year’s new record of 111 machines, the 2013 Olde Tyme Harvest event in Langenburg, Saskatchewan held the record with 41 threshing machines. The Saskatchewan event also raised funds for the Foodgrains Bank. For information on Harvesting Hope, including details on how to attend the event, participate in the harvest, sponsor a piece of equipment, or make a general donation, please visit harvestinghope.ca.
Increases Forecasted for Canola, Flaxseed, Soybean Acres By Elmer Heinrichs Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, in its March crop outlook report, says that while total crop production will increase slightly, grains and oilseeds will decrease somewhat, while the production of pulses and special crops should increase significantly. For 2016-17, the area seeded to wheat is forecast to decrease by 2% as a 24% increase in winter wheat is mostly offset by a 4% decline in spring wheat acres. The increase in seeded area for winter wheat was in Ontario where seeding conditions in the fall of 2015 were much better than in the previous year. Winter wheat seeded area in western Canada was nearly the same as for 2015-16. In western Canada, the outlook predicts competition for spring wheat from durum, oilseeds and pulses, which is expected to limit the seeded area. Area seeded to canola, flaxseed and soybeans are all expected to increase with the latter expected to rise by 4% to 2.3 million hectares on expected attractive returns compared to alternate crops. Domestic usage of soybeans is forecast to increase on higher US biodiesel production and livestock consumption of soy meal. In general, world grain prices are expected to be pressured downward by abundant supplies of grain at the global level. The impact on grain prices in Canada, however, will be mitigated by the low value of the Canadian dollar, which is forecast at about C$1.35 per US dollar.
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Deworming Cattle Makes Big Difference By Peter Vitti Just after the New Year, a rancher that runs a few hundred late-spring cows called me. He was having difficulty getting his weaned calves on background feed and were just not doing “good”. Although, he dewormed these calves once offpasture with a commercial pour-on, I told him that they might still have stomach worms. So he agreed to treat them,
again. This time using a drench dewormer containing a different active deworming medication. I saw the same calves in middle of February and they were eating with vigour and growing, which I like to say, “Like weeds”. This little story is a good reminder that cattle are very susceptible to stomach worms and there should always be a good program in place to control worms at all times. Whether these cattle
worms had resistance against the first dewormer is unknown. It’s my snapshot of the round stomach worm’s detrimental effects upon cattle performance such as reduced feed intakes, poor feed efficiencies and inferior weight gains. It has also been proven that even a modest worm infestation in young stock can compromise their immune system. Mature beef cows are affected but have some acquired immunity.
Except for severe diarrhea and anaemia showing up in some animals, many producers may not realize their cowherd is infected with worms. I believe that it’s due to the opportunistic subtlety of the stomach worms or Ostertagia ostertagi life cycle. The contamination of pastures by these stomach worms parallels the grazing season by the cowherd. It often leads to an initial increase of worms during the first couple spring months, followed by a dip in mid-summer and literally ending in a population explosion during late summer or early fall. We explain this roller
coaster effect upon cows that shed eggs from overwintering adult worms, which develop as larvae and contaminate either the cowherd or dieoff. Meanwhile, new calves are starting to pick up contaminated grass, acquiring worms and depositing them back as shed eggs, which therefore contributes to the majority of latepasture contamination. Effective chemical control of worm eggs on pasture (and in dry lot) has been around since the early 1980s with the development of a new class of dewormers, known as the anthemintics. This class can be divided into many chemical groups, but the avermectins (ivermectin and dormectin) and benzimidazoles (fenbendazole) are some of the leading dewormers against stomach worms in cattle. Avermectin dewormers are not only effective against the latter larvae/ adult stages of the stomach worm living in cattle, but it can eliminate worms hibernating in their abomasum as well as has weeks of residual power. Producers also like the avermectin such as ivermectin, because it controls other external as well as other internal parasites. In comparison, fenbendazole has effective control against stomach worms, but is not effective against other parasites and has little lasting control. Like me, when producers make their own personal dewormer choice, they often find that the accompanied advice often varies as to when and how many
times to treat cattle and also how to prevent worm build-up on pasture. Tradition dictates to treat cattle when the greatest number of worms are still developing in overwintered beef cows and not yet shed on the ground. This means to me, that cow-calf operators should deworm cows just prior to their release on pasture. In contrast, a new protocol says it is not necessary to treat grazing cattle right away and they can wait up to six weeks on pasture before being dewormed. The idea being is to deworm calves after the first few weeks on pasture and then process the mature cows a couple of weeks, afterwards. These worm specialists believe this allows an effective dewormer to clean up the overwintered cattle as well as stop egg shedding for the next four to six weeks. The benefit being is that there is no build-up of worms on pasture at the end of the grazing season. Nobody will disagree that a high worm load will eventually cause a potential loss of revenue. However, many producers ask, “Does it pay to deworm cattle”? Let’s illustrate a typical situation – one US gallon of Safeguard (fenbendazole) @ $400 (CDN) is used at the rate of 2.3 ml/100 lbs bodyweight. It is recommended that cows be treated prior to being released on pasture and cow-calf pairs be treated after six weeks. As a result, some Canadian research shows an 18 lb pound weaning weight advantage due to deworming. Therefore, my input cost (cow + calf) = $5.84/calf and estimated revenue = 18 lb x $2.00/lb = $36/calf; net return = $30.16/treated calf. For a 350 cow/calf operation, that is an extra $10,000 in revenue. This is good news! Deworming cattle shows a clear economic advantage, this has been realized on many real cattle operations as well as the reduction of sick cows and calves or lowered death loss due to worms. It’s unrealistic to think we can rid our cattle entirely of stomach worms, yet I believe we should take this approach to control them.
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