The AgriPost
October 26, 2018
Stopping the Sale of Counterfeit Meat Show Your with Edible Barcodes 4-H Colours and Show Your 4-H Heart
The technology is intended to stop counterfeit beef which amounts to nearly a million pounds a year in China.
By Les Kletke Barry McDonough is the Senior Vice President of Sales and Business Development with TruTag Technologies and he said that counterfeit meat is already in the market place. His company has signed an agreement with an Australian firm to use its edible barcode technology as part of the Food Trust Initiative. McDonough said that a million pounds of beef imported into China is estimated to become 2 million pounds in the market place. “That means that the Chinese consumer is paying for a premium product like Canadian beef and might not be receiving any of it at all,” he said. That counterfeit product can be made of just about anything and come from anywhere he noted. “Just about anything you can imagine,” said McDonough. “It could be lower quality beef produced in China or it may not be beef at all.” He cited the example of the horse meat scandal in Eu-
rope a few years ago. “We saw different types of meat being exchanged for beef and being sold as beef,” he said. “It is a much greater problem than you might expect, and it will continue to grow.” He explained that marketing and the loss of visibility and control in supply chains have made it possible for meat to be exchanged for something else or added along the way. “Before when the supply chain was relatively short from the farmer to the consumer it was quite unlikely that there would be a substitution but that is not the case now, there is much more opportunity for a different product to find its way into the system.” His company is marketing a barcode with scanner that can be used to evaluate individual packages. Block chain technology offers brand owners a new means of sharing their product information and improving supply chain security he said.
“TruTag‘s edible barcodes act as the perfect crypto anchor offering unrivaled security and a unique ability to directly mark foods and food contract packaging,” said McDonough. McDonough said that what began as authentication technology for knock-off handbags and t-shirts has now moved into most areas of the market. “We see it in food,” he said. “It is particularly troublesome in pharmaceuticals where we now see drugs that might have no active ingredient or in the veterinary supply business.” He cites another example, of a flea collar that was sold promising 6 months of flea control. The product had no active ingredient and at the end of the 6 months the client brought the collar back to the brand name manufacturer. “The internet and marketing has allowed these kinds of people to be in business, our intent is to stop them in the food business,” he said
This November 7, 4-H Canada is calling on all supporters to share their 4-H pride by participating in Canada’s annual Show Your 4-H Colours Day. 4-H’ers across the country are encouraged to dig into their closets, pull out their favourite green clothing, wear it for the day, and join more than 32,000 4-H youth members and volunteer leaders along with tens of thousands of alumni, government leaders and partners in celebrating one of Canada’s leading positive youth development organizations. In addition to wearing green, as a proud 4-H’er you can show the world what 4-H means to you by visiting showyour4hcolours.ca. Here you can share your own stories, photos and videos on the impact of 4-H in your life and why you support 4-H in your community, in your country, and around the world. You can also demonstrate your 4-H pride by using the #ShowYour4HColours hashtag to share your thoughts and experiences. Show Your 4-H Colours Day on November 7 is just one of many activities taking place, with green continuing as the theme for the entire month of November. Landmarks across Canada including Toronto’s iconic CN Tower and Vancouver City Hall will be lighting up in green in support of 4-H. “Show Your 4-H Colours is the best possible way to share the positive impact 4-H has had on your life,” said 4-H Canada CEO, Shannon Benner. “We encourage everyone to get out into your communities and use social media to tell your story, so that others can learn about 4-H, its values, and our deep commitment to positive youth development.” To learn more about Show Your 4-H Colours Day, visit showyour4hcolours.ca or follow 4HCanada on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram using the #ShowYour4HColours hashtag.
The AgriPost
October 26, 2018
Confidence Builds in Agriculture Sector for 2019 By Les Kletke The Senior Agriculture Economist with Farm Credit Canada (FCC) is confident that 2019 will be another
good year for Canadian agriculture. Craig Klemmer was in Winnipeg to deliver the Ag Outlook to the Canadian Association of Farm Advisors
and he expects the economy to continue on relatively the same path it has for the last two years which has been good for agriculture. Klemmer told the group in early October that he expects the inflation rate to stay near 2% and business interest rates to continue as they have from 2016-17. He said expectations for interest rates in the US are that they will stay flat longer than in Canada. On the international scene he said the Canadian dollar is expected to stay below 80 cents US, very close to the 78 cent average for this year. He pointed out that a 1 cent movement of the Canadian dollar relative to the
US translated to between $13 -$16 per head on beef cattle and about $5 an acre on crop revenue. “That could be the profit,” said Klemmer. “There is a lot of crop that is still in the field and that will have an impact on the revenue side, we are not going to see growth this year,” predicted Klemmer. “We will see downward pressure on farm growth as appraised land and buildings soften.” Klemmer said that industry wide tractor sales are often used to gauge the health of the farm economy. “We saw that increase in 2018 and we are expecting a slight down turn in 2019,” he noted. “There is going to be some retooling and a real look at
finding out what fits.” Overall sales are expected to be 2,000 units nationwide. When asked about overall economic opportunities he said it should remain profitable but there are pockets that are going to struggle. “Now is the time to talk to those sectors that are below the line and fix the problem before it gets out of control,” stressed Klemmer. “We are going to see some areas with problems but that can be fixed with some planning and addressing the issues now.” He singled out the hog sector as one that had struggled but could see some improvement through the winter. “Things are going to improve,” he said. “The season-
A senior economist, Craig Klemmer with Farm Credit Canada said the outlook for Canadian agriculture heading into 2019 looks good. Photo by Les Kletke
al trends will help with cash flow and for many producers that is the concern now.”
The Real Hunger Story in Our Communities By Les Kletke Wade Nerbas does not down play the tonnes of food collected by Farm Credit Canada’s (FCC) Drive Away Hunger campaign. He did say that raising the awareness of the problem it addresses is just as important as the food. Nerbas has served as the campaign leader in south
eastern Manitoba for the past 12 years, and he said the problem is not going away. He remembered when he first heard about the campaign. “It was at one of our staff meetings were Bruce Gray, who was a long time employee got up and told the story about using his own tractor and trailer to collect 60,000 lbs. of food, and he told the story with tears in his eyes,” said Nerbas. “He said there are hungry kids out there.” That was what got Nerbas involved and he has been steering the effort in south eastern Manitoba for more than a decade. The campaign uses tractors and trucks to make the collection, in many cases youth groups in the community
do the collection alongside FCC staff who for transport the food to Foodbanks. “We make it a point of taking the trailers across the scales so we have an amount of how much we collect, said Nerbas. “The image of trailers of food is also important because most of our work is done with the community of agriculture and the people who produce food.” The campaign takes place 15 days before World Food Day which this year was October 16. Since 2004 the program has provided more than 40 million meals. Closer to home Nerbas said the campaign collected 7,000 lbs in Steinbach. “Many people don’t know about the need in our community,” he said.
“We have homeless people in Steinbach, we have people that eat at the soup kitchen, and the need is real.” Nerbas goes on to say that he has seen the need himself. “The system has checks in it that require them to prove they need the food, and the foodbanks are connected so they cannot go to another town the next day. These are not just people who don’t want to pay for groceries. These are people in need.” He said the program is intended to supplement programs that are already in place. “These are people in need, and this helps them get through the month, but for many people it is about being aware of these people in our community,” said Nerbas.
Province Proposes Legislation Affecting Crown Land Community Pastures The Manitoba government has introduced legislation that would improve how agricultural Crown lands (ACL) and community pastures are managed. “We are pleased to be introducing amendments to The Crown Lands Act that will modernize the process of crown land leases,” said Agriculture Minister Ralph Eichler. “We are also making changes that will better enable government to maintain and protect community pastures. These lands not only provide opportunities for cattle farmers, but also provide numerous environmental benefits including carbon sequestration, protecting threatened
species and maintaining biodiversity.” The Crown Lands Amendment Act would allow agricultural Crown lands to have their rent determined by a public auction and allow government designate ACL as community pastures. Currently, fees or rent for leases and permits for agricultural Crown lands may be determined by public tender. This proposed bill would enable regulations that provide for public auctions to also be used. The new subsection to the bill would allow rent to be calculated in one of four ways. The rent calculations would be arrived at by setting out or prescribing the amount of
method/formula to determine rent in regulation, by having a public tender, by having a public auction, or a combination of ways one to three. The bill would also enable government to designate certain lands as community pastures and to regulate their use. The purpose of community pastures is to support haying and grazing on rangelands in a manner that conserves the lands’ ecological integrity and biodiversity. Once designated, community pastures must be managed in accordance with this purpose. The proposed bill would come into force upon receiving royal assent, the minister noted.
The AgriPost
October 26, 2018
Ag Minister Concludes Second Growing Canadian Agriculture Tour
The Minister of Agriculture, Lawrence MacAulay, announced an investment of over $12 million to advance innovation and sustainability in Canada’s canola sector in the presence of Jim Everson, President of the Canola Council of Canada, Ralph Eichler, Manitoba Agriculture Minister and Dr. Digvir Jayas, VP of Research and International at the University of Manitoba.
The agriculture and agrifood sector is vital to Canada’s economy, providing high-quality, nutritious and safe food for Canadians and people around the world and creating good, middle-class jobs. Canada’s agriculture and agri-food system contributes over $110 billion of our gross domestic product, and last year our agriculture, food and seafood exports hit an all-time record of $64.6 billion. In August, the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food, Lawrence MacAulay, embarked on the second Growing Canadian Agriculture tour, which recently concluded. During the tour the
Stars Helicopter Guardian Angels in the Sky By Joan Airey What started out as one Calgary doctor’s dream is now a mega-operation by several teams of experts and an integral part of emergency medical systems across the three Prairie Provinces. Dr. Greg Powell was one of the founding members of Shock Trauma Air Rescue Society known as STARS. STARS started over thirty years ago but just started operating in Manitoba five years ago. “All STARS nurses and paramedics have previously worked in trauma or critical care for at least five years and receive ongoing training by physicians who specialise in critical care. All STARs helicopter interiors are identical. It’s a high risk atmosphere and everything is kept the same to minimize human error. All paramedics and nurses are trained to use the equipment some of which can be found in ambulances and some of which is unique to the STARS helicopters,” said Shandy Walls while speaking at the Manitoba Women’s Institute “Manitoba Rural Women’s Day, Exploring Rural Health Care.” “Too many people living in rural areas were dying needlessly. People weren’t getting the care they needed fast enough so STARS was born,” said Walls. For patients who are critically sick or injured every second matters. Half of all western Canadians live in rural areas where emergency ground transportation isn’t
always fast enough. Thousands of people every year rely on STARS for advanced care and direct transportation to hospital. I hope as long as there are people who need critical care we’ll be there to offer them support.” She explained that STARS is the first helicopter air ambulance service in Canada to begin stocking blood in advance for life saving transfusions on air medical missions. The initiative in conjunction with Canadian Blood Services allows the emergency medical operation to begin a transfusion on board the helicopter without having to first stop at a hospital to pick up blood thus saving precious time. Providing critical care within the first hour of an emergency often referred to as the “golden hour” helps reduce the chances of death or permanent damage. On the air ambulance services are coolers. Each thermally insulated cooler contains two units of blood with a monitoring device to ensure proper temperature. If the blood is not used within 96 hours, it is returned to the hospital, inspected to ensure quality and then made available to other patients. “In January STARS partnered with the University of Manitoba’s Faculty of Emergency Medicine to provide training to a team of eleven nurses and paramedics who are now certified independent practitioners,” said Walls. Unique diagnostic capability is also utilized by STARS.
The Planning committee for Manitoba Rural Women’s Day presented a cheque for two thousand dollars to STARS representatives from Manitoba Women’s Institute. Shandy Walls (STARS) back left, Ann Mandzuik, Debbie Melosky, Chad Saxon STARS, back right Brenda BanDen Dreen, Christine Diores.
“We are the only helicopter air ambulance in Canada using ultrasound technology in this manner. Having an ultrasound on board the helicopter allows our air medical crew to look for any abnormalities or issues while on the way to the receiving hospital which can help to diagnose critically ill or injured patients’ sooner and help to save much needed time once they arrive at the hospital.” said Chad Saxon Communications Lead, Manitoba STARS. “With more than 700 missions in the past fiscal year, we know there is a need for the service STARS provides to critically ill and injured Manitobans,” said Lori Derksen, STARS Development Officer, Events. “The funds raised during Rescue on the Island help ensure that STARS is there for the next person that requires our ser-
vice during a medical emergency or traumatic event.” “If anyone has required the STARS helicopter in Manitoba they have never been charged for the service,” noted Walls. Farm families support STARS in many ways she said. Nicole and Curtis McCutcheon helped to organize The Big Dig, a Farm to Table Experience in support of STARS raising $22 thousand. Verwey Farms from Southport donated forty acres of Soya Beans. The support of the agriculture community is needed in order to be sure that STARS can keep a helicopter available. “At the moment a new helicopter would cost $15 million. We have to plan ahead to always have operating money to keep our helicopters operating and saving lives,” said Walls.
MacAulay travelled to many parts of the country to meet with farmers, processors and industry leaders, and participated in rural agricultural events. Several strategic Federal agricultural investments were highlighted during the tour, which will help keep the sector on the cutting edge. Since the launch of the first tour, MacAulay has announced over $70 million in new agricultural research clusters under the Canadian Agricultural Partnership to key areas of the sector, including organic, canola, pulse, agronomy, beef, pork and grape and wine. During the second part of
the tour, MacAulay also announced the details of the Government of Canada’s $70 million investment to address significant environmental challenges and hire approximately 75 scientists and science professionals in emerging fields of agricultural science. Other key investments to support growth and innovation in the dairy, livestock and hemp sectors, as well as securing market access for British Columbia fresh cherries to Japan. Together, these investments and activities will help build an even stronger and more innovative sector for Canada, said MacAulay.
The AgriPost
October 26, 2018
Counterfeit Food Sometimes you know things are wrong but sometimes there is a gray area, and you are not quite sure. Take the example of counterfeit food, or in simple terms making something into something it is not. Elsewhere in this edition is the story of a firm from Ireland which has developed a scanner that can identify beef as being the beef it is said to be. The source in the story told me that in China a million pounds of beef “appears.” There is an additional million pounds of beef being sold as high quality beef than is actually imported into the country. He explained it could be low quality beef or some other kind of meat. It is easy to identify that as wrong. Someone cannot take a product and misrepresent it as quality beef when it is in fact it is something that came from a smaller animal and not bovine at all. Then I got to thinking about some locally produced beef being added to the pot in China and being billed as Canadian or Australian beef. My source went on to tell me the most counterfeited food product was calamari and that often bunt was represented as calamari. There is something you might want to use to amaze your friends that are trivia nuts and always asking about the name of a group of animals. Like a group of geese being a gaggle and eagles being a convocation, ask them the name for the intestine of the animal. Start with an easy of like Tripe being the intestine of a beef animal and then move to the porcine family. It is a party game sure to catch on. He explained that pig intestines are often passed off as calamari but his firm had the technology to put a stop to at least some of this chicanery. I got to thinking about where is the line on this magic with food. Certainly these examples go too far but I worked a stint in a large industrial kitchen and we used to have what we called the magic fridge where a meat could go in after supper and come out the next morning to be used in another dish and it assumed a very different identity. Is that wrong? No, it keeps the meals affordable the University cafeteria, and we all knew it was happening. Or what about what my Mom did with some of those lesser cuts of meat from on farm butchering? She took some pretty ill-respected cuts of meat and made them into some very tasty dishes. You would never accuse my mom of counterfeiting, misleading maybe, but counterfeiting never.
Halloween Headlines “If it bleeds, it leads,” an old saying goes, to explain why the news is always full of scary headlines. Here’s a roundup of some of the fears the media have stoked lately. NAFTA renegotiations would be at the top of the list, with weeks of warnings about the coming of a Frankenstein monster in the form of a trade war. Donald Trump threatened us with tariffs, Justin Trudeau vowed to re- By Rolf taliate. Deadlines flew by, rhetoric went into overdrive, negotiators poked Penner each other in the eye, and none of it looked good. Then suddenly the clouds parted, the sun came out and we had an agreement. When all was said and done, we took a couple of minor flesh wounds. But for the most part nothing major had changed. As a bonus, it appears we achieved some harmonization on the grading of grain, which should help keep things flowing between our two countries. Speaking of the sun… we didn’t see much of it towards the tail end of harvest. Things ground to a halt, with forecasts as dark and gloomy as Dracula’s castle. After a summer of too much heat and too little moisture, suddenly we had rain and early snow putting the brakes on things. According to Weatherlogics, Winnipeg had the wettest September since 1977 with precipitation 241% of normal. Snow was reported at the Winnipeg airport on September 22 for the first time since records started being kept in 1872. Though we got away lucky compared to Calgary, which got 32.8 cm of the Devil’s dandruff on October 2. And it got cold. Last year in September, we were about 2 degrees above normal, this year it was the 20th coldest September in Winnipeg’s history. On September 23 the high was 6 degrees Celsius, which broke the previous record of 6.7 degrees set way back in 1946. More cold weather records were broken throughout October. Speaking of weather… like a Zombie coming back from the dead the climate change, global warming doomsday clock has been reset for (drumroll please) ten years. Which is what? The fourth or fifth time now? The United Nations suggests we might need a $5,500 per tonne carbon tax to take care of this “problem”. That works out to over $12 per litre of gas over at the local coop. Our fearless climate leader Trudeau seems to think $20-$50 per tonne will do the trick. There’s even a report out claiming that the feds carbon-based wealth redistribution scheme, the one they call “revenue neutral” will make us all rich. If you believe that, then I’ve got a bridge in Plum Coulee to sell you. Someone recently did some interesting math and figured out this, if you took all the money that places like California and Germany have spent subsidizing wind and solar energy and instead had spent it on nuclear reactors, those places would already be at zero carbon emissions. That would include the bulk of their transportation on top of their normal electrical usage. Fun fact, Ontario’s electricity is 90% cleaner than California’s because of nuclear power. Nuclear isn’t perfect, but if the world’s coming to an end in ten years and it’s the only viable large-scale option to going carbon-free right now, how come nobody’s talking about it? Because no one’s actually serious about climate change. What they are serious about is spending more of your money for you. That’s why all they talk about are new taxes. Last up is the so-called legalization of marijuana. From coast to coast, the country has the potential to be filled with a thick, intoxicating fog and inhabited by slow-moving, dim-witted outcasts from “The Mummy Returns”. But before you decide to spark up a doobie in the tractor cab while doing some fall tillage with the autosteer on, and a Costco-sized bag of Doritos by your side, take a look at what the new rules really are. If anything, there’s more regulation around pot now than ever before. The world is filled with all sorts of things to be scared about. Until you take a closer look.
Penner’s Points
Harvest ‘18 Turns into Salvage ‘18 The harvest of 2018 has almost turned into the salvage of a damaged crop whether in parts of Manitoba, Saskatchewan or Alberta. For the most part, cereal and special crop farmers in the Red River Valley have finished, except for corn, potatoes, sunflowers and some soybeans. However, as you travel further west in our province, the harvested acres percentage drops significantly. Andrew Dalgarno of Newdale, said “Well... the bin fans are running 24/7, heaters are humming, and there’s water dripping out the canola hopper... you tell me how it’s going” This comment came after I put out the question as to how the tail end of the harvest is going following abnormally cold temperatures
dropping well below freezing mixed with snow and rain at the most inopportune times. Gerry Demare at Somerset said, “Guessing at most 5 per cent crop left to go around Somerset- Swan Lake, and mostly soybeans. Need some sun and wind. I’m hoping for the best of late fall conditions for everyone to finish up.” Korey Peters at Randolph said they’re nearing the finish with most soybeans harvested but lots of corn left in the area. Rolf Penner at Morris needed one more day to finish soybeans but was shut down for three weeks because of weather. Jim Wickett of Rosetown, Saskatchewan said they were about 70 per cent done with some pockets complete and others at 40 to 50 per cent and that many farmers had lots of tough damp grain in the bin.
Farmers with potatoes most likely have the most to lose because harvesting in wet, muddy conditions is almost impossible and if it gets too cold for many nights in a row, the frost will damage the potatoes becoming useless. Although I wasn’t able to speak to a potato grower locally, a colleague Jack Dawes spoke with one in Saskatchewan where conditions are similar to here. Kirk Flaman of Prairie Dome Potatoes said harvesting right now for us is very grim. “We delayed our harvest hoping for some late rains in late August, and that seems to be, right now, not a good choice. We got most of our seed off, but that is about all that we have right now. So, most of our potatoes are still in the ground and with this recent lengthy cold spell, it is pretty grim with what we can get out of the ground.” Fla-
man has over 100 acres still out there but his concern with the cold nights is how far the frost will go down. The soil temperature was about zero degrees and it was up to four or five inches down. The possibility of the potatoes freezing is becoming greater in those low temperatures. He was able to harvest all his seed potatoes for next year’s planting in the spring “Well, I guess it just goes from bad to worse. The alternative is, of course, if they freeze in the ground, well then, I guess that’s where they stay, in the ground and, of course, the possibility we are seeing is
Harvesting corn in Pembina Valley.
probably in that 40 to 50 per cent damage right now,” he said. “So, even if we get them out of the ground and we put them in storage, we’re going to have issues in storing, of them breaking down and causing the other potatoes to break down as well. So, yeah, with this long cold spell and cool weather it’s been tough to sit in the yard and wait for it to warm up because we know that we can only take so much frost damage.” This is a quick round-up of what many producers are still going through over the latter part of the fall.
Photo by Harry Siemens
The AgriPost
October 26, 2018
The Advantage in Trade Agreements is Sometimes Lost in the Deal By Les Kletke “It is not from the benevolence of the butcher, the brewer, or the baker that we expect our dinner, but from their regard to their own self-interest,” wrote Adam Smith a Scottish economist, philosopher, author and a pioneer of political economy, in An Inquiry into the Nature & Causes of the Wealth of Nations, Vol 1. Mr Smith died in 1790 however his philosophy still holds sway. The date of Adam Smith making the observation about the benefit of trade has been lost, but the observation holds as true as ever, and Dr. Ryan Cardwell is charged with teaching the
first year students of the School of Agriculture about the value of trade. He was also tasked with explaining the current trade situation to the Canadian Association of Farm Advisors at the update meeting in Winnipeg. Cardwell told the group that while little has been achieved at the 164-member World Trade Organization in recent years, the move to PTAs or Preferential Trade Agreements has been growing. He sees the practice as particularly attractive to the US. “The world was moving towards larger trade agreements like the WTO which removed more of the barriers but now we seem to be
in a situation where the US in particular is happy to negotiate a number of smaller agreements,” he said. “They feel they can achieve an advantage in these agreements and they are most likely right because they are by far the bigger player in most agreements.” He said that Canada is a partner in no less than 13 Trade agreements and they range from multi country to agreements with just one other trading partner. He pointed out that trade is intended to leave both participants in a better situation; normally by obtaining goods they cannot or can only produce more expensively than
the other country. “We see that in many agreements but the playing field is seldom level and developing countries do not want to be left out, so are forced to bargain away some advantages they may have naturally,” said Cardwell. “The goal of removing trade barriers and moving production to places with comparative advantage is often lost.” The presentation came only days after the USMCA agreement and he said it was too early to say what the impact would be on Canada’s dairy sector but he felt the amount of market opened up to US producers was relatively small. Though he did
Farmers Finally Wrapping Up the 2018 Harvest By Elmer Heinrichs Warmer and drier weather across western Canada sweeping into Manitoba finally allowed farmers to make some progress on their remaining soybean and much of the corn crop. Cool and wet conditions across Manitoba limited harvest progress through the first weeks of October, according to crop reports from Manitoba Agriculture. The early snow and cold temperatures was a stark reminder of fall 2016, when millions of unharvested acres were left to overwinter across the Prairies. Cloudless skies and warmer temperatures are bringing a measure of hope to Manitoba farmers as they race against the clock to harvest millions of dollars’ worth of crops still in the fields. While the harvest has been trying, in some ways it’s been an amazing year for Manitoba farmers who are now still harvesting at least an average crop grown under near drought conditions. According to Manitoba agriculture’s final report of the season wheat, oats and barley harvest is considered done, as well as much of the canola. Remaining canola fields harvested are coming off tough to dry but have good seed
quality. Across the central region, later harvested soybean fields are yielding reasonably well in the low 40 bu/ac to the low 50 bu/ac with low green seed content. Grain corn harvest has progressed especially in the Red River valley but there is still a good proportion to be harvested. Reported yields are in the 120 to 130 bu/ac range with grain moisture reported at 25 per cent and higher. Corn silage harvest is considered complete for the year. The potato harvest is reported at between 85 and 100 per cent complete. Carman and Winkler are finished with Carberry, Glenboro to Rathwell and Portage la Prairie still digging good yield reports in the 300 to 350 cwt/ ac range and some fields exceeding 400 cwt. Planted winter cereals are growing slowly under cold and cloudy conditions. The earliest planted fields have up to three leaves while some later fields have sprouted and have one leaf emerged. Altona Farm Production Advisor Dennis Lange reported that some of the local cereal grain crops were really good, but edible beans and soybeans ran below the provincial average. Harvest progress in the east-
ern region is estimated at 85 per cent complete. The cereal harvest is wrapped up, and yields and quality were both very good this year. Spring wheat yields ranged from 50 to 80 bu/ac. Harvested oat crops yielded from about 80 to 130 bu/ac. Canola harvest is complete with yields ranging from 35 to 60 bu/ac with good quality. The soybean harvest is estimated at 85 per cent complete. Harvest is on-going with yield reports in the 30 to 50 bu/ac range. However yields are above initial expectations. Sunflower harvest is underway. Oil sunflower yields have been excellent at 2,500 to 3,000 lbs/ac reported. Corn harvest is ongoing and estimated at 40 per cent complete, with yields in the 100 to 150 bu/ac range. In both sunflowers and corn a lot of drying is required. Not much field work has been done in eastern regions. Farmers are trying to do some tillage by driving on the frost when
the ground is frozen in the mornings. Very little fall fertilizer has been applied so far. Producers are hoping to get some favourable weather after a wet September and October. Producers have been feeding cattle on pasture or moving to fall grazing areas. Culling of livestock has also continued in order to ensure that feed rations are adequate until spring. Growers are working long hours to ensure that most crops are off the fields by month’s end.
acknowledge it did open the door. Cardwell said that in a true free market economy the licences for these import permits should be sold by auction but they would most likely be doled out as political favours instead. Ryan Cardwell said import licences under new trade agreements should be auctioned off rather than used as political favours. Photo by Les Kletke
October 26, 2018
The AgriPost
Hog Tariffs Restricting US Exports Affecting Canadian Producers By Harry Siemens The US National Pork Producers Council (NPPC) is encouraged with the recent development on the US trade front. This comes on the heels of completing the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) negotiations between the three countries and the Trump administration’s announcements to negotiate new agreements with South Korea, the European Union, Japan and the United Kingdom. The US NPPC Senior Communications Director Jim Monroe said it is good news for US hog producers. “Our number one priority with new free trade agreements will be the completion of an agreement with Japan because that country recently signed agreements with the European Union,” said Monroe. “It is also part of the new TPP agreement which involves 11 nations, most of them in the AsiaPacific region and, without a free trade agreement with Japan, we risk losing market share as those agreements formed by Japan go into effect likely next year.” He said that is why the news about negotiating a new agreement with Japan is
very favourable. “We ship a lot of pork to Japan today on certain terms, and if we can get improved terms through a new free trade agreement I think we’re going to be in an even stronger position and will not be at risk of losing market share where I think we would be without an agreement,” said Monroe. “One of our top priorities will be seeing the ratification of the revised US-Mexico-Canada trade agreement. Most of Congress will take that up early next year, and we will be watching that as a critical vote, making sure that our members who represent the interest of 60 thousand US pork producers, we’ll make sure that they are clear on the yes and no votes for that agreement. We believe strongly; Congress should ratify and as soon as possible,” he said. Despite the new NAFTA tariffs on US pork remaining an issue for the US and Canadian pork producers, the agreement did help restore confidence in the North American hog market resulting in a counter-seasonal rebound in live hog prices although retaliatory tariffs on US pork remain in place. Tyler Fulton, the Director of Risk Management with h@ms Marketing Services,
A Suncrest Colony sow barn northwest of Kleefeld.
said those tariffs are hurting US pork exports. The most recent pork export sales figures showed that sales to China were down about 21 percent from year-ago levels and sales to Mexico down about five to six percent. Those are significant numbers. “Those are two large players regarding destinations for US pork but, when you also apply the market context we see significant price discounts throughout August,” said Fulton. “We thought that would trigger greater sales volumes to those locations but I think the tariffs did put the brakes
on some of those sales and as a result, the North American hog and pork prices have taken a hit because of the restrictions that have slowed the sales of US pork. Fulton said because the Canadian market tends to reference US prices and when US producers are hurt by restrictions on their pork exports, Canadian producers feel a proportionate effect. “Canadian pork processors aren’t feeling the same pinch so, if this goes on, discussions around getting a more equitable split of the value of pork produced in Canada may need to happen.”
Manitoba Plowing Championships Wrap Up
Dan Fontaine of La Broquerie plowing with his Haflinger horses.
Photo by Joan Airey
By Joan Airey Dan Fontaine placed first at the Manitoba Plowing Championships in the Novice Class. His team of Halflinger horses are a breed developed in Austria. Justin McKee won the Junior and Johan Hilderbrand the Senior Class. The tractor division was won by Tom Ryall of Rivers, Senior Division, Hydraulic by John Dielby of Carroll and Vintage by Bob Martens, Rivers. First and second place winners in the tractor division will go onto compete in the 2019 Canadian Championships in Durham, Ontario.
The AgriPost
A Port in the Storm a Much Needed Haven
Heather Emerson-Proven, a member of the board for A Port in the Storm addressed those attending the most recent Manitoba Rural Photo by Joan Airey Women’s Day event
By Joan Airey Heather Emerson-Proven, a member of the board for A Port in the Storm addressed those attending the most recent Manitoba Rural Women’s Day event, “Exploring Rural Health Care” that was sponsored by the Manitoba Women’s Institute in Virden. “A Port in the Storm opened its doors in 2012 and has had the privilege of offering support and a place to call home to over 900 guests and their families,” said EmersonProven. “When someone is diagnosed with life-threatening medical condition, they must process information about their diagnosis and treatment at the same time as thinking about how their treatment program will affect them and their family.” She itemized the many struggles that rural families have when a family member is sick. “If you live in a large city you are close to the health care services and your family and friends are there to support you,” explained Emerson-Proven. “But every year, hundreds of Manitobans learn that they must come to Winnipeg for their medical treatment. Many of these people are from Westman, Northern Manitoba and many other parts of the province. It is already a very emotionally difficult time in their life and now they have to contemplate leaving home.” The struggles are not only emotional, families face financial hardship as
well. “So many extra costs to think about, lost wages, meals, travel and can they afford to bring a family member along?” she said. “Sadly, some decide to decline life threatening treatments because of these added stressors. A Port in the Storm strives to create a community of caring, an extension of their own community, and a home away from home where your family is welcome to come with you. Then you and your family are able to concentrate on your health.” At the Port in the Storm accountability is a priority she noted. “We receive no government support so every donated dollar must be made to count. There is a staff of 3 and over 60 volunteers who help provide the very best program at the least cost possible,” said Emerson-Proven. “The staff and volunteers work tirelessly, they think outside the box, to problem solve and to make sure that they practice efficient and honest use of our resources. They strive to work and collaborate with all partners and bring together all available resources. The families always come first at a Port in the Storm. We work on affordability so that families can concentrate on their health.” The average length of stay at A Port in the Storm is eighteen days. The longest stay was over seven hundred days. “One guest has stayed with us 17 times. You must be referred by a medical practitioner the
first time that you stay with A Port in the Storm, after that a guest can book themselves in,” explained Emerson-Proven. “The price for one night at A Port in the Storm is $58. We have 14 suites available and one common room suite.” When you stay at A Port in the Storm there is a fully functional apartment available with a kitchen that has all of the dishes, pots and pans and utensils needed to make a nutritious family meal. Each suite has a living room space, a bedroom and a bathroom. For larger families there is a two bedroom suite available. All linens are supplied along with parking wi-fi and laundry included in the rental fee. “We have a common room suite that has been sponsored by the owners of the building with beautiful donated art work, an art therapy program run by a volunteer art therapist, a library in the common room suite and Wednesday night communal dinners,” said Emerson-Proven. “A Port in the Storm is currently fundraising for more comfortable furniture and a new television for our common room suite,” she said. Emerson-Proven explained that some rural guests are taken aback that A Port in the Storm is not located in a residential area in Winnipeg. This is a case of, “Don’t judge a book by its cover,” she noted. “Guests who walk through the door are very pleased with the accommodations that are provided to them.” She said that people wishing to donate and help A Port in the Storm can do it by spreading the word to make sure that health care providers are aware of the service. She also asked conference goers to speak with their MLA about A Port in the Storm. Donations are important since A Port in the Storm currently operates totally on donations and their operating costs far exceed the rent that is charged for the apartments. She hopes that people will spread the word to service groups and other interested individuals about their Adopt a Suite program. For further information, testimonials and videos about A Port in the Storm visit the website portinthestorm.ca.
October 26, 2018
October 26, 2018
The AgriPost
Ag Minister Hosts Chinese Minister of Agriculture
Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food Lawrence MacAulay welcomes Minister Han at an Official Dinner.
Canada and China are committed to expanding trade opportunities for their respective agriculture, agrifood and seafood sectors which will help create good, middle-class jobs and more opportunities for both countries. Recently, the Chinese Minister of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Han Changfu, led a mission to Quebec and Ontario. The visit showcased Canada’s agriculture and agri-food sector, and strengthened the mutually-beneficial trade relationship between Canada and China. Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food, Lawrence MacAulay, was pleased to host Minister Han during his visit to Ottawa. The Ministers were joined by Parliamentary Secretary Sean Casey, at the China-Canada Agricultural and Fisheries Business Cooperation Forum to participate in discussions with Canadian and Chinese industry leaders. The event emphasized the strong trade relationship between the two countries and included the signing of cooperation agreements and Memoranda of Understanding. Minister Han and his delegation also visited the Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada Ottawa Research and Development Centre. The Centre focuses on crop development, targeting corn, soy, spring wheat, winter wheat, oats and barley. It also supports research in the areas of food safety, mycotoxins, and biocontrol. Minister Han concluded his Ottawa visit with a tour of a local beef farm. In the Montreal region, Minister Han and his delegation toured an Olymel hog and pork processing facility, as well as the research centre for Prograin, the largest private added-value soybean company in Canada. China is Canada’s second largest trading partner in agriculture and food and in n 2017, China imported $8.60 billion worth of agricultural, agri-food and seafood products from Canada.
Minister MacAulay toasts the China-Canada agricultural relationship during an official dinner in honour of the Chinese Minister of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Han Changfu.
Minister MacAulay speaks at the China-Canada Agricultural and Fisheries Business Cooperation Forum.
Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food Lawrence MacAulay and the Canadian delegation witness a signing ceremony.
The AgriPost
October 26, 2018
Implement a Good Mineral-Vitamin Feeding Program for Drought Beef Cows By Peter Vitti After several months of a hot and dry summer, who would have imagined that we would have snow showers by the end of September. It wouldn’t have been so bad, if some pastures had bounced back, yet they remain deplorable. Of the many fall/winter pastures that I have driven past or walked through most show the signs of drought, namely short high-fibre fields that I suspect are devoid of good nutrition for cattle, especially where trace minerals and vitamins are concerned. That is why I recommend to cow-calf producers that they implement a well-balanced mineral and vitamin program for their overwintering gestating cows. As a result, they could be rewarded with good cattle health, trouble-free pregnancies and a smooth calving season. Afterwards, it should help cows get ready for rebreeding and once-again into calf season. Consider the case of two prairie operations that are hundreds of miles apart, which I visited in the last year. One producer took my advice to implement a good cattle mineral-vitamin program and the other one con-
tinued on what he was doing for the past several years. Each cattle producer owns roughly 200 large-framed beef cows, which calve-out in mid-March. Bulls are turned out the end of April, so both respective cowherds are pregnant by the beginning of summer. Each cowherd also had grazed drought-stricken pasture during the summer, yet the first producer was forced to supplement green-feed by the summer’s end. Subsequently, the first owner feeds a fortified cattle mineral (with highly bioavailable trace minerals) all year around, while the second producer sets out trace-mineral salt blocks for most of the year, and then buys a pallet of standard mineral just before the breeding season. The biggest advantage of feeding well-balanced cattle mineral is that the first producer assures that his cowherd is receiving all their mineral and vitamin requirements. He might not realize that hot weather and drought not only reduce natural levels of essential minerals and vitamins in pasture grasses, but also could have long-term negative effects upon cattle mineral metabolism, well into autumn.
Research demonstrates that excretion of copper, zinc and possibly other essential trace minerals significantly increases in heat-stressed cattle, which could lead to poor mineral status. As a result, some university field trials prove that when the dietary supplies of copper and bodily reserves are low in cattle, there is a reduction in their immune system to fight disease, because fewer antibodies are produced and it takes a longer recovery time to get back to good health. Since, zinc is also involved in immunity, there is some speculation that zinc requirements for non-stressed cattle is 30 ppm and for stressed cattle up to 100 mg/kg of diet in order to maintain similar immune function. In addition, cattle of poor mineral status often suffer from biological “oxidative stress”, which compromise their health, because oxidative damage in cattle underlies many metabolic and pathogenic diseases. For example, selenium (along with vitamin E) is part of an enzyme called gluthionine peroxidase, converts destructive oxidative compounds called ‘free radicals’ into harmless molecules and as a result improve vital
functions such as successful reproductive performance. We see it as cows that are readily cleaned after calving, rapid uterine involution and a quick return to fertile estrus. Such dire warnings prevented by a good mineral feeding program might not sway people like the second beef producer, because he feeds salt blocks ingrained with trace-minerals as a lowestcost option. He might not realize that TM salt does not contain essential macro-minerals such as calcium, phosphorus or magnesium, which are likely deficient in drought-stricken pastures and even in lush fall re-growth. TM salt blocks also do not contain A, D and E vitamins, which are virtually non-existent dried-out pastures, yet always essential for good cattle health, growth and reproduction. Plus, the nominal level of copper found in these salt blocks are no match against a pasture with a high molybdenum content (binds ingested copper in cattle) and proven to lead to copper deficiencies in cattle. Luckily, there is still plenty of time for the second producer to change his mind and implement a good mineral and vitamin program for his
Cattle at mineral feeder.
drought-experienced cowherd. All he needs to do is follow this summary plan: 1. Purchase a commercial “breeder” type cattle mineral, fortified with forage complementary levels of calcium and phosphorus with chelated forms of copper, zinc, manganese and selenium as well as high levels of vitamins A, D and E. 2. Put cattle mineral in a wellmade cattle mineral feeder. I prefer the two or three compartment feeder, covered with a rubber flap. I recommend that the feeder be mounted on a truck tire to it keep out of the mud and snow. 3. Place mineral feeders (one per 25 animals) near water supply and salt (re: block). 4. Fill mineral feeder with
enough mineral to be fed at the rate of 3-4 ounces per head per day. 5. Check mineral feeders every few days to monitor intake. One common method to adjust mineral intake is to add some loose salt to the mineral. It has been my understanding that both producers’ cowherds under better circumstances in previous years had similar conception and calving rates and health status. Although, the second producer did often have more mature cows with chronic retained placentas after calving and had a few others with delayed estrus, yet no significant problems were apparent. Maybe under this new plan, even the slightest improvement would be welcome.
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October 26, 2018
The AgriPost
The AgriPost
Succession Planning Helps Steppler Farms Take it to the Next Level
Herd Sire JWX Burnin It Down.
By Harry Siemens Andre Steppler started a new venture at Steppler Farms near Miami by adding a commercial black cow herd to take the farm to the next level. Steppler Farms already has the largest active registered Purebred Charolais herd in Manitoba. In 1973 his father Daniel Steppler bought his first Charolais cows and then developed a purebred operation over the next 45 to 50 years. “It’s fundamentally white cows, purebred-based that saved the farm through the ‘80s,” said Andre. “Dad always tells us that the cows always made the payments.” The keyword in the success of Steppler Farms is proper succession planning making it possible for the farm to move into acquiring black Angus commercial cows to start a commercial herd business. In 2015, after farming for over 45 years, Daniel as President since 2008 began succession planning giving
the position to Ian, his oldest son, Jeff became the Secretary-Treasurer and Adam and Andre continue as Directors on the board along with Daniel. This shift excited and energized the family farm signalling the continued growth and development of Steppler Farms placing more responsibility into the hands of the sons and also initiated the beginning steps where Daniel and his wife Patricia could move to retirement from the day-to-day operations of the
farm. Now succession planning continues moving into the next generation. Fast forward to October 2018 when the opportunity came to buy another commercial herd when the existing owner did not have the feed to take them through the winter. “We are big into the white breed and our brand is always the Charolais bull and the Charolais cow,” said Andre in explaining their next brave move. “When we shift, and a bunch of black cows show up, there’s no doubt that we stir up a little bit of attention. We’re still calving about 450 purebred Charolais cows, and then we market them through the bull sale and the female sale. We’ve been fundamentally white, and there’s no doubt about it.” He said there are three reasons for bringing in the black commercial cows. The opportunity arose when an outstanding herd of young black cows was too expensive for the previous owner to buy feed. The second one was growth and progress on the farm. “There’s only so many purebred Charolais bulls or females we can sell every year, so if we want any growth on the cattle side, we had to look at a different av-
enue,” said Andre. “We did look at the purebred black industry, but we liked the look of the commercial and surely not as much work for them compared to the purebred cow.” The third reason was to experience the life of their commercial customer which helps to relate to them so much better. “If we run a whole bunch of commercial cows, the credibility that we get I hope is going to increase and then we should be able to understand the needs of our bulls, even more, when we live in their world,” he said. The new commercial lot is Black Angus with a little shot of Simmental. Andre will breed the black commercial cows to their Charolais bulls picking the best five or six of their developing 150 yearling bulls giving them the luxury of an abundance of inventory and breed them with white bulls with the idea to produce the silver calf. “That calf is the best of both worlds. We’ll get the performance and the growth traits that have built the Charolais breed, plus we’ll get marbling carcass traits from the Angus side of the cow and develop that optimum hybrid cross-type individual,” said Andre.
Steppler Farms already has the largest active registered Purebred Charolais herd in Manitoba.
Andre Steppler started a new venture at Steppler Farms near Miami, MB by adding a commercial black cow herd to it to take the farm to the next level.
Silver calf sired by a Steppler bull and a customer’s black cow.
October 26, 2018
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Fair Does Not Always Mean Equal in Succession Planning
Marcel Kirouac said planning is the key to passing the farm on to the next generation.
By Les Kletke Marcel Kirouac said the key to successfully passing a farm on to the next generation is planning, and he said that planning is becoming more important as the dollar value of farms continue to escalate. It is an issue that many farmers put off until it is too late and then the tax payments become much bigger than is necessary. Kirouac who farmed from the time he was 18 to 27 building a dairy operation from 15 cows to 210 said that when he and his brother sold their quota it was the second largest dairy quota in the province. He said he realized that his greatest joy was working with people and so he has developed Advanced Tax Planning Strategies, to help people directly. Kirouac told the Canadian Association of Farm Advisors that there are still advantages in using a family trust to transfer a farm to the next generation. Kirouac did not waste time preaching to the choir about how many farms were not taking the steps required, he stressed that the process was work and that it did provide good results. “For those that were willing to put the work into it,” he stressed. He said that life insur-
ance can prove a good tool in the transfer as well. “But you have to be familiar with the product that you are purchasing. It does take some shopping and you have to be aware of the regulations,” said Kirouac. He noted that rules might change over time but the best advice he could give is to work under the existing rules and plan for them to be in place when the farm is transferred to the next family members. He also outlined the danger of transferring properties at a lower cost and the impact that could have on participants down the road. Kirouac said that attention must be paid to the non-farming members of the family and they in particular can be impacted by transfer at lower values. He stressed that fair does not always mean equal and when considering transfer of a farm, equal shares to the siblings is not a given. He used an example of a family he was working with in southern Ontario where a city had grown around an existing dairy farm and the pressure from the auto industry made land prices extremely high by agricultural standards. “It will take a lot of work, but I am confident we can come up with a solution for the family,” he said.
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October 26, 2018
The AgriPost
The AgriPost
A Trip to Remember
David and wife, Judy Heide sits on the family’s heirloom 44 Massey.
By Les Kletke While driving a 44 Massey that belonged to his Dad, David Heide’s Tractor Trek was a trip to remember. Heide may the trip from Reinland to Halbstadt and back to help raise money for Eden Foundation but a large part of the event was passing through the area he grew up in and stopping at the cemetery where his parents are buried. “It was the tractor I learned to drive on,” said Heide who farms at La Rivière. “I remember going out to plough with that tractor and a 3 bottom plough. At 13 I thought it was a pretty big deal and there was no concern about being in the dust of the bugs, we did not know anything different.” David’s Dad Johnny was the second owner of the Massey tractor and had been using a John Deer A previously. “But the front wheels were close together and he thought it a bit tippy,” said Heide. As more sons took on farm responsibilities his Dad
added another tractor, a Massey Fergusson 35. The tractor stayed around the farmstead in what David calls semi-retirement even when the younger Heide went off to seek his fortune in Alberta returning to the farm after a few years. “The tractor was never an easy starter and for a few years when Dad has to use it, he had to pull start it every time,” he said. “He was not much for mechanical things and just never got to fixing it.” David sold the tractor to a fellow at La Rivière and after two years realized how much it meant to him. During that time it had appreciated in value but he bought it back. He wanted to restore it but cost estimates kept him from moving ahead until one day he found an advertisement in the Western Producer of an overhaul kit for a 44 Massey. “The fellow had bought the kit from Massey; it was the real thing, not a jobber kit so I was pretty excited. I bought the kit sight unseen and it was complete,” he said. “So I began the process and started by
cleaning the cooling system. I have never seen so much sludge. I must have taken a quart of sludge out of the water jackets.” He surmises that some of the buildup came from using pond or ditch water at the time for the cooling system which clogged it and even more water was required which led to more green water getting into the system. He did complete the restoration and dealt with the lazy starter. He said that work on the fuel injectors has the tractor in the best shape it has been in years. “The Tractor Trek was my first event and it was great, we went past where my family lived, we went to the church I started Sunday school in, past the school my older brothers attended, and I stopped for a minute at the cemetery my folks are buried in,” he said. When asked what is left to restore on the Massey he said, ‘I would like to get some new tires for it. They are not a common size and that contributes to the price, but that would be the next piece.”
October 26, 2018
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Government of Canada Secures New Access in Key ASEAN Markets Expanding and diversifying Canada’s trade with emerging markets such as those in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) region through trade agreements and increased market access is a priority for the Government of Canada. Growing economic ties with the dynamic Southeast Asia region will provide Canadian farmers and processors more opportunities to sell their high-quality products abroad, helping to grow our economy and strengthen the middle class. Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food, Lawrence MacAulay said that there recent market access gains are, “Setting the stage for deeper bilateral economic relations between Canada and the ASEAN region, and will contribute to our government’s goal of reaching $75 billion in agri-food exports by 2025.” With that in mind, the Government of Canada announced new market access for live cattle exports to the Philippines, as well as sheep and goat genetics exports to Indonesia and the Philippines. According to the Canadian Livestock Genetics Association, the export market of live cattle to the Philippines is estimated to be valued at $8 million, and exports of sheep and goat genetics to Indonesia and the Philippines add up to $100,000 annually. The Philippines and Indonesia represent increasingly important markets for Canadian agri-food exporters and producers. While the increased market access will advance the competitiveness of, and create new opportunities for Canada’s agriculture sector, the exports of Canadian breeding cattle and genetics will also contribute to rural economic development efforts of the Philippines in the agriculture sector. The Philippines, Indonesia and the wider ASEAN region are important commercial partners for the Canadian agriculture sector. Canada exported over $325 million of agriculture products in 2017 to the Philippines and imported over $185 million. As a group, ASEAN ranks as Canada’s sixth-largest trading partner estimated at $23.3 billion. The advantages of cooperative trade were recognized at the 7th AEM-Canada Consultations in September, held in Singapore. After the consultations ministers addressed trade in a joint Statement, “The Ministers welcomed the expanding trade and investment ties between ASEAN and Canada, noting that total merchandise trade was nearly $18 billion USD in 2017, an increase of 10 per cent from the previous year. This ranked Canada as the ninth largest merchandise trading partner of ASEAN.” The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) is a regional bloc comprised of Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam. Last year Canada and ASEAN agreed to launch exploratory discussions to examine the potential for a future Canada-ASEAN Free Trade Agreement (FTA).
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October 26, 2018
The AgriPost
Make Changes to Reduce Ketosis in Early Lactation Dairy Cows A dairy producer replaces a significant amount of barley silage with grass hay in the fresh cows’ total mixed ration (TMR) to increase butterfat yield. Another producer doesn’t have enough space, so she creates a single faraway-close-up dry cow pen. Still another producer has over-conditioned first-calf bred heifers. These are real-life cases that had a high level of ketosis in their early lactation dairy cows. By following my advice and making some changes to their transition/early lactation feed and management programs, each producer reduced their number of ketotic cows.
It was no surprise to me and each of these producers that some of their cows had clinical ketosis after calving due to a rapid drop in body condition, and decreased milk production, yet none found any loss of appetite or case of acetonesmelling breath. The first herd did have a higher incidence of displaced abomasums and retained placenta, in which their veterinarian associated with sub-clinical ketosis, but it was not confirmed as such. It was only through DHI testing that individual cows in each of these herds were identified and subsequently treated.
DHI tests the milk samples of early lactating dairy cows, namely; DIM 5 - 21 days and DIM 22 - 42 days, which is considered the period of highest susceptibility. As a result, DHI reports - mark and report “positives” of these samples, which exceed a BHB threshold (Beta-hydroxybutyrate – poisonous ketones as a result of rapid fat tissue mobilization) of 0.15 mmol/l. This report also shows the percentage of cows that have elevated BHB levels for that reported month as well as those from past 3- month increments. As a general indicator of subclinical ketosis, DHI suggests that if 20% or more cows’ milk samples in a particular herd, test “positive”, it is designated a high ketosis status and might indicate a possible ketosis problem in any individual herd. For example, Ontario DHI records (43,321 milk samples = June - September, 2014) have illustrated herd level prevalence of subclinical ketosis of 30.5% = DIM 5 - 21 and of 14.7% = DIM 22 - 42. Similar Quebec DHI results were reported. In retrospect, DHI Ketosis Testing literarily detects early lactation dairy cows that have a hard time meeting all their energy requirements of maintenance and high milk production from the sole consumption of their diet. This nutrient status draws them down into a state of “negative energy balance” (NEB) for about 5 - 6 weeks after calving. Even well-transitioned cows experience a period of NEB. However, they tend to have good post-partum dry matter intakes, which draws a lot of energy from their diets and hence mobilize a health amount of body fat. This fat energy then helps bridge this NEB gap during their early period of peak milk production. University of California (Davis) state that a health dairy benchmark for bodyweight loss; right after calving and during early lactation is about 1.0 - 1.25 BCS (roughly 50 - 80 kg). By comparison, ketosis-affected early lactating cows often have limited feed intakes or an energydeficient diet, which leads to dangerous accelerated rates of fat-breakdown. That is why; I recommend a 21-day close-up cow group that is completely segregated from the rest of the dairy cowherd. I believe from science and my own experience that the dietary energy and other essential requirements of the close-up dry cow falls in-between faraway dry cows and those lactating cows 50 -100 DIM, post-partum. Consequently, the entire close-up dry cow diet that I formulate for dairy producers carries a modest amount of dietary energy, namely, 0.60 0.65 Mcal/lb. (dm, basis) as well as 14 - 15% protein. It also has calcium and phosphorus in a 1.5:1.0 - 2.5:1.0 ratio, with low potassium levels to prevent milk fever. It also has a good mineral-vitamin profile to especially supply: copper, zinc, selenium, Vitamin A and high levels of Vitamin E. I also insist that the entire close-up diet is very palatable, since there is a 30% natural decline in dry matter intake from the start of dry-off to the day of calving. It should contain a foundation of moderate-energy forages such as mixed-grass hay (limiting alfalfa) which is complimented with specific concentrates or grain-based pellet. When these components are mixed further with some ensiled TMR from the lactation barn, it should allow good close-up dry cow intakes of about 12 kg and thus help them calve at an optimum BCS of 3.0 - 3.5. Once these cows do calve, similar early lactation rations should still promote good dry matter intake in order to carry enough energy for increasing milk production, and yet maintain good rumen function. The main goal at this point is to target dry matter intake to about 3.5 - 4.0% of their bodyweight by 9 - 10 weeks after calving. To do so, I have been working with a few dairy producers upon the novel formulation and feeding of a “fresh cow pellet” to their herds. The idea behind our approach is to feed a specialized nutritious pellet at the rate of 3 - 4 kg per head, daily; along with their conventional early lactation TMR during the first 14 to 21 days, post-partum. This is a good approach - match the energy demands of close up dry cows/early lactating dairy cows as best as you can in order to reduce the incidence of ketosis.
The AgriPost
Ben Dickson Threshing Gang 1910 The Dickson-Henderson family of Boissevain graciously donated to the Manitoba Agricultural Museum a number of photographs taken on their farms near Boissevain. One photo is a group portrait of the Dickson threshing gang taken in 1910. The photo was taken by Osborne Photo which appears to have been a professional photographer active in the Boissevain area at the time. Of note in this photo is the unnamed man standing on the ground at the left of the photograph. He is wearing a campaign hat, sometimes known as a lemon squeezer, and probably better known today as the hat worn as part of the RCMP formal red serge uniform. The hat was also called a lemon squeezer as a result of the four dent crown which resembles the kitchen device used to squeeze juice from lemons. This shape is one reason that the hat is a somewhat rare piece of apparel outside the RCMP as it does not lend itself to rapidly shedding water with the result that the hat was not all that effective in a rainstorm. The hat was probably also relatively expensive at the time which would have prevented many people from owning such a hat. While one may think that wearing this hat indicates the man was somewhat of a “dude”, examination of his clothing indicates he was well accustomed to hard work as his overalls and gloves are well worn. Photographs at this time are fairly rare and it was a real experience to be included in one. So it could very well be that the man wore his “Sunday” hat as he wanted to appear presentable in the photo. While the hat W.G. Dickson is wearing is of a design not currently available, it was probably a more practical work hat than a “lemon squeezer” as it was made of straw which was cooler to wear than a felt hat since the weave of the straw allowed for some air movement through the crown plus the straw being a light color did not absorb as much of the sun’s heat as darker colours would have. The tall crown of this hat would also aid in reducing heat build up. While the brim is not very wide, the hat sits lower on Mr. Dickson’s head shading his nose and ears. The narrow, close fitting brim would hinder wind snatching the hat off. Several of the other men in the photo are wearing felt hats. It was somewhat common practice to punch holes
in the side of the crown of a felt hat to provide airflow for ventilation. Unfortunately the photograph does not show whether this had been done. When considering the issue of felt hats as work wear, we also have to consider that at the time, people had some different ideas as compared to today. It was common practice for men at the time to wear a light pair of fine wool “long johns” in the summer, even when working, as it was thought
raine with a Mr. Longman who was freighting supplies to the Kirkwood settlement at the northwest corner of Whitewater Lake. Ben then picked out a 1/4 section to homestead in the Primrose area. In some respects he was better off than some homesteaders as it appears he owned a wagon, team of oxen and plow when he began homesteading. However, he said in later years he plowed barefooted so as to spare his shoes, which indi-
taken the offer! However he persisted in farming and by 1892 had progressed sufficiently to marry Stella Wright of Brockton, Ontario. Miss Wright had come west in 1891 to visit her sister who was married to
A group portrait of the Dickson threshing gang taken in 1910. Some of the people in the photo are numbered and on the back of the photo is a key matching the name of the person with their number. 1) W.G. Dickson, 2) Mrs. Ben Dickson, 3) Joyce Dickson (Dring), 4) Claude Dickson, 5) Laura Taylor, 6) Mrs. Cavers, 7) Joe Blacklock and 8) Michael O’Keefe. The back of the photo also identifies the person on the upper left outside as Norman Burke.
this kept them cool. So wearers of felt hats in the summer may have believed the hat kept their heads shielded from the hot sun. Or it simply could have been that they could only afford one hat and so they wore it summer, winter, spring and fall. When one examines this photo, an observer is struck with the fact this threshing crew is relatively youthful with only one older man appearing on the right side. His face is partially obscured but he is noticeably older than the other men in the photo, most of who appear to be teenagers. Ben Dickson the owner of the threshing outfit does not appear in the photo however there is an entry for Ben in the Morton Municipality history book. Ben Dickson was an early pioneer in the area, arriving in 1885 from Dundalk, Ontario. He arrived in Brandon on the CPR and travelled south to Delo-
cates money was tight. While building a 12 by 14 foot “Soddy” or sod house on his homestead, he slept under the overturned wagon box which then necessitated a morning ritual of shaking out of his clothing garter snakes that had crept in during the night to share his body heat. Like many settlers, he worked off the farm when possible, to obtain money to continue homesteading. For several years he worked for a Mr. Heaslip of the Heaslip district when he was not working on his homestead. Mr. Dickson encountered problems such as sandhill cranes and whooping cranes scattering his stooks in the fall while feeding on the grain. A heavy frost in the fall of 1888 destroyed a promising crop. Ben later said that if anyone had proposed to exchange a suit of clothes for his homestead the morning after the frost, he would have
a neighbour of Ben Dickson. Ben then made her acquaintance while she was visiting. Mrs. Stella Dickson is labelled as Number 2 in the photo. By 1897 the Dickson family’s finances had advanced to such a point they could build a frame house, followed by a barn in 1903. He also had erected a Massey Harris power windmill with a 12-foot fan that developed enough power when the wind blew to power a four inch plate chopper to cut grain into livestock feed. Ben and Stella retired to Boissevain in 1915. W.G. Dickson, Joyce Dickson and Claude Dickson who appear in the photo were the children of Ben and Stella. The Manitoba Agricultural Museum is open year round. For more information on the Museum and the Reunion including location and hours of operation go to museum.mb.ca.
October 26, 2018
Keeping on Task Gets the Job Done By Les Kletke Bjorn Christianson knows that there are times in life where the task at hand is less than pleasant, and in his career as a lawyer he has come across more than a few. Not only is he a respected legal professional recognized as an honorary member of the Bar in Alberta, Saskatchewan and Minnesota he is renowned for his time management skills and the tips he shares with others. Christianson was a keynote speaker at the Canadian Association of Farm Advisors annual update in Winnipeg in early October and provided an ample sample of tips to keep lawyers, advisors or farmers on task. A large part of his message was that the same skill set works for everyone regardless of their profession. He said that research shows that lawyers credited a less that acceptable performance to a lack of commitment to the task 41% of the time. He suggested that number would hold true in most any profession. “Have a method and stay to it,” he said. “Pick a system and use it. If you don’t plan your life someone else will.” He went on to suggest that someone else planning your life probably did not care as much about your income as you did. It would make more sense to plan your own life. Christianson has practices in Portage, MacGregor and Neepawa and as such deals with a number of farm clients. “Plan your year, have a goal and then break it down to planning for the week, look and ahead and see the tasks you have to handle,” he said. “Then get selective and do the tasks that have to be done. Get the tough ones out of the way and then you can concentrate on the rest of the day instead of dreading the task that looms over you.” Farmers are not immune to electronic distractions he noted. “We all find it easy to have our phones with us, but how many times a day, do you check it?” he asked drawing a series of guilty looks from the audience. “It you limit yourself to checking emails twice a day you will be amazed at your increase in productivity,” he said. He suggested that farmers view themselves as project managers and break down the tasks at hand as a project manager would. “But you don’t need new project management software to do it,” he said. “You know the task and the overall intent. It is a matter of breaking things down and doing the small things.”
Lawyer, Bjorn Christianson said reducing the time spent looking at your cell phone and having a weekly “to do” task system in the office or on the farm will increase productivity. Photo by Les Kletke
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Macaulay Strengthens Agricultural Trade with the European Union Thanks to the Canada-European Union Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA), Canadian farmers and food processors are seizing opportunities to diversify trade and contributing to meeting the Government of Canada’s goal of $75 billion in annual agri-food exports by 2025. Agriculture and Agri-Food Minister, Lawrence MacAulay, concluded his agricultural outreach mission to Europe. During his trip, the he visited Spain, Belgium and Italy to showcase Canada’s agricultural sector to key industry and government officials and to strengthen our mutually beneficial trade relationship. “The Canada-European Union Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) is providing increased market access for a wide range of our highquality agricultural products. There are great opportunities available for our Canadian farmers and food processors
in the European markets which will help strengthen our agriculture sector, grow our economy, and create more good paying jobs for Canadians,” said MacAulay. Since the implementation of CETA one year ago, trade between Canada and the EU has increased by nearly 10%. The benefits and opportunities of CETA were highlighted throughout Minister MacAulay’s visit. In Brussels, he met with Phil Hogan, EU Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development, and Vytenis Andriukaitis, EU Commissioner for Health and Food Safety, to discuss agricultural opportunities and approaches to resolving market access irritants. In Spain, MacAulay had a bilateral meeting with the Spanish Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, Luis Planas, to discuss the opportunities that CETA is creating for both European and Canadian farmers, producers and exporters. He also met
with key agri-food investors and participated in industry roundtables to promote investment in Canadian agriculture and agri-food and to identify new opportunities for Canadian exporters. In Italy, MacAulay led three roundtable discussions on trade, one with the Italian grain industry which included stakeholder groups from Canada, and two others with Italian farmer organizations. During the meetings, the Minister advanced market access opportunities for Canadian agricultural products, highlighting the high quality and safety of Canadian agrifood products. Also in Rome, MacAulay met with José Graziano da Silva, Director General of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), to discuss Canada’s priorities and reiterate the need for the FAO to provide a neutral venue for engagement on challenging topics related to innovation in the agriculture sector.
The Power of the Whole Farm Approach By Les Kletke Neil Townsend would be one of the first to acknowledge that today’s grain markets are a complex situation. So complex that it is difficult for one person to have a handle on the entire market and all of the parts in play at any one time. That is why he recommended having a trusted advisor during a recent Farm Advisors meeting in Winnipeg. Townsend is the Senior Market Analyst with FarmLink Marketing and for many people he is that trusted advisor but he said that he has people that he turns to when he needs to know something. Townsend told the Canadian Association of Farm Advisors meeting that on occasion when he gets a question his reply is, “I don’t know but I will make a few phone calls and find out.” He recommended finding a trusted advisor and not being shocked when the advisor has to make a few phone calls. Townsend used the recently signed reworked NAFTA agreement as an example. “We got a lot of calls wondering what the new agreement would mean, but I had to make some calls and find out the details,” he said before giving any advice. He said that not only have markets become more complex but the amount of data available is overwhelming.
Neil Townsend said the Power of the Whole Farm Approach will be Photo by Les Kletke used to build a successful farm.
His numbers indicate that only 10% of the farmers in western Canada are satisfied with the job they do on managing their data and 22% of farmers plan on adopting new software to manage that data. The numbers are similar in the US with only 10% of farmers being happy with the analysis of data they receive. “We are worried about losing a client to retirement,” he said. “When we have 90% of the market place not happy with the analysis they are re-conceiving, there is real potential there.” Townsend said that benchmarking is a service that is relatively new and will continue to grow. “Farms want to know how their numbers
stack up to other similar farms and which areas they can improve on. That is an area that will continue to grow as farmers change their approach to information and how they use it on their farm.” While management becomes more complex Townsend predicts the whole farm approach will become more important. “It will be the Power of the Whole Farm Approach that shows to be a real winner. A cooperation between the accountant, lawyer, banker and everyone else on the farm team,” he said. His prediction is that, “As more information becomes available producers will have a team approach to making decisions.”
The AgriPost
FCC Food Drive Fills Food Bank Shelves
By Elmer Heinrichs While Manitoba farmers sought to harvest an average crop, youth in Altona, Morden and Winkler took to the streets for this fall’s annual Farm Credit Canada (FCC) Drive Away Hunger food drive. When it comes to basic needs, food is often at the top of the list. Church groups, other youth and 4-H clubs all participated in this year’s FCC door-to-door campaign. Once again, Altona, Morden and Winkler youth assisted their respective communities’
one evening collecting food for those who need it most, especially for children. The Rhineland Area Food Bank in Altona reported that just over 6,000 pounds of food was collected in that community as part of the annual Farm Credit Canada Drive Away Hunger campaign. Food Bank Chair Ang Stoesz said the demand is constant, especially at this time of year. “Our shelves were quite depleted. So this is the big drive that will stock our shelves for the next few months.”
“It’s something the kids look forward to. We’re always amazed at how much the need has grown, but also touched by how well this community responds,” added Stoesz. Just over 7,000 pounds of food items were collected in Winkler and Morden and youth groups gathered a similar amount for Donate Love, a community agency. FCC said enthusiastic partners are a major reason for the program’s success year after year.
New Indigenous Pathfinder Service Focused on Agricultural Opportunities A new direct line of support is now available to assist Indigenous Peoples and communities to access, with greater ease, Government agricultural programs and services. Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) offers many programs and services available to First Nations, Inuit and Métis who have projects
or opportunities they would like to pursue in the agriculture and food sector, including under the new Canadian Agricultural Partnership, a five-year, $3-billion Federal, Provincial and Territorial (FPT) government program to strengthen the sector. The Indigenous Pathfinder is a one-on-one service which connects Indigenous Peoples
with AAFC staff who will listen to project ideas and suggest next steps, discuss available agriculture-related programs, services and funding, provide referrals to an industry, trade or scientific expert and make connections with other federal, provincial and territorial support across the country to help move the idea or project to reality.
Unique Protection for Your Farm
I am amazed at the amount of risk farmers are accustomed to dealing with each and every year. I am also amazed that farmers can sleep at night knowing that their crop may not be the same when they awake the next morning. Some farms are very careful at maximizing all insurance options available to transfer this risk. Others are scrapping government crop insurance programs and replacing them with their carefully tailored self insurance solutions. Regardless of which side of this coin you fall under, there is a new solution available that is bound to intrigue producers on both sides. While there are many tools available to farmers to manage risk, this newer tool, available to Manitoba farms, is a private crop insurance option that provides coverage based on your farm’s revenue, rather than bushels per acre. It is not subsidized by government funding, it is not based on your area averages and neighbour’s yields, and therefore it is a truly unique product available based on your farm’s past results and future plans. The concept of this protection is quite simple. To explain it in one sentence, you purchase a dollar amount of coverage for your farm that provides the lowest gross income amount that your farm will receive this upcoming growing season. For example, if you purchase $2,000,000 of gross margin coverage, that is the least amount of income your farm will generate this growing season. You can also include coverage for your inputs (seed, fertilizer, and chemical) that will cover your input costs regardless of the amount you spend on them. This flexibility allows you to shoot for the moon each and every season, knowing that the coverage for your crop grows with each dollar you spend to maximize your profits. Covered perils stretch beyond what is offered elsewhere; extending from the common perils of too much moisture, not enough moisture, too much heat (fire), not enough heat (frost), fire from the sky (lightning), ice from the sky (hail, sleet, snow), too much wind (hurricane, tornado, damaging winds), insects attacking your crop, disease attacking your crop, or the dreaded crop in the bin that heats while in storage. With such a broad spectrum of coverage, producers are encouraged to shoot for substantial margins each year, knowing their bottom line is properly protected in the event of loss. The results are continuing to pour in - farms insured properly with this private insurance option are more aggressive (and profitable) while marketing their grain, agronomy decisions are based on what is best for the crop rather than whether the bushels per acre coverage is overspent, and finally farmers have the peace of mind that allows them to sleep at night knowing they have protection to keep their farm operating regardless of the perils around. Rempel Insurance Brokers Ltd. is proud to be able to offer this unique solution to farms across Manitoba. For details on how you can protect your farm’s bottom line with a private insurance option, please contact us at the information below. Be sure to seek advice and purchase insurance from those who understand your business! David Schmidt is an Account Executive at Rempel Insurance Brokers in Morris, MB, specializing in insuring farms and businesses across Manitoba and Saskatchewan and a member of the Canadian Association of Farm Advisors, Winnipeg Chapter. Contact 204-746-2320, Text 204-712-6618 or davids@rempelinsurance.com.
October 26, 2018
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October 26, 2018
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The AgriPost
Celebrating Modern Agriculture Most farmers are reluctant to talk about modern agriculture. Our own industry advertisements promote the image of a farm with a faded red barn and a few chickens running about in a pastoral setting. That is not modern agriculture and we need to stop letting agriculture be portrayed this way. It is not hard to understand why modern agriculture shies away from talking about what we do on the farm. Modern agriculture practices are regularly attacked by activists who want to return to the lost golden age of Ol’ McDonald’s farm. One just has to look at the recent flurry of negative media coverage of glyphosate, one of the most studied and reviewed pesticides in history, to see evidence of agriculture practices being questioned. The truth is that Ol’ McDonald retired a long time ago. We should let him enjoy his dotage. His day was characterized by rural poverty, houses with no running water and no central heat. Rural schooling was in one room that gave those in them little chance of advanced education. The good old days were not very good for those living in them. Modern agriculture has changed that. Today most agriculture production in Canada takes place on commercial farms that are thriving businesses. Mostly owned and operated by families, they are managed by individuals with advanced degrees and a deep understanding of international markets. The equipment is not rusting pick-ups and open cab tractors but combines, sprayers and tractors that are guided by satellites. Seeds, fertilizers and pesticides used are the result of years of intensive research. These tools are designed to have a minimal environmental footprint and to be safe for farmers and consumers alike. I am told by professional communicators that talking about modern agriculture in this way does not effectively reach consumers and give them comfort in how their food is produced. Someone in a downtown urban centre, shopping for their kids’ lunch, does not care that much about eradicating rural poverty. They just want to know that they will be giving their kids a safe an nutritious lunch. So what has modern agriculture done for consumers? Let’s tackle “affordable”. By February 9 of 2018, the average Canadian household earned enough income to pay for their grocery bill for the entire year, spending about 10 percent of their income on food. Want to compare? Portuguese consumers spend about 17, percent of their income on food, Russians 28 percent and Nigerians 56 percent. Those of us involved in agriculture need to do a better job of communicating how modern farming tools and practices have given Canadians access to some of the cheapest and highest quality food in the world. We also need to be able to relate what happens when ill-conceived regulations take those tools away. Modern Canadian agriculture is also delivering some of the safest food in the world. In a recent study by the Conference Board of Canada ranked food safety performance of Canada and sixteen other developed OECD (Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development) nations. Canada’s food safety ranked the highest of all the countries examined. Modern Canadian agriculture has a very good environmental story to tell. Modern practices such as conservation tillage are increasing the health of soils, reducing the amount of fuel used and reducing soil erosion. Precision agriculture, which uses satellites to precisely steer equipment is maximizing the efficiency of pesticides and fertilizers, further reducing fuel use and protecting water from nutrient runoff. In the last 40 years, energy use per tonne of wheat produced has reduced by 39 percent. Forty years ago soil organic matter was being depleted with every crop. Modern agriculture has changed this picture dramatically and today organic matter in prairie soils is increasing every year. This means the soil is healthier, it is more productive, less susceptible soil erosion and farms across Canada are sequestering carbon dioxide. Why are these good news stories about modern agriculture not getting through to average Canadians? One of the reasons is that those who are opposed to modern agriculture are focused on their communication efforts and have spent the time and money to coordinate their work. Agriculture, on the other hand, does not have united communication efforts. We are all focused on our individual companies and organizations and often communicating with the public is left to “side of the desk” projects. This needs to change. Agriculture needs to give time, money and coordination to our outreach. Modern agriculture has a good story to tell, but if we aren’t telling it then we are letting others speak for us and all consumers will hear, are concerns from outside our industry.
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Agri-Food Canada Sees Bigger Canadian Crop By Elmer Heinrichs The production of grains and oilseeds (G&O) is now estimated at 86.5 metric tonnes (Mt) compared to 81 Mt in AAFC’s September report while the production of pulses and special crops (P&SC) is estimated at 6.9 Mt compared to 6.7 Mt for the same period. Total field crop production is estimated at 93.4 Mt, of which 93 per cent
are grains and oilseeds and 7 per cent are pulses and special crops. These estimates do not account for the cool wet weather in September and October in western Canada which has delayed harvest and reduced the quality of the crop. In some regions there were concerns that crops might overwinter, bur recent warmer weather has brightened the outlook.
For 2018-19, corn production is forecast to increase 3 per cent to the new record of 14.5 Mt due to the higher area and higher yields. For all three Prairie Provinces, the average yield is near record levels, despite having hot, dry summer conditions. Fall weather forecasts are looking favourable for the corn harvest in eastern Canada and Manitoba as temperature and rainfall are forecast
to be near normal. For 2018-19, soybean production is estimated at 7.5 Mt, down 0.2 Mt from last year. Manitoba is Canada’s second largest soybean producer where production is estimated at 1.9 Mt, down slightly from the 2.2 Mt grown last year, due the hot and dry summer. Canadian dry bean prices are forecast to increase due to the smaller North American supply.
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Pleases some....
Canadian Pork Producers Pleased with Modern USMCA Canadian pork producers are pleased to learn that Canada, the United States and Mexico have agreed on a renewed trade agreement after difficult negotiations. This news comes as Canadian pork producers are grappling with very low prices made worse by the uncertainty in global pork markets. The trade relationship between Canada and its American and Mexican neighbours is an important one. An integrated North American market is not only economically advantageous; it serves to encourage producers to work together to address issues of common concern such as animal health. “A new trilateral trade agreement is great news for Canadian pork producers. Lots of hard work has been put into reaching this important milestone and we congratulate all those involved in reaching the agreement known as the United StatesMexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), especially Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Minister Chrystia Freeland and her team, as well as Minister MacAulay” said Rick Bergmann, Canadian Pork Council’s Chair. “We look forward to a stabilized pork market that will allow pork producers in Canada, the United States and Mexico to support one another in producing high quality pork and contributing to growing the economy in their respective countries,” he added. The Canadian Pork Council (CPC) has been engaged in trade discussions all through the renegotiation process as this agreement is of utmost importance to the industry. The Council is pleased to learn that the new agreement will not include new tariffs and that it contains dispute mechanisms. Bergmann said that the CPC looks forward to reviewing the details of the new agreement and understanding how it will be implemented.
Grain Farmers Applaud USMCA Grain farmers from across Canada applauded the announcement that Canada, the US and Mexico had reached an agreement on a new North American trade agreement. The United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) is a significant achievement that will support the integrated grain supply chains that exist and will encourage economic growth across rural Canada. “This is a historic agreement that serves the interests of grain farmers from coast to coast,” said Jeff Nielsen, President of Grain Growers of Canada (GGC). “We would like to thank Minister Freeland, Prime Minister Trudeau, chief negotiator Steve Verheul and the rest of the negotiating team for their hard work in delivering a deal that gives farmers the certainty they need to continue to invest and grow.” The USMCA makes important incremental progress on key issues for grain farmers, including new text on biotechnology and low-level presence. In addition, it will remove legal barriers that prevent grain grown on both sides of the border from being treated equally, a longstanding request from GGC. “The United States and Mexico are major markets for most Canadian grains and oilseeds, including corn from Ontario, oats from Manitoba, and malt barley from Alberta,” said Markus Haerle, GGC Vice-President. “The certainty that the USMCA brings will support Canadian farmers who rely on access to the integrated North American market to succeed.” GGC looks forward to working with the Government of Canada to support ratification of the USMCA and calls on all parties to support the agreement as it moves through the Parliament.
Cereals Canada Welcomes the U.S. – Mexico – Canada Agreement Cereals Canada welcomes the announcement of a modernized North American Free Trade Agreement, which will be known as the U.S.-Mexico- Canada Agreement (USMCA). “Achieving the agreement will ensure ongoing stability in agricultural trade within North America,” said Cam Dahl, President of Cereals Canada. “Agriculture in all three countries has benefited from freer trade. Preserving these benefits was a key objective in these negotiations.” USCMA will also modernize the agreement in critical areas, including chapters on biotechnology and new plant breeding techniques and addressing issues of low level presence. These updates will help bring the agreement up-to-date with modern technology. “USMCA also sets the stage for equal treatment by the Canadian grading system for farmers on both sides of the CanadaUS border,” noted Dahl. “Again, this is a modernization that addresses issues that did not exist when the original NAFTA was drafted. The Canadian value chain supports these changes.” Dahl further noted that “There was some concern that the adjustments to the grading system would undermine Canada’s classification system for wheat. This is not the case as the agreement continues to allow both countries the ability to develop national policy.” Cereals Canada thanks all the Canadian negotiating team who has carried out this work in order to accomplish the agreement. This includes Minister Freeland and Minister MacAulay who have been engaged throughout the negotiations.
Canadian Hatching Egg Producers Issue Statement on USMCA In October, the Canadian government reached an Agreement in Principle for the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) formerly called the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). Canadian Hatching Egg Producers (CHEP) recognizes the hard work on behalf of officials and negotiators to reach a trilateral deal with the United States and Mexico. The agreement has maintained the same level for broiler hatching egg and chick tariff rate quotas (TRQs) as under NAFTA with the level of access remaining unchanged at 17.4% annually for broiler hatching eggs and 3.7% annually for broiler chicks. However, this represents a significant level of imports that must be taken into account by Canadian hatching egg farmers. The broiler hatching egg industry is also impacted by chicken imports as this displaces Canadian produced eggs and hatched chicks. Therefore, any additional market access granted on chicken TRQs also negatively impacts hatching egg producers. “While we are relieved that no additional access was granted to our own sector, we remain concerned that access was still given away in the other supply management sectors,” said Jack Greydanus, CHEP Chair. “Granting additional TRQ in each successive trade agreement that Canada negotiates continues to undermine supply management as a system, so we approach this result with significant reservations” he continued. Supply management ensures that Canadian farmers receive a fair return for their work and that Canadians have access to reasonably priced, Canadian produced, high quality and safe food. Supply management is responsible for over $28 billion in GDP, supporting over 330,000 jobs and is critical for the country’s future and rural and community development. We encourage the Canadian government to continue to support supply management and to put in place the necessary measures to mitigate the impact on supply management sectors that are affected by additional market access under USMCA. CHEP calls upon the Federal government to ensure a prosperous and sustainable future for the broiler hatching egg industry and its many contributions to the fabric and economy of Canada and to supply management as a sustainable guarantor of food security. As we now approach future trade agreement negotiations, we remain gravely concerned that additional market access to supply managed commodities will continue to be given away, thereby undermining supply management. The USMCA still must be formally approved by all three governments. CHEP represents over 240 broiler hatching egg farmers located in British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario and Quebec. In 2017, CHEP’s member provinces produced more than 757 million broiler hatching eggs worth more than $317 million. The broiler hatching egg industry in Canada supported over 4,900 direct and indirect jobs. For more information, visit chep-poic.ca.
The AgriPost
October 26, 2018
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Disappoints others.... Dairy Processors Deeply Disappointed with Concessions in the USMCA Canada’s dairy processing industry is deeply disappointed by the announcement that Canada has agreed to significant dairy concessions, including market access and changes to domestic dairy policies, as part of the new United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA). “Over the past year and a half, we have repeatedly heard our government state that it would stand up for the Canadian dairy sector. However, what was agreed to demonstrate very little support for our interests,” said Mathieu Frigon, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Dairy Processors Association of Canada (DPAC). “Rather, along with CETA and CPTPP, the commitments Canada has made under USMCA significantly undermine its domestic dairy sector. In order to address these issues head on, we expect to be part of the industry working group promised by Minister Freeland in order to address these issues head on.” Access granted to Canada’s dairy market via CETA, CPTPP, and now USMCA, will decrease domestic production and greatly affect the dairy processing industry’s ability to see returns on investments. Combined, it is estimated that losses stemming just from the agreements’ market access will stand at more than $2 billion over the course of implementation. “This estimate does not account for the further and very substantial losses that will be incurred as part of Canada’s agreement to suddenly change its domestic dairy policies as part of the USMCA,” said Frigon. “This decision will stifle innovation, stunt market growth, and create additional losses for those dairy processors who have made significant capital investments recently to improve Canada’s domestic processing capacity.” “USMCA is definitely the wrong deal for Canada’s dairy sector, its farmers, processors, and the thousands of hard-working Canadians they employ,” said Frigon. “This is something we would have told the government had we been consulted yesterday; unfortunately, we were not consulted and have relied on the media to hear of government plans for our sector.” DPAC has been adamant that the outcome of any agreement with the United States must continue to contribute to the economic growth of both dairy farmers and processors in Canada. It is unclear how the USMCA will help Canada reach that goal noted Frigon.
Farmers Disappointed with the USMCA The Canadian Federation of Agriculture (CFA) is deeply disappointed with the agricultural concessions included in the new United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA). While the government did achieve beneficial results for some sectors within agriculture, such as increased US market access for Canada’s sugar beet producers, initial indications suggest the livelihood of producers in Canada’s supply managed sectors will be hurt by the concessions included within this new trade deal. Canada has ceded further access to the US for a number of agriculture and agri-food products, especially with respect to supply managed sectors such as turkey, dairy, chicken and eggs. With additional access to our supply managed sectors already being given up in both CETA and CPTPP, this aggregation of incremental access has the potential to irrevocably harm farmers working under supply management. During the negotiations, CFA continually recommended a “do no harm” approach to the agricultural terms of the agreement, advocating for regulatory modernization to help relieve logistical barriers to trade. However, issues such as meat re-inspection at the border, which creates delays, increases costs and thickens the border between the two countries’ highly integrated industries, were not addressed during these crucial talks. CFA is relieved though, to see that Chapter 19 has been maintained, as this remains essential to all sectors that conduct international trade between the three USMCA countries. “While negotiations always involve some give-and-take, right now it seems like the USMCA negotiations missed a key opportunity to relieve some non-tariff barriers to trade, which would have been a great help to farmers from every country involved in the deal,” said Ron Bonnett, CFA President. “Couple that with more market access being given to the US in our supply managed sectors and there aren’t many farmers under supply management who are happy right now.” CFA will continue to analyze the text of the USMCA and will consult its members to get a deeper insight into the USMCA’s effects on Canadian agriculture.
USMCA Deal Harmful for Canadian Turkey Farmers
Turkey Farmers of Canada (TFC) is examining the details of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), but is concerned turkey farmers and their families will be hurt by the terms of the agreement. “While we look for further details on the implications of the deal, we know that any concessions made, in addition to previous concessions under the Comprehensive and Progressive Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), come at a cost for our farmers and rural Canada,” said TFC Chair Darren Ference. “We will be looking to the government of Canada for an action plan to support our farmers in light of trade deals that are eroding the sustainability of our local food sector.” “Ninety per cent of Canadians say they want turkey produced in Canada according to a recent survey, but this deal will cause losses of family farms and less local turkey production,” said Ference. “The severe impact on farmers and the entire valuechain requires remedial measures.” “We have been working with the federal government on a strategy to offset the harm CPTPP is causing, but this new NAFTA deal elevates the urgency,” noted Ference. “We will be pushing for timely commitments to mitigation and remedies.” “Supply management is being eroded by concessions in CPTPP and USMCA,” said Ference. “We share the disappointment of farmers in the dairy, chicken and egg sectors on the increased market disruption from USMCA. We are looking for a guarantee from the government that we will no longer entertain further disruption to supply management and harm to the livelihoods of Canadian farm families who produce Canadian poultry, dairy and eggs.”
USMCA Secures Greater US Access to Canada Chicken Sector With negotiations under the new United StatesMexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) complete, and despite the fact that Canada’s chicken sector is giving up additional access, chicken farmers are relieved that over a year of uncertainty over the future of the agricultural landscape in Canada is over. The USMCA makes fundamental changes to how imports are administered, and ensures continued stability for farmers, while guaranteeing the US access to our market. This will result in an increased market access of over 12 million kg. This comes on top of the additional access granted under the CPTPP agreement and the existing WTO access, representing more than 10.7% of our existing production. It is important to note that the Canadian chicken sector has always been a strong presence within international trade. As the 14th largest importer of chicken in the world, our imports enter Canada duty-free or at a very low tariff. “The Canadian chicken sector is a leader in food safety and animal care. It sustains over 87,000 jobs, and contributes $6.8 billion to Canada’s Gross Domestic Product. That’s all thanks to the stability provided by supply management,” said Benoît Fontaine, Chair of Chicken Farmers of Canada. “While there is more being given to the already substantial market access in our sector, we look forward to working with the Government of Canada in order to implement changes that are in the best interest of Canada’s chicken farmers.” With this in mind, it will be more important now than ever for the government to ensure that it maintains its commitment to ending existing practices that currently cost the Canadian chicken industry thousands of jobs, millions of kilograms in production, millions of dollars in revenues and millions of dollars in GDP contributions to the Canadian economy. These current practices include being able to import unlimited quantities of chicken by importing broiler chicken and falsely declaring it as spent fowl, and allowing companies to substitute high-value imported cuts with low-value domestic cuts for re-export. Chicken Farmers of Canada was also very disappointed to learn about the unprecedented additional access that Canada had to concede for dairy products and shares the concerns that these changes will impact the overall supply management system in Canada. When increased levels of market access are granted to supply management sectors, it weakens the import control pillar of the system, which allows farmers to safely predict imports and ensure that they produce enough to satisfy our country’s needs. “Without a predictable level of imports, and when more access is given, production decreases in Canada,” said Fontaine. “This results in lost jobs, lost production and decreased consumer access to Canadian-raised products, not to mention the reduction in the contribution to Canada’s economy.”
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The AgriPost
Western Winter Wheat May Be Canada’s New Premium Product Winter wheat has major environmental benefits. It helps reduce wind and water based soil erosion, out competes many weeds and generally conserves energy because of the fewer field operations. Despite these and other benefits, spring wheat, and in particular the Canada Western Red Spring (CWRS) class, is western Canada’s most popular type. World renowned for its excellent milling and baking quality, CWRS often garners a premium price in world markets. Winter wheat is planted in the fall and resumes growth in the spring. As a result, winter wheat is able to take advantage of fall rain and winter snow unlike spring wheat, which is as the name suggests planted in the spring. The Canada Western Red Winter (CWRW) wheat class has some inherent advantages that Dr. Robert Graf, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada research scientist is particularly in-
terested in building upon. In western Canada, winter wheat produces about 25% more grain than its spring wheat counterparts. It has exceptional milling characteristics that produce a high percentage of bright white, low ash flour both desirable qualities in the marketplace, however its baking qualities are not quite as good as those of CWRS, resulting in a lower market price. Graf explains that this project is all about improving returns to the producer by reducing the price difference between the two types of wheat. To close this gap, his goal is to develop winter wheat varieties that incorporate more of the characteristics that bakers and millers look for in premium quality spring wheat. The result will ideally fetch a higher price in the market. “If farmers could capture 25% more yield in a product that gives them a similar return as our Canada Western Red Spring wheat class, they’d be more compelled to grow winter wheat because ultimately it
would mean a huge boost in average revenue,” said Graf. To accomplish this, Graf and his team have been working to increase the grain’s protein concentration, gluten strength and flour water absorption. Graf said that one of the major challenges was to find suitable winter wheat parents. Despite looking at germplasm from around the world, “There were no winter wheat lines that combined all of the improvements that we needed,” he said. He said that it takes a lot of patience, a good eye, and a bit of luck. He has studied thousands of experimental wheat lines to find the qualities preferred by everyone from producers to endprocessors. Methodically he crossbred these lines to gradually incorporate the desirable traits and develop a select number of parent lines. His team now has its first prototype into registration trials and, while it may not yet be CWRS quality,
it demonstrates major progress and is a platform for future advancements. Graf predicts that we could have winter wheat varieties for western Canada with “CWRS-like” quality within the next decade. “In winter wheat breeding, from the time you make a cross to the time it’s in farmers hands, is usually 12-15 years. In the case of this project, we didn’t really have the parents to start the breeding process to take us there. We’re just now at the cusp of starting to deliver some of those advancements,” he said. Once developed, this improved winter wheat will provide a new option for farmers in western Canada to increase farm revenue while maintaining Canada’s excellent reputation for wheat quality.
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Reducing Red Tape on Fuel Storage Rules The Manitoba government is making changes to a regulation governing the storage of fuel to support the unique scheduling needs of Manitoba farmers and municipalities, while modernizing rules for fuel distributors. “We have been looking closely at all our legislation, and have committed to reducing red tape, eliminating outdated legislation and allowing municipalities and the agri-food sector industry to operate more efficiently,” said Sustainable Development Minister Rochelle Squires. “The rules around fuel storage were out of date. This change will help fuel distributors, retailers and agricultural producers by removing unnecessary redundant requirements.” Fuel distributors will now be able to have seasonal fuel supplies ready for distribution to farm fuel customers in time for the spring planting season. The old regulation restricted the times of the year that consumers could use seasonal blended fuel. “Manitoba’s producers help feed the world, and our government believes that red tape and unnecessary burdens on our producers need to be removed,” said Agriculture Minister Ralph Eichler said. “As a result, our producers will be better prepared for the spring planting season.” “We welcome this and other efforts that have been made to reduce red tape in the agricultural sector and we look forward to continued progress in regulatory flexibility,” said Bill Campbell, President of Keystone Agricultural Producers. Canadian fuel standards have changed over the years, making the enforcement of fuel quality standards by the province redundant. The province’s red tape review has determined this is an area that needs to be modernized in order to ensure that regulations do not unnecessarily inhibit private-sector activity, Squires said. “Not only will this benefit Co-op’s agriculture customers, but it will reduce the risk for fuel outages and road damage prior to spring road bans across the province,” said Cal Fichter, VicePresident of energy, Federated Co-operatives Limited. “We thank the Manitoba government for making this change to help Co-ops better serve our local communities.”
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October 26, 2018
The AgriPost