Maintaining microbial effectiveness Support for restricting own-use drug imports » PG 12
What weed is that? More than 80 planted in Brandon ‘garden’ » PG 17
SERVING MANITOBA FARMERS SINCE 1925 | Vol. 74, No. 28 | $1.75
July 14, 2016
Farmers want and need resources for mental health: survey Stress, anxiety, depression, emotional exhaustion and burnout are all higher among farmers than among other groups
manitobacooperator.ca
New verified beef program makes a timely debut Revamped VBP program means producers can document their animal care, biosecurity, and environmental practices
BY LORRAINE STEVENSON Co-operator staff
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a n a d i a n f a r m e r s a re among the most vulnerable to stress, anxiety, burnout and depression, according to early results of an online mental health survey done by researchers at University of Guelph. They experience these symptoms in numbers higher than comparative groups, including those in the U.K. and Norway, where similar studies have been done, said Andria Jones-Bitton, a professor in the department of population medicine. She analyzed responses made by 1,100 farmers surveyed between September 2015 and this January across Canada. Some of their comments leave little doubt about the impact their work and culture is having on them, says Jones-Bitton, who is also an epidemiologist and a veterinarian. See MENTAL HEALTH on page 7 »
The marketplace is sending signals it wants verified sustainable beef, says the chair of the committee behind VBP Plus. PHOTO: CANADA BEEF
By ALEXIS KIENLEN STAFF
Publication Mail Agreement 40069240
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he newly launched Verified Beef Production Plus program is taking Canada one step closer in its quest towards verified sustainable beef, says one of its designers. “This is just from my perspective, but we have always had early adopters — the people who believe in it — but there have never been clear market signals,” said Cecilie Fleming, chair of the committee that revamped the original VBP program. “People did it just because it was the
right thing to do. Now we’re getting market signals that the end users are looking for those attributes. No longer can we say what we’re doing — they are asking us to demonstrate what we’re doing.” VBP Plus builds off the original Verified Beef Production, which focused on on-farm food safety. The new voluntary program — open to cow/calf producers, backgrounders and feedlot owners — contains modules that address animal care, biosecurity, and environmental sustainability. It is part of the Canadian Cattlemen’s programming, approved by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, and meets the
Canadian Roundtable for Sustainable Beef’s recently drafted indicators for sustainable beef. The rollout of VBP Plus also seems timely, since retailers such as Earls Restaurants and McDonald’s have recently put an emphasis on sourcing sustainable beef. But the timing is coincidental as VBP Plus has been in development since 2013. “This is part of the push to define sustainable beef and our program is one of the programs that can make that happen,” said Fleming, who raises Angus seedstock near Granum. “My See VERIFIED BEEF on page 6 »
BIG FARMING EXPO: AG IN MOTION SPECIAL FEATURE » PAGE 33