With new varieties readily available, growing tiny crab apples isn't your only option, prairie-dwellers! In 2008, the University of Saskatchewan released Prairie Sensation, an apple evolved to our prairie climate, and at roughly seven to nearly 8.5 cm in diameter, it's no crab. Though apple trees are largely grown as a hobby, with keen interest... Read More
Category: Food
A number of years ago, one of the first farm meetings I attended as a young radio reporter on the agriculture beat had a speaker talking on a subject that few farmers had considered. It was on what role activism would play in food production down the road, and how farmers could react. At the... Read More
Some of you reading this have likely either consumed unpasteurized milk, or know someone who has, and been perfectly fine for the experience. Ditto for University of Guelph food scientist Prof. Art Hill, a leading authority on milk safety. Some 50 years ago on the family dairy farm on Manitoulin Island, he drank unpasteurized milk... Read More
After I wrote an editorial piece on Kathleen Wynne's absence at the GFO meeting last week (click here for that), many people agreed with my take. In the true spirit of Realagriculture.com, some readers thought I was incorrect and called me out on it. Long-time RealAgriculture follower Stewart Skinner contacted me and said, "Slow down,... Read More
My daughter Kate and I headed out last Sunday afternoon to Kitchener to hear about a new – and what I consider very different – food service being debuted at the storied Walper Hotel. Up the staircase through the doors of the second-floor terrace ballroom, 250 curious guests were lining up at more than a... Read More
We're all consumers. We buy cars and trucks, clothes and electronics, seed and fertilizer, food and drinks. About 2% of the population, farmers, also create a very personal consumable — food and food ingredients. Roughly 8% of our population, that is the amount of us involved in the agriculture industry, have a pretty good handle... Read More
100 years ago, Norman Borlaug was born. An American scientist and researcher, Borlaug won the Noble Peace Prize in 1970 for his lifetime of work aimed at feeding the hungry through advancements in agriculture. Today, dubbed AgDay in the U.S., Borlaug will be honoured with a statue unveiled in the nation's capitol, and research organizations... Read More
Soy-based personal lubricant, biodegradable wound care and an antimicrobial food film won top prizes in this year’s Project SOY (Soybean Opportunities for Youth) competition for University of Guelph students. The 18th annual event, held last week, showcased 16 projects from 26 U of G students from the Guelph, Alfred, Kemptville and Ridgetown campuses. Students won... Read More
If agriculture is going to work towards providing quality food for informed consumers, we can't be throwing each production system under the bus. Conventional agriculture needs to respect organic production as a valid production system (and a valid consumer choice), and organic producers need to stop vilifying conventional production and using misleading and down-right false... Read More
When I buy beef from my neighbourhood butcher in Guelph, I don’t chisel him on price. He sells excellent beef, and he and his suppliers deserve decent money for connecting with the cattle farmers who produce it. If I have to cut corners, I’ll save on some other part of the meal — for example,... Read More