We demand so much of our dairy herd — the highest quality milk in copious quantities, excellent production persistence and (we hope) a heifer calf at every calving. The demands of modern dairy production mean cows spend much of their day standing, supporting their large frames and heavy udders. While dairy farmers take extra care... Read More
Category: Livestock
The cattle business is also a people business. Sharing a coffee, shaking hands and commiserating in the leaky barns at Agribition is an import part of building your cattle business, whether as a purebred breeder or a commercial stock grower. RealAgriculture.com sat down to speak with Sheldon Kyle, with Kenray Ranch, about why national cattle... Read More
Food safety in the beef industry was a topic that was front and centre at this years Canfax Cattle Market Forum. Producers and industry members were left questioning just how far the impact of the recall would reach and how long the hangover would last. As we found out when we sat down with Brian... Read More
Soil is a magnificent thing. It's the medium that makes crop production possible. It's also rather mysterious. Even now, scientists are just beginning to scratch the surface of naming all the microbes that live in soil and understanding their functions and interactions. There's also much we do know and understand about soil and its ability... Read More
Todd Hirsch, ATB financial senior economist, spoke at the Canfax Cattle Market Forum. The outlook he provided was one of cautious optimism mixed with a little bit of wait and see. The cautious optimism stems from the overall stability of the Canadian economy and the growth in provinces like Alberta and Saskatchewan. The wait... Read More
The hog industry in Western Canada has been knocked to its knees in recent months by high feed prices and negative margins. A large hog breeder, producer and feed company — Manitoba-based Puratone Corporation — is in the process of being bought by Maple Leaf Foods, the company's largest hog buyer. Amidst the fall out... Read More
The Canadian cattle industry has made continual gains in beef quality and safety and production efficiency, year over year, even in the face of significant challenges in the past decade. That's due in no small part to the tenacious nature of Canada's beef producers, but it's also a result of significant gains made through extensive... Read More
After a year-over-year doubling of traffic to the site, RealAgriculture.com hired its first full-time editor this spring. Now, the site continues to expand in the form of a new school. Joining the line up RealAgriculture's production-focused Schools is the new Beef Research School — a series of 30 videos produced in partnership with the Beef... Read More
The world is a much smaller place than it ever was. When it comes to areas like feed grains, what was once a very localized trade is now increasingly international. That requires a new level of international awareness for producers, especially in times marked by historic highs and increasingly tight supplies. So what should we... Read More
The optimism cattle producers started off 2012 with has become a little less broad and a little more cautious as 2012 starts to wind down. High commodity prices, a brutal US drought and high replacement costs among other factors have really dampened the high enthusiasm seen at the beginning of the year. It was February... Read More