Afe141013 by Farm Business Communications

It’s the Prairies’ best kept secret

HORMONEFREE HERDS?

CHEMISTRY COMEBACK

Trade deal opens doors – but only for some cattle » PG 3

Old soil-applied herbicides recruited for resistance battle » PG 33

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Alberta unplugged, but concerns remain Alberta elevators are nearing 85 per cent of working capacity, and harvest isn’t over yet

OCTOBER 13, 2014

THE BIG THREE — Experts offer their post-harvest advice Whether it’s in the office or the field, there are some jobs that should be at the top of your to-do list BY ALEXIS KIENLEN AND JENNIFER BLAIR

BY JENNIFER BLAIR AF STAFF

or many producers, this harvest is going to seem to drag on forever. But, of course, it won’t. The combine will be parked, the farm meetings and shows will get underway, Christmas will come and go, and before you know it, you’re in the shed getting the seeding rig ready. So with that in mind, Alberta Farmer reporters Alexis Kienlen and Jennifer Blair asked six experts a simple question: What are the three big things farmers should attend to once harvest is over? Three want you to get in the office and three say there’s important things in the field to be done. You’ve likely heard most of this advice before, but that’s not the point. Rather, it’s that time slips by and some jobs shouldn’t wait.

s harvest starts to wrap up in some areas of the province, producers can expect their grain to move a little quicker than it did following last year’s record harvest. But they’re not out of the woods yet. “Alberta’s starting to fill up again,” Mark Hemmes, president

SEE HARVEST  page 7

A changed landscape

Before you even call the elevator — much less deliver a load — producers should be getting independent testing of their grain samples, our experts said. FILE PHOTO

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Get those grain samples tested, sharpen your pencil, and shop around for marketing options, said Brenda Tjaden Lepp, co-founder of FarmLink Marketing Solutions. “Get samples tested to get quality results,” said Tjaden Lepp. “Wheat quality really matters to the price, to the value, and to the end-use market, and it really can vary a lot.”

BIG THREE  page 6

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NEWS » INSIDE THIS WEEK

INSIDE » KICK IT UP A NOTCH Expert praises high-energy annual forages

OCTOBER 13, 2014 • ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA

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BRENDA SCHOEPP WHY EMPOWERMENT MATTERS

LAURA RANCE

Alberta Farmer wins CFWF awards An investigative report that revealed McDonald’s had chosen Canada as the site of its “sustainable beef” pilot project has been honoured by the Canadian Farm Writers Federation. Alberta Farmer reporter Alexis Kienlen won a silver award in the Weekly Press Reporting category for her story on how the Canadian Cattlemen’s Association and the Canadian Roundtable for Sustainable Beef were working with the fast-food giant. “This pilot program by the country’s largest beef buyer may lead to major changes, and is something everyone in the sector should be aware of,” said Alberta Farmer editor Glenn Cheater. “Alexis not only broke this story but has worked with colleague Jennifer Blair to follow it as it develops. It’s not just about McDonald’s, but about BIXS 2.0, changes to the Verified Beef Program, and ultimately, opportunities for producers to grow their markets and find new routes to profitability. “These are the types of stories the paper needs to be covering.” Online news editor Dave Bedard received a bronze award for his work on www.albertafarmexpress. ca while Manitoba Co-operator editor Laura Rance won the Press Editorial category for an editorial that explored how the different voices in the debate over genetically modified organisms are portrayed. Gold in the Weekly Press Reporting category went to Co-operator reporter Lorraine Stevenson for her coverage of a Manitoba farm family trying to rebuild its on-farm prosciutto-making business after resolving a dispute with provincial health inspectors over how food safety regulations are applied. The Canadian Farm Writers Federation represents almost 350 English-speaking agricultural journalists, broadcasters and communicators from across Canada.

RESISTANCE JUST THE SYMPTOM

PICTURE PERFECT Nature Conservancy completes Waldron deal

AL MUSSELL

Winter ups PEDv risk, prices under pressure

Alberta beekeepers oppose neonics lawsuit

THE FOUR FALLACIES OF SUSTAINABILITY

Alberta visionaries inducted into Agriculture Hall of Fame Gordon Hilton, Mohyuddin Mirza, and Curtis Clark honoured for their contributions to soil conservation, greenhouse innovations, and dairy breeding ALBERTA AGRICULTURE AND RURAL DEVELOPMENT

he three newest members of the Alberta Agriculture Hall of Fame have more than a century of experience between them in the grain, greenhouse, and dairy sectors. Gordon Hilton, Mohyuddin Mirza, and Curtis Clark (posthumously) were recognized earlier this month at an event in Edmonton. “We owe a debt of gratitude to these three exceptional individuals who have devoted a lifetime to improving agricultural practices in our province,” said Verlyn Olson, minister of agriculture and rural development.

Gordon Hilton (Strathmore)

Gordon Hilton is a pioneer of conservation tillage and brought one of the first no-till drills to Western Canada in 1980. He worked tirelessly to educate and encourage other farmers to adopt conservation farming methods and, today, direct seeding is practised by the majority of Prairie farmers. From helping educate government to creating industry organizations and working with industry

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to modify and improve existing equipment, his legacy will be one where soil degradation and wind erosion have been greatly reduced throughout Alberta and beyond. Hilton’s achievements were recognized in 1990 when he became the first farmer ever inducted into the Soil Conservation Council of Canada’s Hall of Fame.

Mohyuddin Mirza (Edmonton)

Mohyuddin Mirza’s visionary but practical research has greatly benefited Alberta’s greenhouse industry. He was a pioneer in introducing hydroponics production to greenhouse crops, and has won numerous awards and accolades during the past three decades. As a founding member of the Alberta Greenhouse Growers Association and adjunct professor at the University of Alberta, Mirza has been credited with inspiring new entrants into the industry. In the 1980s he helped introduce soil-less crop production, an innovation that helped further build the industry. Mirza is best known as a friend to growers. Always reachable, he constantly provided time to teach and share with growers. According to one former

student who was inspired by Mirza to start his own greenhouse business, “helping others succeed is his passion.”

Curtis Clark (Carstairs)

Curtis Clark’s passion for the dairy industry in Alberta spanned almost five decades. A winner of multiple awards throughout his career as a breeder, dairy judge and exhibitor, Clark helped to lay the groundwork to develop purebred breeders and superior cattle in Alberta. With longtime partner Lloyd Pickard and son Jim, he grew Acme Holsteins of Carstairs into the most travelled and recognized Holstein herd in Western Canada. Many say his legacy is best exemplified in the Curtis Clark Achievement Award, which is presented annually at the Royal Agricultural Winter Fair in Toronto. Started in 1988, the award recognizes a winner who “exemplifies the all-around ability, sportsmanship, and dedication necessary to be respected by his fellow breeders and exhibitors.” In one of his last interviews before he passed away in 1997 at the age of 86, Clark said, “It’s great how the boys are working together in the Holstein breed. It is surprising how far you can pull a sled if you pull together.”

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ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA • OCTOBER 13, 2014

Hormone-free beef the next big export opportunity

The best kept secret to standability is out

Half a million cattle raised without implants will be needed to fill the quota in the new trade deal with the European Union

Learn more at provenseed.ca or ask your CPS retailer.

BY JENNIFER BLAIR

What’s the deal with Europe?

AF STAFF

he proposed trade deal with Europe has a simple story line for Alberta cattle producers — build the herd. “To take advantage of the European agreement, we’re going to have to expand,” said John Masswohl, director of government and international relations for the Canadian Cattlemen’s Association. The Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) finalized late last month provides Canada with duty-free access for 35,000 tonnes of fresh and 15,000 tonnes of frozen beef by 2022 — roughly $600 million worth of meat. That will require adding half a million head of cattle, but they will have to be raised according to European standards — no hormone implants or beta-agonists. It’s a tall order, but Masswohl said he expects production will ramp up before the agreement is ratified, likely in 2017. “We’re going to be in the expansion phase of cattle anyway,” he said. “Prices are very high, and that’s sending the signal to cattle producers to increase their production. “As producers look at the potential of the Canada-Europe agreement, some of them will add cattle that will meet European requirements.” Despite the added cost of producing implant-free beef — an estimated 20 per cent more than conventionally raised beef — the premium may be enough to sway some producers. “Not everybody is going to want to do it, but we think enough will,” he said. “We don’t need every producer to produce cattle according to European standards. We need enough to produce beef according to those quotas.”

Expansion expected

The deal with the European Union is a “very positive step,” said Rich Smith, executive director of Alberta Beef Producers. “It’s a strong signal to producers that the future looks bright in terms of producing cattle and beef,” he said. “What we’re seeing is an array of positive signals that we hope will, at some stage, encourage expansion.” But it won’t happen overnight. “We believe we’re on the verge of it expanding, but we’ve been on this verge for some time,” he said. “We keep thinking that the market signals will be strong enough to encourage expansion, but the latest census figures in July showed that we haven’t started expanding yet.” Despite strong prices — or perhaps because of them — cattle producers have been slow to begin rebuilding their herds. “People are taking advantage of good prices to sell them,” said Smith. Canfax’s Brenna Grant expects heifer retention to begin next year, although that won’t show up on beef cow inventories until 2016.

When does it take effect?

Likely not until 2017. Although the “final” text was signed Sept. 26, it will be reviewed by lawyers and then has to be ratified by the European parliament and 28 member states.

What’s in it for farmers?

Preferred access to “the most lucrative integrated market in the world,” says the federal government — namely 500 million consumers and an economy with a GDP of $18 trillion. Absent a deal, Canadian agricultural exports face EU agriculture tariffs averaging 13.9 per cent. When the deal comes into force, almost 94 per cent of EU agricultural tariff lines will be duty free, including those for wheat, durum, and canola oil while pork producers will gain about 81 tonnes of quota.

Is there a catch?

Environmental activists carry a giant inflatable chicken as they demonstrate against ‘chlorine chickens’ near the Oktoberfest grounds in Munich Oct. 1, 2014. The protest is against the planned Free Trade Agreements TTIP (Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership) and CETA (Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement) with the U.S. and Canada, which opponents fear will allow U.S. chlorine-washed chicken and hormone-treated meat into the EU. PHOTO: REUTERS/MICHAELA REHLE

“When you start expanding, because you’re retaining heifers that would have previously gone to slaughter, you’re actually going to decrease production in the short term so that you can have larger production in the future,” she said. For the past five years, producers — hit hard by BSE and years of poor prices and high feed costs — have been working to get back on solid financial footing, she said. “Even though we had a couple of years where cow-calf producers have been in the black, they’ve really been focused on rebuilding equity and getting themselves back in a good financial position so that they can expand.” Many have held off because it throttles their cash flow, she added. “They don’t have the income from those heifers that would typically get sold,” said Grant. “You’re either going to forgo cash by retaining heifers, or you’re going to lay out cash to buy a bred animal. Those are really the only options you have.” But producers will need to start thinking about expanding soon to take advantage of trade agreements with the European Union, Korea, and the Asia-Pacific region. “Globally, there is demand for more beef than is currently being produced, and there is a market for it,” she said. “The country that’s in a position to expand now and is the first to expand has the opportunity to gain market share.”

Supply issues

But as Canada opens more doors to international markets, domestic markets continue to suffer

because of Canada’s declining cattle herd. At a Canada Beef forum in mid-September, producers learned Costco Canada will be substituting Canada AAA beef for product imported from the U.S. and Australia. “We’re always concerned when we lose market share to another country,” said Smith. “We’re always concerned when we’re not able to supply a large retailer with the product that the retailer wants.” But lower production — not lower quality — is at the heart of the issue, he said. “I think we’re doing the right things in terms of producing the quality,” said Smith. “We just may not be producing enough of it to meet the demands of a large retailer.” AAA and Prime grade beef production is also seasonal, which can cause some supply concerns over the summer months, added Grant. “You get a high of 69 per cent of your A grades being AAA and Prime in March, and you have a summer low of about 47 per cent in June,” she said. “Any customer that’s as large as Costco is going to have seasonal challenges if they have a AAA program.” Increasing the supply of AAA beef will take time as the cattle herd begins to expand, said Smith. “Our wish is to provide enough beef to supply whatever demands our Canadian retailers would have for that beef, but it’s not an industry where you can change supply quickly.” jennifer.blair@fbcpublishing.com

Plenty of potential ones. For example, canola oil sales could increase by $90 million a year, but it’s feared Europe’s aversion to genetic modification could be used as a trade barrier. Dairy officials say allowing an additional 32,000 tonnes of European cheese in duty free will hurt dairy farmers here.

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OCTOBER 13, 2014 • ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA

EDITOR Glenn Cheater Phone: 780-919-2320 Email: glenn.cheater@fbcpublishing.com twitter: @glenncheater

Reporters Alexis Kienlen, Edmonton 780-668-3121 Email: akienlen@fbcpublishing.com

Caring is the first step in change

Jennifer Blair, Red Deer 403-613-7573 Email: jennifer.blair@fbcpublishing.com

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Empowerment changes lives, and it happens with one little word, action, or act of kindness at a time

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By brenda schoepp af columnist

have often been challenged to describe why it is important to empower those in our world — especially women outside of our community or country. Women who others may believe will never live their dream or even work to their potential because of the political or cultural environment in which they live. Girls and women are constant victims of crime, are held in cultural chains that do not leave them voice, and are not equals in the world of finance or land ownership. So — I am asked — why bother? Before answering, I reflect on changes I have seen in the lives of those I have mentored. The confidence they developed, the liberty they found in finding their own solutions, the ability to stretch themselves to the limit and bounce back again — intact and fully empowered. I stand in awe of what they discovered within themselves and how their lives and businesses were transformed.

Mentorship is the ability to draw out the best in an individual and help them to recognize without fear who they are and what they were born to do. Then a mentor can guide and coach them towards their selfdescribed dreams and goals. Letting go of our perceived ideas on what the outcome or results should be of our mentoring is the first step in liberating the other to own their decisions. How can we have dignity without owning our decisions? So when asked about why I would care about a woman far away from me — in distance, income or beliefs — I can only smile and say that all men and women, boys and girls are at some point to someone else, a symbol of hope. Did you know that you were a symbol of hope and a guiding light to your children, community and country? This is especially true for women who are being quietly watched by girls. Marianne Williamson wrote, “As we let our own light shine we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.” I am aware I cannot transform

the life of another — but she can transform her life if she knows someone cares. I have recently been reading about children who live on the street, and their quiet and absolute desire to just be acknowledged as human beings, to have someone care that they breathe and feel. It is true that I cannot bring riches into the account of another but she can when she discovers her self-worth and works towards her net worth. The wings of self-worth create limitless opportunities. It’s true I cannot change the political landscape for every woman in every country, but I can start here at home by educating Canadian women on the power of mentorship. Let’s do this together to ensure our daughters and granddaughters are feeling great about their role in the home, on the farm and in business. And it is true that while I cannot define anyone else — I can define myself so I am not defined by another. “I am a good farmer. I am a courageous writer. I am an intense motivational speaker. I am a deeply compassionate person.” Who are you? Some will know the answer and for others it will take great

courage to face themselves. For mentors in agriculture, we have to be there for all the boys and girls, men and women who live in our community regardless of where they are on the path and how long the journey is. If we cannot build persons, we cannot build communities and if we cannot build, communities cannot have economies. Surely as a leader it is not only my duty but my desire to invest in people, particularly women. Why? Because I believe that empowerment changes lives, one little word, action or act of kindness at a time. Because I believe that all women are priceless. Because I believe that keeping our sisters who are in the depth of despair blocked out of human consciousness does not change one life or give a single ray of hope. Only when we care enough to be fully engaged and willing to part with some of ourselves will we empower the women who lead, feed and beautify our world. Brenda Schoepp is a farmer from Alberta who works as an international mentor and motivational speaker. She can be contacted through her website www. brendaschoepp.com. All rights reserved. Brenda Schoepp 2014

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www.albertafarmexpress.ca or email: subscription@fbcpublishing.com At Farm Business Communications we have a firm commitment to protecting your privacy and security as our customer. Farm Business Communications will only collect personal information if it is required for the proper functioning of our business. As part of our commitment to enhance customer service, we may share this personal information with other strategic business partners. For more information regarding our Customer Information Privacy Policy, write to: Information Protection Officer, Farm Business Communications, 1666 Dublin Ave., Wpg., MB R3H 0H1 Occasionally we make our list of subscribers available to other reputable firms whose products and services might be of interest to you. If you would prefer not to receive such offers, please contact us at the address in the preceding paragraph, or call 1-800-665-0502. The editors and journalists who write, contribute and provide opinions to Alberta Farmer Express and Farm Business Communications attempt to provide accurate and useful opinions, information and analysis. However, the editors, journalists and Alberta Farmer Express and Farm Business Communications, cannot and do not guarantee the accuracy of the information contained in this publication and the editors as well as Alberta Farmer Express and Farm Business Communications assume no responsibility for any actions or decisions taken by any reader for this publication based on any and all information provided.

Herbicide-resistant weeds are just the symptom Is resistance the problem, or is it farmers’ dependence on chemistry? By Laura Rance

Editor, the Manitoba Co-operator

or decades, the experts have treated the growing problem of herbicide-resistant weeds as something solvable by the next new chemistry or biological breakthrough. But now more are stepping back and acknowledging it as a symptom of a much bigger issue in modern agriculture. In fact, one of the world’s leading experts in managing herbicide resistance goes so far as to call it a sickness that threatens global food security. Stephen Powles, who heads up the Australian Herbicide Resistance Initiative at the University of Western Australia, has even given it a name — HOS (herbicide-only syndrome). He was among several speakers at a summit recently held in Washington, D.C. who made a compelling argument that something has to change — and fast. Despite decades of research and extension to raise awareness and promote better management practices, the list of resistant weeds continues to grow and their grip on farmers’ fields continues

to spread. In some southern U.S. states, farmers are returning to tillage — which most agree has ominous implications for soil health and future productivity. A British weed specialist recently brought a chilling message to Prairie farmers about the difficulty and cost of controlling herbicideresistant black-grass in Europe. Farmers there are resorting to older, more residual products that are tilled into the soil, a practice now being promoted here. In Western Canada, a 2012 survey estimated weeds resistant to one or more herbicides had infested 7.7 million hectares. Powles said the rising incidence of weeds that are resistant to multiple modes of action is evidence that farming’s dependence on chemistry alone is unsustainable. It is a threat to global food security as it mainly affects farmers in the world’s top exporting countries, he said. Farmers in lesser developed countries still retain a higher degree of diversity in their farming systems and are less likely to use herbicides. The Washington event, sponsored by the Weed Science Society of America, turned to some unlikely resources for advice — sociologists.

“Fundamentally, at its core, it is a problem of human behaviour — it’s the choices you and I have been making,” said David Shaw, chair of the society’s Herbicide Resistance Education Committee. “Do you know what the definition of insanity is? It’s continuing to do what we have been doing, expecting different results.” As the speakers at this event pointed out, the discussion over herbicide-resistance management needs to move beyond raising awareness and telling farmers what to do about it. Farmers are aware. The latest poll by BASF of farmers’ attitudes found 82 per cent of Alberta farmers are worried about herbicide resistance, and 40 per cent think they already have it. The things needed to avoid it are well documented. Yet many are waiting until they have the problem before taking action — and then it’s too late. Once weeds have evolved resistance, there is no going back. In sociological terms, HOS is considered a “wicked problem,” which means it has multiple and complex causes that defy simple solutions, said Raymond

Jussaume, head of sociology at Michigan State University. Farmers’ management decisions are driven by multiple factors including financial, but also time management and peer pressure. Moving away from a herbicide-only approach as a prevention measure requires an upfront investment, yet the returns are delayed and intangible. Addressing this requires all the players in the system to take ownership and move as a community towards a more holistic approach, he said. Regulation is one of the options on the table. But far more effective is a community-based approach in which farmers help determine the goals and monitor progress, speakers said. Herbicide manufacturers and distributors are already well aware of the threat of herbicides becoming redundant, which ultimately means no market for their product. Their message to rotate herbicides to prevent resistance is well taken. But to keep them in the tool box, it will also mean using them less often. That message has been slow to sink in. laura@fbcpublishing.com

ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA • OCTOBER 13, 2014

The four fallacies of sustainability Intensive, large-scale production employing the latest technology is key to feeding a hungry world and flock breed must all be considered, as well as disease and pest control and implementing new flock management regimes. European livestock industries have not collapsed in the face of restrictions on antibiotic use, and many countries have significant crop industries without using GM technology. But the adjustment is difficult — it takes time and learning; can be costly; and must be implemented in a market context rather than simply dictated. Food marketers may not get what they expected as this process of adjustment rolls out.

By Al Mussell

Special to Alberta Farmer

he view that we need to change how we produce food in the name of sustainability has become ubiquitous in Canada and other developed countries. Indeed, spurred on by the perceptions of some consumers, the food industry has become keenly interested in how farmers produce food. They want to know about their carbon footprint; animal welfare and labour practices; and how they use water, pesticides, fertilizers, antibiotics, hormones and growth promotants. It’s an understandable response to increased public awareness of natural resource scarcity and of food security. But aspects of this movement are simplistic, misguided, or simply wrongheaded. Some of the ideas being put forward could, if followed through to their logical extent, lead to calamitous results. The four fallacies we should be especially wary of are: • We should tread more lightly on the agricultural land base; • Small farms are better; • Farm technologies can be picked from a menu; • New technology will solve all problems.

No silver bullets

Sustainability is a worthwhile goal, but society needs to recognize the benefits brought by large farms and the complexity in changing systems such as poultry housing, says Al Mussell, who argues there are four fallacies that if followed through to their logical conclusion, would lead to calamitous results.

Don’t use more land

The UN Food and Agriculture Organization and others estimate the food supply may need to double by 2050 to meet the needs of a growing, and hungry, planet. To do that, we will either have to get more from the land we already farm or greatly increase the agricultural land base. ‘Greatly’ is the key word here. Indeed a recent study estimated that genetic improvements in major field crops between 1965 and 2004 saved between 18 million and 27 million hectares from being converted to agricultural use. But intensive farming has prevented that. In Ontario, corn yields have doubled (to 160 bushels an acre) since 1970. In Alberta, wheat yields have gone from around 30 bushels an acre to nearly 50 in the last four decades. And livestock production gets more out of each bushel. In 1980, it took 185 days for a pig to reach 100 kilograms. Today, it’s 155 days. Intensifying agricultural land use has not only made food cheaper and saved farmers the cost of needless land base expansion, it also means agriculture’s carbon and water footprint has been reduced and wildlife habitat and natural areas preserved. Greater intensification comes with increased risks (such as run-off or leaching) and technologies can fail (for example, by triggering pest resistance). But we need appropriate management and metrics to mitigate these risks, rather than just turning our back on all the benefits of intensification.

Not necessarily small

Small farms conjure up an appealing view of rural communities and agrarian enterprise, and food marketers are buying into this messaging heavily.

In fact, small operations — those with less than $100,000 in farm cash receipts — still account for more than half of all farms. But once expenses are paid, there’s not much left to support a family. As well, all of those small farms together generate less than 10 per cent of farm cash receipts. Farms have increased in size over time for a reason. It is folly to suggest that we somehow step out of or attempt to manipulate the process in which farms adopt improved technology, use less sweat labour, and generally become larger and more competitive. We should appreciate the diversity of Canadian farms — large and small. But we should also be thankful for the advancing development of a professional farmer segment, improved competitiveness, and the technologies and the increasing size of farms that have underpinned the growth in the standard of living we enjoy.

A package deal

Food marketers are increasingly keen to restrict certain farm technologies. But the nature of agriculture makes this much more challenging than, say, a store deciding it won’t sell baby bottles made using bisphenol-A. Agriculture exists in a dynamic environment in which the many elements of the production system have complex links. That means changing one technology has a ripple effect. One example is genetically modified crops. Weeds don’t go away just because glyphosate-tolerant crop varieties cannot be used — and other herbicides for post-emergent weed control generally have higher toxicity characteristics than glyphosate. Going GM free also means creating rules, tolerances, enforcement to control fraud, penalties, and appeal procedures. And it will create price distortions that can take years to sort out. Moving from battery cages to cagefree systems presents similar challenges. Ventilation, building style, lighting,

The list of technological advances in agriculture — from the seed drill and modern mouldboard plow to innovations in chemistry and microbiology — is long and very impressive. But many seem to take a very different view of this. They see it as “messing with Mother Nature” and creating risks which we may not perceive until it is too late. There is certainly risk. Nature and biology is populated with unknown relationships and uncertain carrying capacities, and this new technology could shift biological equilibriums on a sudden or episodic basis. But this is not something new. Rather, it is the history of agriculture. Employing European tillage technology contributed to soil erosion and the dust bowl of the 1930s. Atrazine was viewed as something of a miracle product when it was introduced in the 1960s, until extensive use resulted in resistant weeds, residues in groundwater, and fears about its health effects. There are countless other examples. Agriculture impacts and is impacted by the biology of natural systems, Mother Nature responds, and the situation changes. This has been true since the Mesopotamians began farming 10,000 years ago. The biological world is not static. We should be cautious about new technologies and alert to the perils they might pose. But because farming is built on a base that is constantly shifting, with interrelationships we do not fully understand, we must constantly be innovating new technologies. If we are unwilling to take on the risk of new technologies, we then take on a potentially greater risk — that existing technology will continue to “work” indefinitely.

Looking forward

Increased attention to environmental, social, and economic sustainability is appropriate — and if approached properly will benefit both the agri-food sector and Canadian society. But producing food is a complex business, and basing our agricultural policies and food marketing on past perceptions and fear of our own technology is a perilous move. Al Mussell is senior research associate at AgriFood Economic Systems, an economic research organization based in Guelph, Ont. To read his four papers on the Four Fallacies of Agricultural Sustainability, go to www.georgemorris.org

Off the front

october 13, 2014 • Albertafarmexpress.ca

BIG THREE } from page 1 While oil content is the No. 1 consideration for canola, it’s a different story for wheat. Sprout damage, protein, grade, and fusarium levels are some of the items on the “long list of factors that will have an impact on the value,” she noted. Start with third-party testing, such as that offered by the Canadian Grain Commission. “As a farmer, if you just take your samples from one elevator to the next and see what they grade it, you don’t necessarily have all the information to start that negotiation,” she said. Next, “pencil out returns for next year.” “It’s never too early to start working on crop budgets for new crop. The best decision on what to plant should be based on — after agronomics — relative return.” There’s been a big change in the futures markets in the past few months and many producers are now around their cost of production. The problem is that many don’t have a good handle on their expenses. “If your cost of production figures are a year or two old, you really have to refine those because cost of production has gone up quite a bit,” said Tjaden Lepp. “The earlier you can get started on that, the better your final decision is going to be on what to grow.” The last item on her Big Three is: Shop around. “The last couple of years has seen an enormous amount of change in the structure of grain marketing in Western Canada, and with that has come new opportunities for new entrants into the market.” Established grain buyers from the U.S. and beyond see Canada’s now fully open market as a prime opportunity to expand their business, she said. “It might be surprising to a lot of growers to find out just how many different buyers there are for their crops,” said Tjaden Lepp. Make a list of all potential buyers, old and new, and then work the phone. “Every time you want to make a sale, you want to be calling literally 10 or 15 different buyers, and they should come from different sectors,” she said. “The variability between one buyer and the next can be $2 to $3 a bushel for the same grain in the same town on the same day.” — Jennifer Blair

Develop relationships

Tjaden Lepp’s main points are echoed by Charlie Pearson, provincial crops analyst with Alberta Agriculture — get your grain tested, have a marketing plan, and shop around for buyers. But he also urges producers to recognize that the three are uniquely linked this year. “In the last couple of years, farmers have mostly had highquality wheat,” said Pearson. “This year, their wheat will be a real dog’s breakfast.” Prices have dropped substantially from a year ago, so don’t get your hopes up if you’re selling feed wheat, he said. But since so much wheat has been downgraded, it’s a different situation for top-quality wheat. That’s why Pearson recommends having a chat with grain buyers when taking in samples. “If you have a conversation with the grain companies, they kind of know what you’ve got in the bin,” he said. “In that conver-

every year... I think it’s best to look at multiple years of research that would show things like seeding rate and fertility recommendations that seem to work over the long run.” — Alexis Kienlen

Weeds, residue and stubble

Brenda Tjaden Lepp

Charlie Pearson

Joel Bokenfohr

Gary Stanford

Dan Orchard

Steve Larocque

sation, you’ll know what they are looking for.” It’s not just about knowing what you have to sell, it’s also about the relationship, he added. “The better relationship you have with the company, the more that company knows what is in your bin, and they’ll be more aggressive about approaching you too. If the company has needs and they know people who can meet those needs, it’s a simple phone call.” — Alexis Kienlen

for grain and oilseed prices, but 2015 could be even more of a crunch, he said. — Alexis Kienlen

But as always, field time has to be balanced with office work — and that means thinking about the marketing of the next harvest. “If we’re going to contract any grain now, it would probably be looking forward into 2015 and seeing what the futures hold there.” — Jennifer Blair

Cash is king

It’s no surprise that the manager of business structure and financial policy at Alberta Agriculture is big on crunching numbers. But Joel Bokenfohr’s advice centres on both knowing your production costs right now and your cash flow needs in the longer term. “It’s a good time to go back and look at the cost of production and what it costs to produce over the year,” he said. Take the time to ensure every production cost goes into your spreadsheet and that includes the cost of your time and any other labour. Then turn to face the future. What is your immediate cash flow situation? What payments are due? What are the opportunities when it comes to pre-pricing inputs? What are the tax implications of selling versus storing grain? On that last score, Bokenfohr said he’s seen a lot of grain deferrals in the past five years. But this might not be a year to take one. “It might balance out some income if they are selling in this quarter here,” he said. Of course, some who would like to hold on to grain in hopes of a price rebound may have to sell because of their cash flow or storage situation. In that case, consider taking a futures contract or option on it, he said. But above all, think about where you could be a year from now, Bokenfohr said. It’s been a disappointing year

Next moves

Office work may not be the most fun task, but getting it done early has allowed Gary Stanford to be out on his land this month. “During the month of October, we’re going to deep band the fertilizer for next year,” said the Magrath-area grain farmer. “We’ve found that it opens up our land a little bit so it will warm up a little quicker in the spring.” He also hopes to save money. “Urea right now is below $500 a tonne to buy it. Last spring, it was around $800 a tonne. It’s a significant savings of around $300 a tonne if a person can put some on in the fall.” It helps that most of the grain Stanford delivered this fall was contracted “a long time ago.” Having attended to his cash flow needs means he’s got options on what’s not sold. “We’re hoping the wheat price will go a little higher during the winter,” he said. “I know there’s a lot of wheat in the world, but the good-quality wheat — the Grade 1 and high protein — we’re hoping there will be a little bit of a premium for that. Some of that, we’re just going to hold on to for a while.” The second thing on his mind is post-harvest weed control. “What I’m finding is where the crops were harvested in August and the first part of September, the fields are turning very green with weeds and with volunteer grain,” he said. The plan was spray with glyphosate before the hard frost hits, and that will impact what he plants in the spring, another decision he plans to make this month. “We have to be careful that if we’re going to seed canola, we have to use something that’s not going to carry over and cause bad germination in the spring,” said Stanford. “We have an idea on a lot of the fields, but there are still some fields that are up in the air.”

Last look

Agronomist Dan Orchard has another priority for field work — analyze what happened this year. Look at stubble and count the number of plants per square foot, and also check to see if you hit your yield targets, said the Canola Council of Canada specialist. “And then you can go back in time and figure out why you didn’t hit your yield target,” he said. “It could be weather or fertility. Then you can make some corrections over the winter.” Growers should also check out clubroot-resistant canola varieties and the latest info on clubroot infestation levels in your area. (An updated map will be available shortly at www.agric.gov.ab.ca. To find it, type ‘clubroot map’ in the search box.) “I think most of the Prairies should be growing clubrootresistant varieties, but the updated map may offer better information on how many fields are affected,” he said. You can also survey your canola fields for the disease. “In some of the hot spots, it’s hard to find it in the stubble, and some of the galls are starting to decay right now, but it’s still possible,” he said. “I can still find it and identify it.” Looking forward, Orchard said he gets a lot of questions about cutting seeding rates to save money, and he knows many producers who lowered rates and had good crops this year. But don’t discount the risk. “There are some things that work better in some years than others,” he said. “Don’t take what happened this year as gospel truth that it will happen that way

Taking care of weeds, managing residue, and looking for issues with your air drill are agronomist Steve Larocque’s Big Three. He’s been recommending granular herbicides to clients for six or seven years, with good results. “I typically use them on my heaviest weed pressure fields, those with the heaviest amount of buckwheat or heaviest amount of wild oat pressure. Those are the ones I target in the fall,” said Larocque, who runs Beyond Agronomy near Three Hills. He applies Avadex on his wheat fields “just prior to the snow.” “As much as possible, we’ll do it as late as possible, and we won’t even incorporate. We’ll use the drill in the spring to do the incorporation,” he said. “Ideally, we would broadcast granular herbicides, then heavy harrow it in. But in late fall, the fields are already harrowed and the weather is less than ideal for managing straw. Broadcasting Avadex in late October and prior to the snowfall has worked well for us.” A post-harvest glyphosate burn-off is used to tackle perennial weeds, such as foxtail barley and Canada thistle, if there’s not “a ton of residue on the surface.” “If you heavy harrowed early and you’ve got three or four weeks after harvest, you may have a chance of doing a fall burn-off.” A late-fall application of PrePass or Express Pro, a Group 2 residual, on canola fields provides some control for volunteer canola in the spring. Even though conditions were tough during harvest, residue management is “not rocket science,” he said. “There won’t be many good days of heavy harrowing this fall, so be sure to choose the fields that need it the most first,” said Larocque. “If you did a really poor job of spreading residue because conditions are tough, just look around. Not every field is going to need to be heavy harrowed.” But stay away from vertical tillage, he said. “It is all the rage right now, but I would definitely be cautious with vertical tillage unless you’ve got serious residue issues you need to take care of that a heavy harrow won’t,” said Larocque, adding that pea stubble often requires shallow vertical tillage. At the same time, measure stubble patterns, he said. “If you’re really keen on figuring out how many stems per foot you’re achieving, you can start measuring your stubble and figure out what your pattern is, specifically in canola.” It’s a good way to identify distribution issues with your air seeding system, he said. “If you can find out the row direction or the direction your drill was travelling, you can start measuring which shanks are performing well and which ones aren’t. Oftentimes, you will find a difference across the drill.” Larocque recommends measuring plant densities in fall rather than spring because “those plants don’t always make it to fall.” “It’s a really good time to go out and measure the plant spacing to see if it’s clumping or bunching or leaving big gaps.” — Jennifer Blair

ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA • OCTOBER 13, 2014

HARVEST  from page 1 of Quorum Corporation, said in an Oct. 2 interview. “In the last six weeks, we’ve gone from 500,000 tonnes to over 900,000 tonnes in storage. We’re at 83 per cent of the working capacity right now. That’s a little higher than we’d like to see.” Grain delivery slowed down for three weeks in September, but picked up again toward the end of the month, said Hemmes, whose company is Ottawa’s grain monitor. “We dropped off a bit there for a while, but it’s largely because we ran out of grain,” said Hemmes, adding that it’s “all relative.” “When you’re talking about deliveries slowing down, it slowed down to 125,000 to 180,000 tonnes a month. When you look at what the stocks were, there was still over 900,000 tonnes in the elevators in Alberta. When it hit its low point, it was at about half a million. “That’s a lot of grain.” With the new crop coming off, numbers are starting to bounce back up to normal levels. “A normal delivery pattern would be between 310,000 and 350,000 (tonnes),” said Hemmes. “The last two weeks have been in the mid-330,000s.” The large carry-over of last year’s grain is still an issue, he said, although the situation is a lot better than it was in spring. “The carry-over in Alberta is not down to what I would consider normal amount,” said Hemmes. “Normal carry-out for us would be 2.8 million tonnes total, and we’re around 4.0 to 4.5 (million tonnes) right now.” The federal government’s order-in-council that threat-

“Normal carry-out for us would be 2.8 million tonnes total, and we’re around 4.0 to 4.5 (million tonnes) right now.” MARK HEMMES

ened fines for Canada’s major railways if they didn’t move at least 500,000 tonnes each weekly “really helped bring it down,” he said. “If you go back to late spring there when the order-in-council kicked in, both CN and CP were looking to source as much grain as they possibly could out of Alberta to go to the West Coast because that’s the most efficient sourcing for them,” said Hemmes. “Because they’ve got to meet a threshold, they look to move the grain that’s easiest to get to and will turn their cars over faster. They’re looking at optimal asset utilization and moving as much grain as they can as fast as they can.” As a result, Saskatchewan producers have suffered from slower service, he said. “In Alberta, we’re a lot more fortunate than in Saskatchewan. In Saskatchewan, there’s a bigger carry-out, and it’s big enough to worry about.” Alberta does have some trouble spots, particularly in the deep south and the Peace region.

There’s still plenty of grain in the system as well as much higher-than-normal carry-over, but record movement has opened up space. FILE PHOTO “Those are the areas where it’s hardest to get car supply to,” said Hemmes. “Once we get off the main line, it’s the same rationale as movement into the States. You’re starting to add days into the cycle time.” The same problem is plaguing grain destined for south of the border. “If they’re going to move grain into Vancouver or Prince Rupert,

they’re going to get a turnover of 14 days, or sometimes even better,” he said. “But if they’re moving into the States, the car cycle will probably be north of 25 days, maybe even exceeding 30 days.” Producer cars are an even lower priority, he said, again because of the inability to turn them around quickly. “There’s going to be a challenge with producer cars this year. We

came out of last year with quite a bit of unfilled orders,” he said. “(Both railways) have a lot of cars, but there isn’t an endless supply. If they’re going to be allocating resources and assets to anything, they’re going to do it to the ones that will allow them to best meet the thresholds that have been set.” jennifer.blair@fbcpublishing.com

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OCTOBER 13, 2014 • ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA

High-quality wheat premiums have returned There is good news for quality wheat growers, but not so good news for most other commodities BY MEGHAN MAST STAFF

Quality wheat is scarce this year and both top grade and high protein are commanding significant premiums.

BRIEFS Province offering a ‘how to be a farmer’ seminar Want to be a farmer? “If you’re thinking of getting into farming but aren’t sure where to start, this session is ideal for you,” said Abby Verstraete, a farm business analyst with Alberta Agriculture and Rural Development. Getting into Farming – Information Session for the Aspiring Farmer will be held in Airdrie on Oct. 30. It will provide an overview of Alberta’s agricultural industry, business planning, self-assessment, accessing capital, finding land, and resources for beginning farmers. “There will also be presentations from established farmers on how they got their businesses started,” said Verstraete. “These producers will discuss financing, challenges they had, and key learnings that formulated from the establishment of their businesses.” Registration is $25 and includes lunch. To register, call the Ag-Info Centre at 1-800-387-6030. — AARD release

AWC looking for directors and reps The Alberta Wheat Commission is seeking nominations for two directors and three regional reps for Regions 2 and 4. “We are looking for individuals who are committed to advancing the interests of Alberta wheat producers and dedicated to further developing AWC’s strategic direction,” said AWC chair Kent Erickson. “It’s an opportunity to affect change.” Nominations must be in writing and filed by Oct. 31. For more info and regional meeting dates, go www.alber tawheat.com. — AWC release

PHOTO: CANSTOCK

rairie farmers who harvested high-quality wheat this year will be among the lucky few able to cash in on a world market sagging under record production, lower quality and a drop in demand from key importers. “The world has not produced a particularly good crop in terms of quality, so there are some quality premiums in the market,” CWB analyst Bruce Burnett said in a recent webinar. “High-quality, high-protein wheat is looking at prices that are significantly higher than what the futures values are,” he said. For example, No. 1 red spring wheat with 15 per cent protein is fetching around $11 per bushel on the cash market in Minneapolis, whereas the Minneapolis contract is drifting below $6 per bushel. Burnett estimated more than half

of Canada’s CWRS crop — much of it in Alberta — was harvested before the latest bout of wet weather hit and will grade No. 1 or 2. Protein levels are generally higher than they were last year, he said. Canada’s crop is smaller than last year’s record levels, according to Statistics Canada’s Oct. 3 report, which pegged all-wheat production at 27.48 million tonnes and canola production at 14.08 million tonnes. But that’s still the third-largest wheat harvest in 18 years and thirdbiggest canola crop ever. Both are feeding into a world market that is already well supplied. “We do have a supply-side glut coming here,” Burnett said. “We are now at the point where global stocks are built back up and are expected at the end of the year to be at record levels.” Although demand is relatively strong, two key importers — China

CONTINUES ON NEXT PAGE »

ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA • OCTOBER 13, 2014

and Brazil — are expected to cut back their purchases of wheat and corn this year. “Without demand for corn from China, we are not going to make a dent in these stocks. “We think the December corn will probably dip below $3 maybe for a session or two, but in likelihood we’re going to remain in this $3.20 environment for most of the U.S. harvest season,” he said.

TRENDS

CORN AND SOYBEANS

Pretty normal

Farmers will no doubt find that disappointing, but Burnett noted it’s actually pretty normal. “I’ve been in this business for more than 20 years, and those are levels I am more familiar with,” he said. “The low $3 on the corn side historically is a pretty good price.” On top of record production, the world economy has been slow to recover from the financial crisis. The strengthening U.S. dollar has the effect of lowering commodity prices — because most commodities are traded in U.S. currency. And while China’s economic growth at between seven to eight per cent seems strong in the North American context, “for them, it’s a real slowdown,” he said.

Global corn production is beginning to exceed consumption.

We need to be down in the 2.2-2.4 range in order to curb soybean acres.

SOURCE: CWB

The global corn carry-over is estimated at just under 190 million tonnes, which is 51 million tonnes higher than two years ago. “Unless we start to see supplies contract, (prices are) not really going to go upwards too much.” The same goes for most grades

of wheat. However, Canadian wheats are priced competitively. “Price-wise Canada is very competitive. We’re pricing ourselves under the U.S. market in terms of the higher-quality wheat, so we should see a fair amount of demand.” Burnett is predicting a major

acreage rotation away from corn in 2015 into soybeans, which will put downward pressure on the oilseed complex. Global soybean production is already increasing. Brazilian and Argentinian producers have begun planting soybeans after giving up on corn. The USDA

recorded a Brazilian soybean production at a record 94 million tonnes in September. That’s up eight per cent from last year. “Prices right now aren’t doing the job to restrict that movement,” he said. meghan.mast@fbcpublishing.com

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Wet weather has not only slowed down harvesting and reduced quality, but increased the potential for storage problems, says provincial crop specialist Harry Brook. “There might be a temptation to harvest damp or wet grain just to get it in the bin,” said Brook. “But the issue of wet grain has to be dealt with fairly quickly. Once it is in the bin is no time to forget about it.” Producers should know the maximum moisture content for each crop when they are considered to be “dry” and safe to store, and how long damp grain can be stored in a bin, he said. “Be warned that deterioration can start to occur before the time expires,” he said. “It still has to be either dried or aerated. Aeration requires warmer temperatures and low humidity, which is what we are currently lacking.” Even dry, hot grain can suffer from moisture issues as cold air will cool the grain against the bin sides and moisture will move down the outside of the bin, and then come up the middle. “If there is any place for the moisture to accumulate, it will be in the middle of the bin, just below the top,” said Brook. “Green seed or immature seed in the bin may also contain more moisture and add to the problem. This is why it is imperative when harvesting hot grain to cool it quickly. Aeration under hot harvest temperatures is important to get the grain or oilseed temperature down to a safe storage level.” — AARD release

NEWS » Markets

OCTOBER 13, 2014 • ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA

Russia steps aside

Biggest wheat crop ever

Strong domestic demand for Russian wheat has priced one of the world’s leading suppliers out of export markets far earlier in the season than usual, ceding market share to European competitors, traders said. Active exports in July, August and early September have left Russian wheat now too expensive to compete with main rival origins despite a near-record crop and a recent price decline. Farmers have already sold 10 million tonnes of wheat during the first three months of the season — half of this year’s exportable surplus, a Moscow-based trader said. — Reuters

The International Grains Council raised its forecast for the 2014-15 global wheat crop by four million tonnes to a now-record 717 million tonnes, largely reflecting an improved outlook in the European Union and Ukraine. The IGC said global wheat stocks at the end of the 2014-15 season were expected to climb to a five-year peak while total grain stocks were projected to rise to the highest level since the end of the 1999-2000 season. It projected world corn production at 974 million tonnes, up one million from last month’s forecast but still below the prior season’s record 983-million-tonne harvest. — Reuters

Bullish StatsCan outlook, strong demand lift canola Wheat moved higher against the global supply outlook By Terryn Shiells

anola futures on the ICE Futures Canada trading platform saw their first weekly gain in a while during the week ended Oct. 3, as the Canadian dollar dropped sharply. The Canadian currency closed at US88.82 cents on Oct. 3, which helped to underpin crush margins and made canola more attractive to foreign buyers. Unfavourable weather for harvest in Western Canada and ongoing quality concerns were also lifting values. Some of the support was linked to a bullish Statistics Canada report as well. On Oct. 3, Statistics Canada pegged 2014-15 canola production at 14.1 million tonnes, slightly above its August guess of 13.9 million tonnes, but at the low end of trade expectations. StatsCan also upped its 2013-14 canola production number slightly, which went against thoughts that the crop size was overstated. That doesn’t mean the 2014-15 canola crop will be 14.1 million tonnes this year, because at the time of the survey, barely any harvest activity had occurred. It’s still not clear how big the crop will be, as yield reports are a mixed bag across Western Canada, but general thoughts are for 14.5 million tonnes. Still, if demand continues to be as robust as it is, carry-out could fall below one million tonnes for 2014-15, which would be considered tight. Going forward, canola will likely continue following Chicago soybean futures, but its own tight fundamental situation could provide support at certain points, especially in the cash market. Soybean futures in Chicago held steady during the week, as the market was consolidating after dropping sharply the week prior. Continued downward pressure came as yield reports from the advancing har-

vest continue to come in better than expected. Values could drop further as the harvest progresses, barring any significant weather issues that could halt activities or do some kind of damage. The same story is echoed in the corn market, which also held steady compared to a week ago. Traders will continue to watch harvest progress in the U.S., though the focus will start to shift to South America as its planting season will soon be underway. There are some worries about possible production problems in the region already, as dry conditions in Brazil may make it hard for crops to get off to a good start. But there is still time for rain, and it’s too early to get too worried about that now. Dryness was starting to become a concern for U.S. winter wheat crops seeded recently, though beneficial rain arrived later in the week to help improve conditions. Better weather didn’t stop Kansas City, Minneapolis and Chicago values from moving higher during the week. Short-covering following recent losses and signs that export demand for U.S. wheat is improving were bullish. Further support came from news of slowing exports out of Russia, due to political problems, as well as smallerthan-anticipated wheat production figures in Canada. StatsCan pegged all wheat production at 27.48 million tonnes, down from its previous estimate and below expectations. It’s also over 10 million tonnes below what was grown last year. But wheat supplies remain very large in the world at the moment, preventing further advances during the week, and should continue to overhang wheat futures going forward. Terryn Shiells writes for Commodity News Service Canada, a Winnipeg company specializing in grain and commodity market reporting.

For three-times-daily market reports from Resource News International, visit “ICE Futures Canada updates” at www.albertafarmexpress.ca.

ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA • OCTOBER 13, 2014

Farmers’ fertilizer plans ‘the $64-million question’ Grain prices are down, but nutrient levels are also depleted By Phil Franz-Warkentin CNS Canada

oor grain prices and a late harvest may limit demand for fertilizer across North America this spring, according to an industry analyst. However, whether farmers will actually purchase less fertilizer remains to be seen, as record-large U.S. crops have also depleted nutrient levels, increasing the need for applications. “That’s the $64-million question,” said David Asbridge, president and senior economist with NPK Fertilizer Advisory Service in Missouri. He pointed to 2009, “when f e r t i l i z e r p r i c e s w e r e s t u bbornly holding up and grain prices were dropping, we had a 30 per cent drop in usage that year for both phosphate and potash.” Farmers, he said, were not showing much interest in purchasing fertilizer right now, which was backing into the system. However, rather than seeing a similar drop in applications as in 2009, he expected fertilizer demand would be pushed back instead. Record-large U.S. crops are taking nutrients out of the soil, which will need to be replaced, “but at this point it’s debatable whether they will do it now, or whether they’ll wait to the spring, or until next fall,” said Asbridge. Producers will be more prone to wait, he noted, if their soil test levels are good. Another factor in delaying applications is declining grain prices, which Asbridge said would limit off-the-combine deliveries and create cash flow issues for purchasing fertilizer. The harvest is also running behind normal in many areas, reducing the window of opportunity for applying fertilizer later in the fall. In addition, many farmers may not know what they’ll be planting next spring. Asbridge estimated 80 per cent of U.S. growers would keep with their corn/soybean rotations. For the remaining swing acres, current crop budget projections favour soybeans, which need fewer inputs compared to corn. “There are a lot of caveats out there this year,” he said. Current fertilizer prices are either flat or trending lower, but whether farmers see that as a good deal remains to be seen, said Asbridge. Waiting until the spring does come with its own set of problems, he pointed out, as wet weather in recent years has limited the window of opportunity at that time as well.

The lowdown on drones If you don’t carefully consider the costs and benefits, a drone can easily become just an ‘expensive toy’ Alberta Agriculture and Rural Development release

rones have been used by the military and by hobbyists for years, but now unmanned aerial vehicles designed to do a range of everyday jobs are finding a place in agriculture. “Drones can be used for such applications as crop scouting, livestock surveillance in remote areas, detection of algae blooms — you name it,” said Nevin Rosaasen, a research economist with Alberta Agriculture and Rural Development. “There’s even talk of it being integrated into precision agriculture and, in the future, for fertilizer delivery and spraying.” Producers looking at using drones have a lot to consider.

“When it comes down to it, you are ultimately going to get what you paid for,” said Rosaasen. “An entry-level drone with one or two cameras might cost around $350 to $400, while one with higher-levelresolution cameras, with filters such as UV for crop health information, range from $3,500 to $4,000. Top-end drones are in the $40,000 to $50,000 range.” There are other costs beyond the purchase price. “These include the time it takes to learn to operate the drone, which may be better spent in other areas of the operation. It’s best to use a partial budget when considering any new technology. You need to consider the costs of the investment, repairs, extra labour, management time and time spent interpreting the data.”

The biggest consideration is how the information from a drone will be used. “For instance, certain producers have said a bird’s eye view is worth $1,000 a minute,” he said. “It’s a big advantage to be able to get an overall survey of your field rather than just walking blindly into it hoping to find problems. Some of the aerial views and cameras can really help producers save time and deploy their resources effectively. It really comes down to the cost versus the benefit. “It’s important to set realistic goals for capturing the potential benefits of the images, maps or information gained using drone technology and that additional information being applied to make a more informed production decision. When the benefits outweigh the costs, you have now turned an expensive toy into a valuable business decision-making tool.”

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OCTOBER 13, 2014 • ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA

Grier featured Cow-Calfenomics speaker

New nutrition initiative

Kevin Grier, senior market analyst with the George Morris Center will be the keynote speaker for this year’s edition of Cow-Calfenomics. “Kevin writes the Canadian Cattle Buyer and Canadian Boxed Beef Reports and will provide a wealth of information that can be used in formulating future planning prices,” said Bruce Viney, a business development and risk specialist with Alberta Agriculture and Rural Development. Seminars will be held in Medicine Hat (Nov. 25), Lethbridge (Nov. 26), Olds (Nov. 27), Grande Prairie (Jan. 20), Barrhead (Jan. 21), and Vermilion (Jan. 22). — AARD release

Alberta Milk and the Alberta Livestock and Meat Agency are partnering on a nutrition education program for Grades 7 to 9 students. Based on a Dairy Farmers of Canada program from Ontario, the Power 2 Be Me (P 2B Me), “encourages importance of the foods found on Canada’s Food Guide, which includes dairy, grains, vegetables and fruit, and meat products,” said Katherine Loughlin, Alberta Milk’s market development manager. “We hope that once they have the right information, students will carry this knowledge as they transition into adults.” — AARD release

Pork producers urged to remain vigilant over the fall and winter Three new cases of porcine epidemic diarrhea in Manitoba has Alberta producers being warned not to drop their guard By Alexis Kienlen af staff

lberta pork producers are being warned to remain vigilant about a deadly pig virus, but may face another threat — falling prices if the U.S. herd rebounds from the PEDv crisis. The province’s pork sector has been successful in keeping porcine epidemic diarrhea out of Alberta, but three new cases in Manitoba in the past month means the threat remains high. “There is no question that PEDv continues to move throughout the pig world in a very significant way,” swine veterinarian Dr. Egan Brockhoff said during Alberta Pork’s latest telephone town hall. “As winter comes along, and with the presence of more PED virus in the environment, we have to continue to be very diligent, especially with our transportation and biosecurity and the movement of pigs. I encourage you all to speak to your veterinarians so you can go into the fall with a great wall built around your farm.” Keeping PEDv at bay has also been an economic boon for Canadian producers with healthy herds. The disease’s rampant march across the U.S. — there have been 8,500 cases in 31 states, with 50 new positive samples weekly — has sent pork prices soaring. But that may be coming to an end. “Almost everyone expects lower prices compared to the crazy prices we saw last year in terms of record highs,” said

FBC 2.0000X5.0000 000054176r1 4CX

Ron Gietz, pork specialist with Alberta Agriculture. Prices are already 10 to 15 per cent off their peak, and many expect them to fall further. The latest Hogs and Pigs quarterly market report showed that the damage was not as bad as anticipated, and also indicated American herds will grow in 2015 as the breeding herd is up almost two per cent, said Gietz.

“It’s not a situation where it is going to collapse. But a 10 to 15 (per cent) pullback from those record highs last year, that certainly seems like something like that is in the cards.” Ron Gietz

“This is the bigger picture, but that all remains to be seen, because we’re just entering the season when we see an uptake in the virus,” he said. “That’s evidenced by what we’ve seen in the last couple of weeks in Manitoba. We’ll start to see more farms get it.” That threat was emphasized during the telephone town hall. Producers were warned that initial symptoms in adult pigs are

very subtle, and many producers fail to see the disease until the infection become virulent. “A lot of producers have issues telling that little bit of loose stool they’re seeing is actually the disease starting up in a mature sow,” said Brockhoff. At the time of the latest conference call, Alberta Pork had been monitoring PEDv for 37 weeks, collecting nearly 4,500 samples collected at truck washes, farms and assembly yards across Alberta. It has yet to find a positive sample. But producers were warned that manure is also a concern, particularly at this time of year. Research conducted at the University of Minnesota last year looked at the ability of the PED virus to persist in manure and found it survived longer in colder conditions. Samples of slurry containing PEDv were stored at 25 C, 4 C and -20 C, and at different levels of humidity. The virus lived for 14 days at room temperature but survived 28 days — the duration of the study — at the colder temperatures. To date, there have been no cases of PEDv spread by manure application, but John Carney, executive director of the Manitoba Manure Management Initiative, warned producers to take extra precautions this fall. “Manure applicators are responding to this challenge and have changed their operations,” he said. “Given the virulence of the PED virus, biosecurity has gone to a whole other level.” That’s been happening south of the border, too, leading some to predict the U.S. out-

Alberta pork producers need to continue to be vigilant in the fall and winter, says swine veterinarian Egan Brockhoff. Photo: Supplied break has peaked. Gietz said he expects to see an upturn in herd numbers. “As a result, they’ll be more pork production next year, as compared to the fairly low numbers this year,” he said. “The price is very sensitive to the supply, so if we see an increase, it could be negative. But there is always a lot of other things going on.” Still, Gietz expects demand for Canadian pigs to be strong and that 2015 will be a good year for pork producers. “It’s not a situation where it is going to collapse. But a 10 to 15 (per cent) pullback from those record highs last year — that cer-

Needs Your

CalviNg tips & tales

Friends and neighbours, we are once again looking for your best calving tips and tales for Cattlemen’s January 2015 Calving Special. We’re looking for good ideas, practical advice, or humorous tales and photos to share with fellow readers. A reward will be sent for Tips & Tales printed in this special.

tainly seems like something like that is in the cards.” But the situation remains in flux, and infection rates may soon rise again. The virus doesn’t survive as long during dry, warm weather and that’s led to lower incident rates. In the U.S., the percentage of positive samples fell to an average of 9.5 between June and September versus 24.2 per cent from last November and May. Of the 63 cases in Ontario, 58 occurred from late January to the end of April. Only five cases were reported during the summer. — akienlen@fbcpublishing.com With files from Meghan Mast

Send your calving tips to Calving Tips & Tales (and your address) to Canadian Cattlemen 1666 Dublin Ave., Winnipeg, MB R3H 0H1 Email: gren@fbcpublishing.com Fax: 1-866-399-5710

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ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA • OCTOBER 13, 2014

Energy-dense forage for the future Energy-dense forage could present a viable alternative to feedlots in some instances By Shannon VanRaes staff

t’s time for producers to take an annual look at a perennial issue. “What we need to do is get away from our conventional thinking,” Clayton Robins said during a seminar. Annual forage mixes can play a key role in both beef, dairy and sheep production, said the beef producer and former Agriculture Canada research assistant. But producers first need to accept that forage need not be perennial.

“We still need feedlots, we’ve got wintertime and feedlots are an important part of our system, but I do think we need to look at alternatives for them because at some point energy is going to become very expensive and some of the models we have right now are going to present a lot of challenges.” Clayton Robins

plant sugars to average daily gain. Since then he knew that forages needed a different approach. And while the Prairies may not have the mild winters that would allow some perennials to function as such, they do have a great intensity of sunlight, said Robins. “Ryegrass only needs about 10 hours to max out sugar content. We have that,” he said. “So I think we have to reconsider these really high-quality forages that we’ve passed over before.” And it’s not just the livestock that benefits from the introduction of annual forages. Perennial forages like alfalfa need a break from grazing to recover so that they can survive the winter, said Robins. “So it will get two grazing passes, then it will all get rested and we will maybe or maybe not go back and get it after it’s

shannon.vanraes@fbcpublishing.com

Clayton Robins believes energy-dense forages can play a bigger role in livestock production. Photo: Shannon VanRaes

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“Let’s grow them for a year, assume they are going to die, and figure out how to make them work because we can plug them into our system in a very key way,” said Robins, who visited 11 countries and met with nearly 200 experts, while researching energy-dense forages as a 2013 Nuffield Scholar. Many of the highest-energy forages, such as Italian ryegrass, chicory, Festuloliums or narrow-leaf plantain are not perennial — at least not in the harsh Prairie climate, he noted. However, integrating them strategically into a field grazing system can boost animal performance while also improving soil health. Chicory’s taproot has been proven to assist in breaking up compacted soil, and the diuretic effects of plantain can increase an animal’s water intake, resulting in fewer urine spots in your pasture as ammonia is diluted, said Robins. The increased energy supplied to the rumen may also decrease greenhouse gas emissions in cattle, he added. What led Robins down this path of exploration was an epiphany that sugars play a huge role in how effectively and efficiently livestock process any given forage. The higher the sugar content, the better the livestock’s performance. “But in North America we don’t really look at sugars,” he said, adding the focus in Canada tends to centre on fibre and digestibility. Robins was in Argentina several years ago when he was shown information linking

long dormant,” Robins said. “So we will get grazing out of that, we just won’t get it during the critical period when perennials need to be getting rested. And in theory, this will help maintain our legume component, which is incredibly important in terms of energetic efficiency and longevity, input costs, yield, animal performance, all those things.” He added that a grazing system including high-density forages could be used as an alternative to feedlots. “We still need feedlots, we’ve got wintertime and feedlots are an important part of our system, but I do think we need to look at alternatives for them because at some point energy is going to become very expensive and some of the models we have right now are going to present a lot of challenges,” he said.

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OCTOBER 13, 2014 • ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA

The simple rule for building the herd — keep the good ones High beef prices all the more reason to stick to the plan and get rid of poor performers By Kris Ringwall

urrent discussions focus on increasing cow numbers, but it may be ill advised to change cow culling schemes. When a cow is determined to be market beef, sell her. Maintaining old cows that are subject to more structural problems, already are having difficulty keeping up with the herd and more than likely are going to wean a lighter calf are headaches cattle producers do not need. In addition, relaxing expectations that a cow should conceive and raise a live calf every year eventually will lead to reproductive inefficiencies in the cow herd. Fortunately, cattle producers have been diligent in maintaining

rigid culling principles. In fact, it is remarkable just how consistent those culling numbers have been. If one looks at the long-term historical benchmark values since 1995 for the annual culling rate percentage of cows exposed to the bull, the culling rate was 13.9 per cent. The percentage comes from North Dakota Beef Cattle Improvement Association beef producers involved in the North Dakota State University Extension Service CHAPS program. The more recent 2013 benchmark value for culling rate was 13.5 per cent. These numbers are rolling five-year averages, so highs and lows are buffered and a more understandable trend is generated. In reviewing the older data

back to 1995, the lowest culling percentage benchmark was 13.2 per cent in 1996 and the highest was 14.8 per cent in 2010. Is the current market demand for beef strong enough to let more cows go or should a producer hold on to more cows to increase the herd? If past history means much in answering the question, one only is talking the difference of two cows per 100 head. The culling rate has been very constant when one views previous years because producers seem to have culled 13 to 15 per cent of the herd annually for quite some time. What if the culling rate could be changed and the long-term average was dropped to an arbitrary 10 per cent? That would mean four cows that normally would

be culled would not be. Because changing the culling rate does not change the stocking rate, the four extra cows do not change total herd productivity based on available grazing units. All that really happened was four potentially headache-type cows were retained. These cows would have an above-average risk of losing their calves or having additional structural problems. In addition, lower milk production resulting in a lighter calf weight weaned would be the norm. Also, when the producer finally markets the cow, her market value would more than likely be lower. That being said, the goal still should be to maintain current culling standards, but decreasing the culling rate by increasing the

number of years a cow will stay in production. Can that be done? Some cows are being selected because of breed longevity. When one looks around, there is a noticeable variation in the longevity of living things. However, the real question is: Can a producer increase the number of years a cow will be productive, but not the number of years a cow will live? Those are two different traits. Regardless, keep a rigid cull criteria and then turn your attention to the replacement heifer selection. Keep the good ones. Kris Ringwall is a North Dakota State University Extension Service livestock specialist and the Dickinson Research Extension Center director.

Bird flu virus resurfaces in Russia

MAKING THE MOST OF

their return.

The H5N1 strain can also infect humans Russia has reported the first cases of a highly pathogenic bird flu virus in nearly two years in villages in southern Russia, the World Organization for Animal Health has reported. Domestic chickens, geese and ducks were found infected with the H5N1 serotype of the disease on Sept. 1 in two villages in the Altai Krai region near the border with Kazakhstan. The last occurrence of the H5N1 strain in Russia was in December 2012. The H5N1 virus first infected humans in 1997 during a poultry outbreak in Hong Kong. Since its widespread re-emergence in 2003 and 2004, it spread from Asia to Europe and Africa and has become entrenched in poultry in some countries, resulting in millions of poultry infections, several hundred human cases, and many human deaths. The latest outbreaks in Russia, which led to the death or culling of 344 birds, were thought to have come from wild birds. “Probably, hunted ducks and geese trophies had been placed in backyards where mortality occurred later in domestic birds,” the Farm Ministry said in its report. — Reuters

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ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA • OCTOBER 13, 2014

‘Hardware disease’ is a common problem in cow herds BEFF 911  Good pasture sanitation is important, and rumen magnets

are a good investment BY ROY LEWIS, DVM

ets call it traumatic reticuloperitonitis, but it’s better known as “hardware disease,” a term referring to a medical condition caused when an object penetrates through the reticulum, or second stomach causing infection in the abdomen. If a sharp object goes through the diaphragm, the cow can die of heart failure. Hardware disease drains production of a cow herd since penetration can also cause infection and abscesses with adhesions (scarring). This can lead to the cow losing weight and having intestinal problems. Diarrhea may result, or it appears to “walk on eggs” (humped back and stiff gait). With advanced hardware disease there may be infection around the heart, and brisket edema resulting from the heart failure. When they reach this stage treatment is seldom successful. Occasionally the infection will damage or overstimulate the vagus nerve (this nerve is responsible for rumen contractions). If overstimulated the cow or bull may appear bloated. Grunting from the pain is another common finding. Veterinarians often diagnose hardware by listening for a grunt with the stethoscope at the same time as doing a withers pinch.

Prevention is key

The key to this disease is prevention. A heavy exceptionally strong rumen magnet can sit in the reticulum. The magnets are a low-cost investment ($3-$5) and stay in the reticulum for the life of the cow or bull. As ruminal contractions push the feed past this area (all feed must pass this area), ferric-containing metal objects attach to the magnet. The digestive juices gradually degrade the

metal pieces, so there is a continual transition of metal being attracted and degraded so the magnets never lose their effectiveness. Modern farms use a lot of large equipment such as silage choppers and feed wagons that can be the source of metal. For instance, a silage cutter can pick up a chunk of wire in a swath and turn it into many sharp, bite-size pieces. Cattle are indiscriminate eaters. They do not sift through their feed the way some other species such as horses do. This is why we find things such as metal and twine balls in their stomachs. It is a good idea that many equipment manufacturers already put large strong magnets on equipment such as feed wagons, silage choppers and blowers. It is amazing how much metal accumulates in these areas after only a few days of use. These magnets should be cleaned weekly to allow new pieces to be attracted. Unfortunately, these magnets do not protect cows on pasture or eating baled hay. Magnets or metal detectors are also used in commercial feed mills. If you have ever had cows doing poorly, hardware disease is a possibility. A magnet can easily be administered. Insert the magnet into the animal’s mouth with a plastic or aluminum balling gun and wait to be sure it is swallowed.

Routine with dairy cows

In our practice, almost all dairy cows have magnets inserted when they enter the breeding herd. Purebred breeders put a lot of value on their stock and should consider magnets. It may be wise for purebred breeders and commercial producers to put them in valuable breeding bulls or if hardware has been a problem give all breeding-age heifers a magnet They stay in for the life of the animal so are a small investment for a long-term gain.

Magnets can often be purchased in bulk for a reduced price. Several brands are on the market and generally speaking the better the quality (strength), the higher the price (most are less than $4). Test them before use — coins, nails etc. should be very hard to pull off. If they aren’t, the magnet isn’t strong enough. Two magnets are no improvement because they will attach to one another, perhaps increasing the surface area to attach to but that is all. If an animal requires a postmortem, the vet can retrieve the magnet for use in another animal. It also provides useful evidence of the metal sources to your operation. I have seen these magnets attract such things as fencing staples, chain links, grease nipples, wire nails, screws… the list goes on and on. Unfortunately the magnets will not attract aluminum and some other metals used in today’s modern farming practices.

Keep pastures clean

We must try and minimize exposure of cattle to metal objects by keeping pastures clean. Picking up wire fragments when fencing and keeping equipment in good repair all minimize the exposure our cattle have to picking up metal objects. Old deteriorating fences are a very common source of metal. For every case of clinical hardware disease there are probably many subclinical cases where decreased production is the only real sign. In situations where you

PHOTO: THINKSTOCK

have one or more cases of clinical hardware yearly or if pasturing very metal-littered pastures, consider magnetizing every animal. This may be an investment well worth it. For sure valuable bulls and breeding stock should be routinely given magnets as yearlings when they enter the breeding herd. Place heavy magnets on feeding equipment and be sure

and have your vet retrieve a magnet if doing a post-mortem. It can reveal much about how and what types of sharp metal objects your cattle are exposed to. Roy Lewis is a large-animal veterinarian practising at the Westlock, Alberta Veterinary Centre. His main interests are bovine reproduction and herd health.

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} forecasts

OCTOBER 13, 2014 • ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA

Drought hits Aussie herd

Biodiversity plan a bust

Drought conditions across Australia’s east coast are unlikely to improve before 2015, fuelling expectations of increased exports as farmers are forced to slaughter more animals. Queensland — home to about half the national herd — has been plagued by drought conditions throughout 2014, receiving less than half of its typical rainfall level. Unable to find enough food and water to keep animals alive, the Australian cattle herd is set to fall to a five-year low of 27.1 million at the end of the 2014-15 season, reflecting two consecutive years of soaring slaughter rates. — Reuters

Governments aren’t meeting goals to protect animals and plants set out in a biodiversity plan for 2020 that also aims to increase food supplies and slow climate change, says a UN report. The risk of extinction for rare species is increasing, forests are being cleared by farmers at an alarming rate, and pollution and overfishing are continuing despite a 2010 agreement to reverse harmful trends for nature, it said. Only five of 53 goals set for preserving nature were on target, including setting aside 17 per cent of the world’s land area for protected areas for wildlife. — Reuters

Antarctic sea ice hits a record — despite warming temperatures While Arctic ice levels continue to plunge, Antarctic sea ice has just set an all-time record by daniel bezte

t appears the amount of sea ice in both the Arctic and Antarctic have reached their seasonal lows and highs, respectively. In the Arctic, the ice coverage bottomed out on Sept. 17 at approximately 5.02 million square kilometres — the sixth-lowest amount since reliable satellite records began in 1979. Around the Antarctic, it appears that the sea ice maximum for 2014 was hit on Sept. 19, with a record-breaking amount of just over 20 million square kilometres. As I mentioned in a September article, this seemingly strange paradox of low sea ice in the Arctic and record-high sea ice in the Antarctic tends to confuse people, which allows incorrect information about what is going on to easily spread. To understand what is going on, we first need to look at and compare these two regions. At first glance, it seems that both poles should have similar weather conditions. After all, they receive the same amount of daylight, just occurring at opposite times of the year. However, this is about all the two regions have in common. The Arctic is an ocean surrounded by land, whereas the Antarctic is a land mass that is surrounded by ocean. This is a very significant difference. In the Arctic, the amount of ice growth in the winter is largely controlled by the boundaries the land places on the ice, thus allowing only so much ice to form. In the summer this land also keeps a lot of ice from leaving the Arctic as there are only a few places were currents and/ or winds tend to be favourable for allowing the movement of ice out of the Arctic. This means ice can get trapped in the Arctic for several years, allowing thick multi-year ice to form. In the Antarctic, the area around the pole is covered by land, which allows huge thick sheets of ice to form since this ice is essentially locked in place on the land. The water that

This map shows total precipitation across the Prairies from early June to early October as a percentage of the normal. Looking at the map you can see that a large part of the southern and central Prairies saw average (green) to above-average (blue) amounts of precipitation. There were a few dry regions, with northwestern Alberta being the driest — some areas recorded only about 20 per cent of their average rainfall.

surrounds Antarctica is wide open, and during the Southern Hemisphere winter ice growth is not confined by any land masses. The ice can spread out, covering much greater areas than it can in the Arctic. In the summer, since there are no land masses to trap the ice, a very large amount of the winter ice melts or is pulled away to melt later by the surrounding oceans. To put this into perspective, in the Arctic, the maximum ice cover tends to be around 15 million square kilometres, with a summer minimum of about five million to six million square kilometres. This gives us an annual difference of around 10 million square kilometres. In the Antarctic, the winter maximum is around 18 million to 19 million square kilometres, while the summer minimum is about three million — an annual difference of about 16 million

square kilometres. This huge seasonal change in ice around the Antarctic is noted to be one of the biggest natural changes observed on Earth. Another difference that arises from the variations in geography between these two regions is that the location of the ice is much more variable in the Antarctic. While most areas in the Arctic have seen declining ice coverage in the summer year after year, in the Antarctic, some areas have seen large increases, while other areas have seen declines. Also, the areas that are seeing increases and declines are not always consistent. So the question is: Just what is going on in the Antarctic? According to global warming theory, both the Arctic and Antarctic should be seeing melting ice as global temperatures increase. Does the increase in winter sea ice around Antarctica

mean that temperatures are not warming in this region? Analysis of satellite-based temperature observations of this region between 1981 and 2007 has found temperatures have been warming at between 0.5 C and 1.0 C per decade. It also found ocean waters around Antarctica have been warming by as much as 0.17 C per decade, which is faster than the 0.1 C per decade global average. Warmer air temperatures and a warmer ocean — but yet we are seeing more ice. It doesn’t make much sense does it? Since at first glance, it doesn’t make much sense, a number of people out there simply point to this data and say it must be incorrect, and since this data is incorrect then all the data in regards to global warming is incorrect — therefore global warming is just a bunch of bologna. Case closed. Let’s simply

forget about what is happening in the Arctic and simply say it is natural variation. Let’s ignore that in the Arctic, summer sea ice coverage has been declining at a rate of about 1.8 million square kilometres per decade, while in the Antarctic, the winter maximum has been increasing by only about 285,000 square kilometres per decade. It seems like I am running out of room. We’ll continue our look into this paradox in the next issue as we examine melting continental ice, the ozone hole, and how these and other factors are affecting sea ice coverage around Antarctica. Daniel Bezte is a teacher by profession with a BA (Hon.) in geography, specializing in climatology, from the U of W. He operates a computerized weather station near Birds Hill Park. Contact him with your questions and comments at daniel@bezte.ca.

Fall weed control window

Neonics ban results in bug damage to crops

Alberta beekeepers oppose Ontario neonic lawsuit Beekeepers here are speaking out against lawsuit, saying it’s better to work with chemical companies

Rapeseed crops show damage four weeks after planting

af staff

lberta beekeepers are taking a stand and speaking out against a lawsuit filed by their Ontario counterparts against the makers of the controversial neonic pesticide. “We’re not being impacted by neonics. If we are, it’s very subtly,” said Grant Hicks, president of the Alberta Beekeepers Commission. “We’re not seeing any damage to our hives.” While beekeepers recognize some farm chemicals can have a negative impact on honeybees, they say going to the courts isn’t the way to resolve concerns about neonicotinoids. “The Ontario Beekeepers Association has taken a very active political stance on it, whereas Alberta and some other provinces have the feeling that it is better to work together to come to a resolution,” said Kevin Nixon, an Innisfail beekeeper and vice-chair of the Canadian Honey Council. “For the past couple of years, it almost seemed like the Ontario beekeepers were speaking on behalf of the Canadian industry. It feels like in Ontario, they were almost pitting farmer against farmer and beekeepers against growers. We have a good relationship with our growers here in Alberta and we don’t want to take a negative position on it.” In Ontario, two large honey producers have filed a $450-million lawsuit against Bayer CropScience and Syngenta, claiming use of neonics caused bee deaths and reproduction problems leading to reduced honey production and quality. While the Ontario Beekeepers’ Association is not part of

A lawsuit isn’t the best way to deal with issues such as the neonic controversy, says Kevin Nixon, an Innisfail beekeeper and vice-chair of the Canadian Honey Council. Photo: Constantine Tanasiuk the lawsuit, it issued a statement saying, “we support any effort that could help beekeepers.” The chemical — widely used to treat corn, soybeans and canola seed — has been linked to large-scale bee kills in Ontario. The main issue is contaminated dust from neonic seed coating on corn planted using vacuum seeders. But canola growers use air seeders and that’s likely why Alberta, home to more than 45 per cent of the country’s hives, isn’t seeing the same issue, experts say. “We’re using the same products on a lot more acres and we’re not seeing the same problems that they’re seeing in Ontario,” said Greg Sekulic, an agronomist with the Canola Council of Canada. “I think some of their attention is misfocused.” Since the controversy erupted — following bee kills in Ontario in 2012 — chemical companies and equipment manufacturers have dealt with the dust issue, said Nixon. Moreover, less than one per cent of all the hives in Canada were affected by neonics, he said.

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“In the big picture, when you look at the claims, it’s not as significant as it is made out to be,” said Nixon. “A loss is a loss. But on the flip side, if neonics are lost, what is the alternative that growers have to use?” Hicks said he is reluctant to take on the chemical companies because he uses chemicals to control varroa mites. “We knock those mites down with chemicals,” he said. “We have to work with the same companies that the Ontario beekeepers are suing, to keep our hives alive. To be perfectly clear, there are no good insecticides in a beekeeper’s world, except for the ones we want to use.” And bee losses in Ontario shouldn’t be blamed solely on neonics — varroa mites, weather, and poor nutrition all contribute to bee kills, said Hicks. “When products are used according to the label, we can coexist nicely,” he added. akienlen@fbcpublishing.com

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Rapeseed crops in Germany are suffering unusually high levels of insect damage this autumn following the European Union’s ban on neonics, says the German farming association DBV. Some farmers may suffer lower yields in the upcoming 2015 rapeseed harvest, it said. The EU has decided to restrict neonicotinoids which have been linked to a drop in bee populations and which were widely used as rapeseed seed treatments. Rapeseed planted this autumn is the first to be grown in recent years without neonicotinoids. “The damage that was feared to rapeseed crops planted only four weeks ago has occurred in the first year of the ban on the proven crop protection chemical,” said Wolfgang Vogel, chairman of the DBV’s arable farming committee. The overall level of damage was unclear, but insect damage to plant roots could make rapeseed more vulnerable to frost damage in winter, he said. “In some regions large areas of rapeseed crops have been damaged and some individual fields had to be plowed up to enable resowing with winter grains,” he said.— Reuters

By Alexis Kienlen

Roundup Ready® is a registered trademark used under license from Monsanto Company. Pioneer® brand products are provided subject to the terms and conditions of purchase which are part of the labeling and purchase documents. The DuPont Oval Logo is a registered trademark of DuPont. ®, TM, SM Trademarks and service marks licensed to Pioneer Hi-Bred Limited. © 2014 PHL.

If you have weeds that are green, not too much trash covering, and moisture in the soil, there’s still time for fall weed control. “It doesn’t work out every year that we have this opportunity, but this year it does,” said Harry Brook, provincial crop specialist. “There can’t have been a terrific killing frost, the plants have to be actively growing, there has to be some green leaf material that will absorb the chemicals. “They are easy to kill now, but if you wait until next spring, they can shoot up and flower before you have a chance to control them.” — AARD release

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WEED CONTROL

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ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA • OCTOBER 13, 2014

OCTOBER 13, 2014 • ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA

Monsanto launches Mexico centre for developing improved corn seeds The research will not focus on GMO traits at this time mexico city / reuters

Farmers and activists hold up corncobs while protesting against Monsanto Co. during an event commemorating “Dia Nacional del Maiz” (National Corn Day) in downtown Mexico City September 29, 2014. Photo: REUTERS/Henry Romero

lobal seed technology giant Monsanto has launched a global centre in Mexico for developing conventional hybrid strains of corn, part of the company’s push to boost output of the planet’s most widely produced grain. The $90-million centre on the southern fringe of the western city of Guadalajara, will be used to centralize development of Monsanto’s corn seed research, mainly for the U.S. market, the company said. The announcement coincided with National Corn Day in Mexico, which activists marked with protests against the company in downtown Mexico City. The new research centre will not develop new corn seeds that harness genetically modified organisms (GMO) and is not connected to Monsanto’s pending applications to expand beyond pilot plantings of GMO corn in Mexico, company spokeswoman Erika Campuz-

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ano told Reuters in an emailed response to questions. The centre “aims to create new conventional varieties of corn that are tolerant to diseases as well as biotic and abiotic stresses that affect the cultivation of corn all over the world,” said Campuzano. Scientists say modern corn comes from teosinte, a tiny wild grain native to southern Mexico. U.S.-based Monsanto is among several multinational agricultural firms seeking permission for widespread planting of corn that harnesses genetically modified organisms to boost desirable characteristics of the staple crop in Mexico, where the issue is highly controversial. Proponents of GMO corn say it is safe, raises yields, and cuts pesticide and fertilizer costs, while critics contend they contaminate native strains of the grain and harm biodiversity. They also point to toxins that protect GMO corn against pests that may be linked to elevated insect mortality, which could undermine pollination.

U.S. to pay $300 million to settle Brazil cotton trade dispute The one-time payment is in lieu of punitive tariffs The United States will pay Brazilian cotton producers $300 million in compensation to end a dispute over cotton subsidies enjoyed by U.S. growers, two officials familiar with the settlement said Sept. 30. In exchange for the oneoff payment to the Brazil Cotton Institute, or IBA, Brazil agreed not to take any further trade measures against the United States. In 2004, Brazil won a challenge against U.S. cotton subsidies at the World Trade Organization, giving it the right to impose $830 million in sanctions against U.S. products. Brazil agreed to suspend the penalty if the United States paid into an assistance fund for Brazilian cotton farmers. The United States stopped paying the monthly compensation due to budget disagreements in Congress, prompting the Brazilian government to threaten to slap higher tariffs on U.S. products. — Reuters

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Opposition MPs decry refusal to make CWB annual report public Wheat board critics, including the government, accused it of secrecy, but now Gerry Ritz has deemed CWB’s activities are too commercially sensitive to release BY ALLAN DAWSON STAFF

griculture Minister Gerry Ritz’s decision to keep CWB’s 2012-13 annual report from the public is being criticized by opposition MPs. Farmers and taxpayers have a right to see CWB’s financial statements, said Liberal MP Ralph Goodale and NDP Agriculture Critic Malcolm Allen. “It should be remembered whatever revenue and assets this new creature (CWB) has inherited, it has inherited all of that value from farmers,” said Goodale, a former Canadian Wheat Board minister. “This is farmers’ money, farmers’ assets, not to be played with arbitrarily and secretly by the government.”

Allen said Ritz’s move is distressing, but not surprising. “Once again this government lacks transparency and accountability to farmers and the Canadian public around an asset they still actually own.”

Amended act

CWB is the government-owned grain company created Aug. 1, 2012 when Ottawa ended the Canadian Wheat Board’s sales monopoly on western wheat and barley destined for domestic human consumption or export. It is obliged to present Canada’s agriculture minister with an annual report, including its audited financial statements, and the minister must table it in Parliament. That happened in July, but only the notes to CWB’s financial statement are available. The notes

CWB lowers canola, wheat PROs

Challenge

Goodale said Ritz’s decision to keep the report essentially secret should be challenged in court and reviewed by Canada’s auditor general. “This is a healthy dose of hypocrisy from this government,” Goodale said. “They would rail at the so-called secrecy of the former Canadian Wheat Board... but this new entity is a complete black box. It’s just a joke.” Goodale said he suspects CWB didn’t do well in its first year in an open market or Ritz would be bragging about it. But the minister’s parliamentary secretary, Pierre Lemieux, said the CWB “has a right to protect commercially sensitive information.” In April, CWB president and

CEO Ian White said CWB intends to provide a privatization plan to Ritz before the 2016 deadline set out in legislation, which requires CWB to be privatized or wound down by 2017. “We expect our privatization to happen sooner than that,” White said. “We are expecting to be able to get a plan to government this year and then the process will take place after that.” Last month, Farmers of North America (FNA) proposed creating a farmer-owned company that would take majority ownership of CWB. FNA also proposed the new company distribute nitrogen manufactured by the farmer-controlled nitrogen plant FNA is promoting. allan@fbcpublishing.com

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But durum is up — if anyone has any CWB has lowered its Pool Return Outlooks (PROs) for canola, wheat and field peas in the upcoming 2014-15 (Aug.-July) crop year, while upping returns for most durum qualities. Malt barley PROs were left unchanged from the August report. Projected wheat returns were down $5 to $14 per tonne from the previous month. CWB cited sharply weaker U.S. wheat futures as one reason for lowering the PROs, though, the weakening Canadian dollar and “considerable” strengthening in wheat export basis levels helped to offset weakness in the U.S. futures. Quality continues to be a major problem due to recent unfavourable weather conditions in Western Canada. Crops were also impacted by excess moisture, early frost and untimely snowfall in Alberta in September. Projected durum PROs were raised for No. 1 and 2 quality, seeing gains from $4 to $12 per tonne. No. 3 durum PROs were lowered by $11 to $14. The gains in higher-quality durum were linked to unfavourable weather in Canada, lack of quality in Europe and poor logistics in the U.S. Canola PROs were down $20 to $29 per tonne compared to the previous month. Weakening Canadian canola and Chicago soybean futures were behind the decline. Field pea PROs were lowered by $3 per tonne, due to softening markets and harvest pressure. — By Commodity News Service Canada

refer to accounting practices and potential liabilities, but provide no information about the company’s finances. According to Allen the notes weren’t tabled in Parliament, but with Parliament’s Journals Branch. Neither Goodale nor Allen believes CWB’s entire annual report to be too commercially sensitive to release. The annual reports released to Parliament and the public by the old wheat board reported included a complete accounting of its revenues and expenses, broken out by each pool, as well as volumes of grain sold and to which markets. The salaries of the highest-paid employees were also included as well as the per diems and expenses of both elected and appointed directors.

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OCTOBER 13, 2014 • ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA

Calculators needed to make sense of western Canadian wheat bids Different prices for different grades make uniform comparison’s difficult BY PHIL FRANZ-WARKENTIN COMMODITY NEWS SERVICE CANADA

onsistent wheat pricing can still be a struggle to find across Western Canada two years into the new open market. The lack of consistency can make it difficult to compare pricing from one delivery point to the next, leaving farmers uncertain just how much their wheat is worth. While one elevator may quote a price for No. 1 CWRS wheat with a protein content of 13.5 per cent, a neighbouring delivery point may be using a No. 2 at 13.0 per cent protein for its base quote, and a third elevator may be factoring in the currency exchange in a different way than the other two.

“If you don’t do all of the math you risk leaving a lot of money on the table, because there is a lot of variability in the wheat basis, and there is a lot of variability in the grade spreads from one company to the next,” said Brenda Tjaden Lepp, of FarmLink Marketing Solutions. “It makes comparing very difficult,” said John DePape, of Farmers Advanced Risk Management Co., adding some companies don’t put out any public prices and only make them available to customers. But there’s no pressure for the grain companies to streamline their wheat pricing, and so the situation isn’t likely to change. While greater consistency in wheat pricing from one elevator to the next would make compar-

ison shopping easier, there are other factors to consider as well. “Different companies are selling to different markets, so let the companies decide what meets their needs, and likewise farmers can decide what meets their needs,” said Blair Rutter, executive director of the Western Canadian Wheat Growers Association. “As long as there is competition and farmers have choices, then that’s the ideal marketplace.” Capacity on the rail lines remained a key priority, as “that is the basis of competition,” he added. “If the rail system is plugged, we don’t see good competition among the grain handlers.” There is also a need for greater market information on prices and exports, said Rutter, pointing to the readily available U.S. data

that does not currently have an equivalent in Canada. In many countries, a farmer could “just click on a website and see where prices are at,” while the same process takes a number of phone calls in Canada, said Tjaden Lepp. “This is all part of the adjustment to the open market,” said Rutter, noting that after over 70 years under the Canadian Wheat Board single desk the current market is still in a period of adjustment. Tjaden Lepp agreed, noting that such a transition will take time. In addition to improved public reporting of export business and prices, she said a movement to using ICE Canada wheat futures as the hedging mechanism of choice would also help simplify matters in terms of wheat pricing.

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U.S. agricultural co-operatives post record 2013 sales It was a good year all around U.S. farmer, rancher and fishery co-operatives set a new sales record in 2013 of more than $246 billion, four per cent more than the 2012 high. It marked the third consecutive year of record sales by U.S. agricultural co-operatives and mirrored increased sales in the overall farm economy in 2013, a year when U.S. crop production and livestock sales both rose by six per cent. That streak is expected to be broken this year given much lower grain and oilseed prices, a USDA report said. Co-ops are also major players in the farm supply market, and sales of petroleum, feed, seed and crop protectants such as insecticide were all up in 2013, although fertilizer sales declined. — Reuters

France seeks Canadian wheat An unusually large cargo of Canadian wheat was due to unload at Rouen, northern France, port data showed Sept. 25, adding to evidence that buyers are being forced to offset lower-quality grain from this year’s French harvest. France usually imports small amounts of highquality Canadian wheat — used by some millers to blend with domestic wheat — but the wettest summer since 1959 has left much of the French crop below normal standards for flour making. This week’s 22,000-tonne cargo would be the largest direct import of Canadian wheat in at least 14 seasons for which Reuters has records, exceeding a previous high of 2,900 tonnes in 2003-04. — Reuters

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USDA slashes final soybean stocks despite bigger crop Corn stocks are 50 per cent higher than last year even before the record harvest underway BY ROS KRASNY

WASHINGTON / REUTERS

.S. soybean stocks ended the 2013-14 marketing year much smaller than expected despite an upward revision to the prior year’s crop, while corn stocks were larger than forecast, according to the latest government data. The U.S. Agriculture Department’s wheat crop estimate was in line with traders’ expectations, while wheat stocks as of Sept. 1 were two per cent larger than projected. “There’s definitely a bearish slant to (the report). The ending stocks were on the higher end of the range for corn. The wheat stocks number indicates lower-than-expected usage,” said Shawn McCambridge, analyst at Jefferies Bache. Soybean stocks ahead of harvest were a razor-thin 92 million bushels, versus the trade guess of 126 million. Indicated usage during June-August was 313 million bushels, up six per cent on the year. Still, the United States has just started to harvest a bin-busting 2014 soybean crop of almost four billion bushels, dampening the impact of the bullish figure. “The soybean number, on its face is supportive... but all of it is very immaterial compared to what is going on with harvest right now. Everything else is just sidebar issues right

now,” said Jim Gerlach, president of A/C Trading. USDA raised its estimate of the 2013 soybean crop to 3.358 billion bushels, up 69.2 million bushels. The change was based on analysis of data from several sources, USDA said. Analysts had forecast the crop at 3.362 billion bushels. Quarterly corn stocks have a history of shocking markets but the Sept. 30 figure, just 0.4 per cent above expectations at 1.236 billion bushels, was not a major surprise. Even so, stocks were up 50 per cent on the year. This, along with the record-large 2014 harvest now underway, underlines large U.S. corn supplies, a turnaround after several years of short supplies.

A worker empties corn kernels from a grain bin at DeLong Company in Minooka, Illinois, Sept. 24. Corn prices have fallen to a four-year low as a record-large U.S. harvest picks up speed and as there are continued reports of spectacular early U.S. yields. PHOTO: REUTERS/JIM YOUNG

Mosaic cuts phosphate output Softening crop prices will reduce demand Mosaic Co., the world’s largest maker of finished phosphate products, will reduce phosphate output, and has dampened sales expectations. The U.S. fertilizer producer said the curtailment, is due to the high costs of raw materials sulphur and ammonia, and comes as corn and soybean prices have fallen to multi-year lows. The costs of sulphur and ammonia, however, have escalated despite slumping crop prices, said Mosaic chief executive officer Jim Prokopanko. “In the near term, we will be margin focused and will limit inventory buildup during the seasonally slow part of the year,” he said. Mosaic also expects thirdquarter potash and phosphate sales volumes to fall to the lower end of its previous forecast due to weather-driven outages in potash production and to reflect the timing of phosphate shipments. — Reuters

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Talk to your DEKALB dealer today, or visit DEKALB.ca ALWAYS FOLLOW GRAIN MARKETING AND ALL OTHER STEWARDSHIP AND PESTICIDE LABEL DIRECTIONS. Details of these requirements can be found in the Trait Stewardship Responsibilities Notice to Farmers printed in this publication ©2014 Monsanto Canada, Inc.

OCTOBER 13, 2014 • ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA

Russia values reputation as reliable trade partner

another nice rocky sunset

The agriculture minister says the list of banned food could be reviewed if tensions ease By Polina Devitt moscow / reuters

An orange sunset casts a purple glow over the Rocky Mountains and ranchlands near Burmis, in southern Alberta. Photo: Wendy Dudley

JUMP IN BEFORE IT’S TOO LATE

Time is running out to jump into CWB’s Annual Pool and Futures Choice Annual Pool. Sign-up to the Annual Pool and Futures Choice Annual Pool is available until October 31, 2014, or until fully subscribed.

Russia, one of the world’s largest wheat exporters, will use only state purchases of grain from the domestic market if it needs to regulate its market. A grain export ban, with which Russia shocked markets in 2010 when drought ravaged its harvest, is now seen as an “absolutely unacceptable” instrument for market regulation, said Agriculture Minister Nikolai Fyodorov. “Russia’s reputation as a reliable trade partner is seen among two (other) values: maintaining market balance and ensuring price acceptability,” the minister said. “That’s why... we will use civilized instruments of influence.” Russia is harvesting its largest grain crop in six years and the second-largest crop in its post-Soviet history, amid worsening relations with western countries, which sanctioned it for the Kremlin’s role in the Ukraine crisis. To protect its economy, in early August Moscow reacted with a oneyear ban on most food imports, worth about $9 billion, from the European Union, the U.S., Canada, Australia and Norway, in its strongest response to sanctions so far. Fyodorov said the food ban was a forced measure after western sanctions had been imposed on some of Russia’s banks — key creditors of the agriculture sector. “It was an indirect hit on our agriculture development program, on how our credit organizations will return and prolongate 1.8 trillion rubles ($47 billion of debt from the sector),” he said. But the list of banned countries and products can be changed if tensions ease, he said.

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China launches media campaign to back genetically modified crops BY DOMINIQUE PATTON BEIJING / REUTERS

hina’s government has kicked off a media campaign in support of genetically modified crops, as it battles a wave of negative publicity over a technology it hopes will play a major role in boosting its food security. The Agriculture Ministry in late September announced it would try to educate the public on GMO via TV, newspapers and the Internet. It hopes to stifle anti-GMO sentiment that has gathered momentum in the wake of incidents such as reports that genetically modified rice had been illegally sold at a supermarket in the centre of the country. Beijing has been a longtime proponent of GMOs, which it sees as broadly safe and as potentially key in helping feed the world’s largest population. But critics have alleged the technology could pose health risks, and while China allows imports of some GMO crops it is yet to permit domestic cultivation. China has imported millions of tonnes of GMO soybeans each year for the past decade to feed the world’s largest stock of farmed pigs and to produce around 40 per cent of the county’s vegetable oil needs. China consumes around a third of the world’s soybeans, and snaps up roughly 65 per cent of all imports each year. “(We will create) a social atmosphere which is beneficial for the healthy development of the genetically modified industry,” the Agriculture Ministry said in a statement.

A worker transports packs of rice at a market in Hefei, Anhui province in this photo taken in November 2009, shortly after China, the world’s largest rice producer and consumer, approved a locally developed strain of genetically modified rice. But it has not yet been commercialized. PHOTO: REUTERS

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Negative reports

Because a whole lot can grow from one good decision.

A stream of negative reports this year on certain biotech foods, has dragged on already-slow progress towards domestic cultivation and may have played a role in curbing imports of some crops. The discovery of a strain of genetically modified corn that had not been approved by Beijing in some U.S. shipments to China wreaked havoc in the grains market, with trader Cargill estimating losses of more than $90 million as a result. The discoveries also triggered lawsuits against Syngenta, the developer of the unapproved corn variety. The country has also suspended the import approval process for a genetically modified soybean variety, citing “low public acceptance” of GMO food, according to two people familiar with the matter.

Be bold

China has spent billions of yuan developing its own GMO crops and approved two pest-resistant varieties of rice and a biotech corn for commercialization in 2009, but, wary of strong opposition to the GMO technology, never proceeded to cultivation. The safety certificates on the products expired last month. In comments from a speech made months ago but only published this week, Chinese president Xi Jinping urged the industry to be bold in competition with foreign GMO developers.

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OCTOBER 13, 2014 • ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA

ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA • OCTOBER 13, 2014

EU farmers to get more aid to deal with Russian food ban BRUSSELS / REUTERS

he European Commission has a new set of measures, worth up to 165 million euros, to help fruit and vegetable producers hit by a Russian ban on agricultural imports. Moscow’s one-year embargo on meat, fish, dairy, fruit and vegetables from Canada, the U.S., the European Union, Australia and Norway is in retaliation for western sanctions over Russia’s role in the Ukraine crisis. EU is particularly hard hit as its farm exports to Russia are worth about 11 billion euros a year, or roughly 10 per cent of the bloc’s agricultural sales. The new measures will attempt to tackle oversupply and falling prices by compensating producers if they tighten the market through steps such

An apple a day could keep obesity away Apples, especially Granny Smith apples, may help prevent disorders associated with obesity, new research published in the journal Food Chemistry says. “We know that, in general, apples are a good source of these non-digestible compounds but there are differences in varieties,” said Washington State University food scientist Giuliana Noratto. “Results from this study will help consumers to discriminate between apple varieties that can aid in the fight against obesity.” The tart green Granny Smith apples benefit the growth of friendly bacteria in the colon due to their high content of non-digestible compounds, including dietary fibre and polyphenols, and low content of available carbohydrates. Despite being subjected to chewing, stomach acid and digestive enzymes, these compounds remain intact when they reach the colon. Once there, they are fermented by bacteria in the colon, which benefits the growth of friendly bacteria in the gut. The study showed that Granny Smith apples surpass Braeburn, Fuji, Gala, Golden Delicious, McIntosh and Red Delicious in the amount of non-digestible compounds they contain. “The non-digestible compounds in the Granny Smith apples actually changed the proportions of fecal bacteria from obese mice to be similar to that of lean mice,” Noratto said. The discovery could help prevent some of the disorders associated with obesity such as low-grade, chronic inflammation that can lead to diabetes. “What determines the balance of bacteria in our colon is the food we consume,” Noratto said.

as withdrawing produce and giving it away. It follows a previous scheme, introduced in the immediate aftermath of Russia’s ban, which provided 125 million euros in aid for producers but was suspended after a surge in claims led to it being heavily oversubscribed. The new measures are in addition to the money announced in August and, for the first time, they include oranges, mandarins and clementines, the commission said. Other products included in the new scheme, which runs until the end of the year, are apples, pears, kiwi fruit, grapes, cucumbers, peppers, while some vegetables previously covered by EU aid — cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli, mushrooms, and soft fruit — are no longer on the list.

A French farm worker harvests apples in an eight-ha apple orchard at the Verger d’Epinoy near Cambrai, northern France last month. French apple growers are facing a sharp drop in revenue this year due to Russia’s restrictions on food imports from western countries. PHOTO: REUTERS/PASCAL ROSSIGNOL

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OCTOBER 13, 2014 • ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA

The story of Waldron Ranch NATURE CONSERVANCY OF CANADA RELEASE

Ecology

Waldron Ranch conservation agreement completed PHOTOS OF WALDRON RANCH: KYLE MARQUARDT, KYLEFOTO.COM

The 30,535-acre ranch will remain a working operation but the easement prohibits development, subdivision, cultivation or drainage NATURE CONSERVANCY OF CANADA RELEASE

he Nature Conservancy of Canada in Alberta has completed the conservation easement for the Waldron Ranch — the largest such deal in Canadian his-

tory. The iconic 30,535-acre ranch, located along the Cowboy Trail (Highway 22) northwest of Lethbridge, is home to the largest intact native fescue grassland remaining on the eastern slopes of Alberta’s Rocky Mountains. It connects the 70,000-acre environmentally significant Bob Creek Wildland Park (Whaleback), to the 97,000-acre Porcupine Hills Forest Reserve. The conservation agreement ensures the land will continue to be utilized as a working landscape and preserves habitat for numerous wildlife species that depend on this corridor. It prohibits development, subdivision, cultivation or drainage. That will protect headwaters of streams and rivers, as well as species at risk, such as golden eagles and ferruginous hawks, that have been observed on the ranch. “The Waldron Grazing Co-op and the Nature Conservancy of Canada have created an alliance that will ensure that the Waldron Ranch will remain intact, healthy, and agriculturally productive for ever. We are proud of this accomplishment,” said Tim Nelson, chair of the 72-rancher co-operative. The total project cost more than $37.5 million, with co-op members making the largest donation. The province contributed $12.2 million while Ottawa provided $4 million and the Calgary Foundation provided $1 million. The Nature Conservancy of Canada has conserved more than 234,000 acres in Alberta.

• Comprised primarily of native habitat in a broad valley between the Bob Creek Wildland Park to the west and the Porcupine Hills Forest Reserve to the east. • Rough fescue grasslands dominate, but the ranch also has extensive and diverse montane ridges and riparian areas, as well as Douglas fir and lodgepole pine forests and aspen woodland. • Habitat for grizzly bear, black bear, cougar, golden eagle, ferruginous hawk, moose, white-tailed deer, bald eagle, and wild turkey. • Part of an ecosystem that once extended from the Rocky Mountains to Winnipeg, a 1,300-kilometre stretch that was the North American equivalent to (and triple the size of) Africa’s Serengeti. Only 0.5 per cent of this area remains and is known as The Last Five Miles.

History

• First ranched in 1883 as The Walrond Cattle Ranch, with 8,500 head of Hereford and Polled Angus cattle from Montana grazing 260,000 leased acres. • When the original ranch ceased operations in 1908, most of the land was first leased but eventually sold with the Waldron Grazing Cooperative becoming the owners in 1962. The cooperative was established by Ed Nelson, Bill Greig, Ellis Oviatt, Axel Sundquist and Bernie Kokesch. Many of the original shareholders were southern Alberta grain farmers who also raised cattle and needed summer range for their animals.

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“I grew up in Alberta’s foothills; our family ranch is just outside of Waterton Park. I’ve travelled all over the world and haven’t seen anything as pretty. They should be preserved.” – Corb Lund, Canadian country music artist “Preserving large chunks of rangeland such as the Waldron Ranch on Alberta’s eastern slopes is a very good thing; Good for the elk, bear, deer and all the wildlife that shares the fescue grasslands. Good for the rivers and streams that filter and bring our clean water. Good for the beef cattle that begin their lives in an open-range environment. Good for the urban folks driving Highway 22 to give their kids a glimpse of our last golden west. Good for my soul. – Ian Tyson, singer-songwriter, cowboy

ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA • OCTOBER 13, 2014

New EU health nominee won’t budge on hormones or chemical treatments Food safety has been a divisive issue in EU-U.S. trade negotiations BY ROBIN EMMOTT BRUSSELS / REUTERS

he EU’s nominee for health chief will oppose importing American chemically treated meat that Washington hopes to be able to sell to Europe under a planned multibilliondollar transatlantic trade deal. Vytenis Andriukaitis also said genetically modified crops posed a “philosophical problem” that threatened Europe’s biodiversity. The U.S. is negotiating a free trade pact with the European Union, and wants the 28-nation bloc to take a more science-based approach to GM crops and hormone-treated meat. “I cannot make any compromises on this issue, whether it is hormones in meat or chlorine baths for poultry,” Andriukaitis told EU lawmakers in the hearing on his nomination to be head of health and food safety policy in the next European Commission. Asked repeatedly by EU lawmakers from across the political spectrum where he stood on GM crops, which are widely grown in the Americas and Asia, the Lithuanian nominee urged caution. “Cultivation of GMOs is a huge problem from a philosophical point of view,” said Andriukaitis, a doctor by training. “If we want to interfere with biodiversity, we have to be very vigilant and cautious.” There is strong opposition in a number of EU member states, including France and Germany, to GM foods, growth hormones in cattle and to chicken that is disinfected with chemicals. Europe uses antibiotics. Andriukaitis’s stance signals further tension in the talks to clinch the free trade pact, which proponents say must also break down farm trade barriers to deliver the greatest benefits.

PHOTO: THINKSTOCK

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An accord would allow the EU to sell more of its luxury cars, trains and chemicals in the United States, a very attractive prospect for an economy whose slow recovery from the euro zone debt crisis is faltering. Selling the benefits of a deal, which could generate $100 billion a year in economic growth for both the EU and the United States, has also been complicated by concerns about U.S. companies becoming too powerful via the accord. Andriukaitis also promised to review the EU’s GM approval process in the first six months of his mandate. The European Union decided in May to make approval of GM crops easier but to allow some countries to ban them. In the case of GM crops, the EU has cleared for import some 50 of about 450 commercial strains. The EU imports about 30 million tonnes a year of GM grains for its cattle, pigs and poultry, but EU retailers hardly stock any GM food because of stiff consumer resistance. The United States says it is unacceptable that GM strains take years to gain access to European markets after winning clearance from the European Food Safety Authority, compared to about 18 months in the United States.

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OCTOBER 13, 2014 • ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA

People worst hit by climate change voiceless in the debate Communities are finding their own solutions to cope with new challenges BY MARIA CASPANI NEW YORK / THOMSON REUTERS FOUNDATION

ommunities hard hit by climate change impacts are finding ways to adapt on their own, but they need a larger voice in international decision-making about how to deal with climate change, activists said at a UN climate summit last week. Speaking at a New York gathering of world leaders called by UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon to spur action on climate threats, three young activists from Nepal, the Solomon Islands and Uganda said their communities were finding their own solutions to cope with dra-

matic new challenges posed by climate change. “We are working on local solutions and resilience to mitigate the impact of climate change,” said Sylvia Atugonza Kapello, the head of a civil society network in Karamoja, Uganda. “The challenge is that (we’re) not part of the decision-making.” She said the most marginalized must be given a seat at the table or, “if it continues like this, solutions will always be artificial,” with few connections to realities on the ground. Lack of representation in politics generally and in negotiations toward a new global climate agreement in 2015 means that people who are losing their livelihoods to climate change are left without a clear voice — a

problem when they are the ones testing out practical solutions, the activists said. Alina Saba, a researcher and community organizer from rural Nepal, said that for the past five years communities in her region have lost crops to more frequent landslides but struggled to receive assistance because of their remote location. With no outside help, people are “fighting back with their own very poor resources,” Saba said. Atugonza Kapello, of Uganda, said that “although communities are coping, this shouldn’t be our responsibility. It should be our governments’ and our leaders’.” Civil society groups have

voiced their discontent at the outcome of the UN climate summit, saying that world leaders made too few commitments to effectively take action on climate change. UN climate envoy Mary Robinson, who also spoke at the event, said that there were too few resources available to deal with climate change impacts at the local level, and called for greater involvement of women in negotiations and decisionmaking. “If we took away barriers to women’s leadership, we would solve the climate change problem a lot faster,” said Robinson, a former president of Ireland. “Women tend to be more practical,” she added. “Women lead in a different way.”

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Climate change effects more complicated than first thought New research suggests the drier-gets-drier and wet-becomeswetter rule of thumb is broken STAFF

New research is challenging the theory that climate change will cause drier areas to get drier and wetter areas to become wetter. The simplified formula, based on models and observations, is inaccurate most of the time, a team of climate researchers suggests in Nature Geoscience. An evaluation of trends in specific regions’ humidity and dryness by researchers with the Zurich-based Institute for Atmospheric and Climate Science found no clear trends towards a drier or wetter climate across three-quarters of the land area studied. There were solid trends in the remaining quarter. However, only half of that surface area followed the DDWW principle. Some regions which should have become wetter according to the simple DDWW formula have actually become drier in the past — this includes parts of the Amazon, Central America, tropical Africa and Asia. On the other hand, there are dry areas that have become wetter: parts of Patagonia, central Australia and the Midwestern United States. The ‘wet-gets-wetter’ rule is largely confirmed for the eastern United States, northern Australia and northern Eurasia. ‘Dry gets drier’ also corresponds to indications in the Sahel region, the Arabian Peninsula and parts of Central Asia and Australia. “Our results emphasize how we should not overly rely on simplifying principles to assess past developments in dryness and humidity,” said lead author Peter Greve. “This can be misleading, as it cannot do justice to the complexity of the underlying systems.”

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Stanford scientists say greenhouse gases worsen California drought New research suggests greenhouse gases are changing weather patterns By Joaquin Palomino san francisco / reuters

A digital traffic sign usually used for commuter travel information informs travellers on a California highway to conserve water as they pass through Del Mar, California September 10, 2014. California is in its third year of a devastating drought that has forced farmers to leave fields unplanted and left communities reliant on well water with little to drink. Photo: REUTERS/Mike Blake T:8.125”

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alifornia’s catastrophic drought has most likely been made worse by manmade climate change, according to a new report from Stanford University, but scientists are still hesitant to fully blame the lack of rain on climate change. The research, published in the Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society as part of a collection of reports on extreme weather events in 2013, is one of the most comprehensive studies linking climate change and California’s ongoing drought, which has caused billions of dollars in economic damage. The report found that highpressure ridges like the one that stubbornly parked itself over the Pacific Ocean for the past two winters, blocking storms from hitting California, are much more likely to form in the presence of man-made greenhouse gases. The ridge, dubbed the Ridiculously Resilient Ridge by researchers, or “Triple R,” parched the state during the past two rainy seasons. “You can visualize it as a fairly large boulder in a small stream,” said Daniel Swain, a lead author on the report, which said the phenomenon has caused storms to bypass not only California but also Oregon and Washington, pushing rain as far north as the Arctic Circle. Using climate model simulations, the researchers found that “Triple-R” events are three times more likely to occur today than in pre-industrial climates. Scientists also determined that as long as high levels of greenhouse gases remain, severe droughts could become more frequent. “California is more likely to see these episodes in the near term,” said environmental scientist Noah Diffenbaugh, who led the study. Despite the findings, Thomas Peterson, principal scientist at NOAA’s National Climatic Data Center and one of the report’s editors, said it is still hard to definitively link rainfall to climate change. “There is so much variability in rainfall,” Peterson said. “Finding a signal and attributing how much of the signal is climate change is difficult.” Marty Hoerling, a research meteorologist with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration who edited some of the reports in the climate study, said atmospheric pressure has increased everywhere due to global warming, so the systems need to be studied in that context. “It’s not the pressure, per se, that determines which way the storms will move,” Hoerling said during a press conference. “But it’s the difference of how the pressure changes from one location relative to another.”

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MEMORIES ARE MADE OF THIS

Members of the Calgary Flames and Arizona Coyotes salute the crowd at the Sylvan Lake Multiplex following an exhibition game last month. Hosting the game was part of the prize package for winning the 2014 Kraft Hockeyville contest. The community also won $100,000 for upgrades to the multiplex, which became Sylvan’s only ice rink after heavy snow collapsed the roof of the old arena in January. PHOTO: DIANNE WOMACKS

Ebola-hit Liberia secures food staples The farming sector has been hard hit LONDON / REUTERS

WE GREW UP WITH ALBERTA AGRICULTURE. With our over 100 year history in Alberta, ATCO provides critically important services to more than 350 communities across our province.

iberia, the West African state hardest hit by the worst Ebola outbreak in history, has secured imports of basic food staples until December, but the blow to its mining sector may trigger a recession next year. Commerce and Industry Minister Axel Addy urged foreign donors to do more — and more rapidly — to help tackle the epidemic, which has killed almost 3,000 people since March in five countries, including more than 1,670 in Liberia. The deadly virus has badly hurt Liberia’s economy, disrupting mining and trade, and prompting airline operators to suspend flights while expatriate workers have fled. The agricultural sector has also been hard hit, although the Liberian government has managed to secure enough rice shipments to adequately supply the population until December. “For staples, we are getting commodities, we are getting rice into the country, but it is a little more expensive,” said Addy. “On the local production side is where the challenge lies... We have to work with the farmers to see how we can mitigate the effects.”

From humble beginnings, we’ve seen agriculture become the foundation for a growing province. Today, agriculture is a vibrant industry in Alberta – a backbone for the hundreds of communities served by ATCO. We are committed to investing and volunteering in the communities we serve to help make them vibrant places to work and live. ATCO is a Founding Member of Ag for Life, a program that delivers educational programming to improve rural and farm safety. Ag for Life also builds a genuine understanding and appreciation of the impact agriculture has on the lives of all Albertans. Learn more about Ag for Life at agricultureforlife.ca. Visit ATCO Group at atco.com. A volunteer health worker practises using a personal protective equipment (PPE) suit at a newly constructed Ebola virus treatment centre in Monrovia, Liberia, September 21, 2014. PHOTO:

04/14-38178_01

REUTERS/JAMES GIAHYUE 38178_01 AFL_Atco_8.125x10_ABFE.indd 1

2014-05-20 11:21 AM

ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA • OCTOBER 13, 2014

World populations of wildlife drop by more than half Human demands on the planet’s resources are 50 per cent more than nature can bear reuters

he world populations of fish, birds, mammals, amphibians and reptiles fell overall by 52 per cent between 1970 and 2010, far faster than previously thought, according to the World Wildlife Fund. The conservation group’s Living Planet Report, published every two years, said humankind’s demands were now 50 per cent more than nature can bear, with trees being felled, groundwater pumped and carbon dioxide emitted faster than Earth can recover. “This damage is not inevitable but a consequence of the way we choose to live,” said Ken Norris, director of science at the Zoological Society of London. However, there was still hope if politicians and businesses took the right action to protect nature, the report said. “It is essential that we seize the opportunity — while we still can — to develop sustainably and create a future where people can live and prosper in harmony with nature,” said WWF international director general Marco Lambertini.

“It is essential that we seize the opportunity — while we still can — to develop sustainably and create a future where people can live and prosper in harmony with nature.”

To gauge the variations between different countries’ environmental impact, the report measured how big an “ecological footprint” each one had and how much productive land and water area, or “biocapacity,” each country accounted for. Kuwaitis had the biggest ecological footprint, meaning they consume and waste more resources per head than any other nation, the report said, followed by Qatar and the United Arab Emirates. “If all people on the planet had the footprint of the average resident of Qatar, we would need 4.8 planets. If we lived the lifestyle of a typical resident of the U.S., we would need 3.9 planets,” the report said. Many poorer countries — including India, Indonesia and the Democratic Republic of Congo

A male Sri Lankan leopard (Panthera pardus kotiya) named Wil Pattu, the father of two cubs that were born in July, is seen in a zoo in Maubeuge August 12, 2014. The Sri Lankan leopard is considered an endangered animal species. photo: REUTERS/Yves Herman

Where there’s there’s a

Marco Lambertini

Preserving nature was not just about protecting wild places but also about safeguarding the future of humanity, “indeed, our very survival,” he said. The report’s finding on the populations of vertebrate wildlife found that the biggest declines were in tropical regions, especially Latin America. The WWF’s so-called “Living Planet Index” is based on trends in 10,380 populations of 3,038 mammal, bird, reptile, amphibian and fish species. The average 52 per cent decline was much bigger than previously reported, partly because earlier studies had relied more on readily available information from North America and Europe, WWF said. The same report two years ago put the decline at 28 per cent between 1970 and 2008. The worst decline was among populations of freshwater species, which fell by 76 per cent over the four decades to 2010, while marine and terrestrial numbers both fell by 39 per cent.

— had an ecological footprint that was well within the planet’s ability to absorb their demands. The report also measured how close the planet is to nine socalled “planetary boundaries,” thresholds of “potentially catastrophic changes to life as we know it.” Three such thresholds have already been crossed — biodiversity, carbon dioxide levels and nitrogen pollution from fertilizers. Two more were in danger of being breached — ocean acidification and phosphorus levels in freshwater. “Given the pace and scale of change, we can no longer exclude the possibility of reaching critical tipping points that could abruptly and irreversibly change living conditions on Earth,” the report said.

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The main reasons for declining populations were the loss of natural habitats, exploitation through hunting or fishing, and climate change.

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Two kids too many?

Subsidy complaints on the rise

China’s Communist Party leaders have praised their one-child policy, saying it averted 400 million births since 1980 and saved scarce food resources for its now 1.4 billion citizens. But critics say it has spawned decades of forced abortions, infanticide, child trafficking — and a generation of spoilt children. Late last year, China changed tack and will allow millions more families to have two children to help replenish its workforce and shoulder the costs of an aging population. But critics wonder if it will work as many couples say urban life is too expensive to support a second child. — Reuters

Wealthy countries are still subsidizing their farmers at the expense of developing nations, two farm ministers told a Food and Agriculture Organization meeting. Burkina Faso Agriculture Minister Mahama Zoungrana said subsidies and trade rules are undermining cotton producers in his nation, while Georgia’s farm minister said that’s also happening in his country. Subsidy complaints took a back seat in recent years as high prices for agricultural goods led to food riots and worries about global hunger. But with bumper crops pushing down prices, subsidy concerns are back on the table. — Reuters

HEARTLAND Old chemistry conscripted in battle with herbicide-resistant weeds It’s an expensive fight in Europe that farmers here can expect to have if they don’t adjust first

By Allan Dawson staff

vadex and Fortress are old soilapplied, pre-emergence herbicides with a new purpose — helping delay the onset of herbicide-resistant weeds. And fall is the right time to apply both, herbicide retailers were told at a recent meeting in Manitoba put on by Gowan Canada. The Prairies already have some herbicide-resistant weeds, including glyphosate- and Group 2-resistant kochia and wild oats, green foxtail that are resistant to Groups 1 and 2, and wild oats that are resistant to both Groups 1 and 2. But those weed-resistance problems pale compared to England’s and other parts of Europe. Herbicide-resistant blackgrass and ryegrass are so prevalent in some fields farmers are paying $55 to $100 an acre after applying five or six different weed killers and often only getting 80 per cent control, Gowan’s U.K.-based product development manager John Edmonds said. In some cases, the weed infestations are so heavy farmers are thinking about switching from winter cereals to spring crops, which have lower yields and therefore lower potential revenue. “Resistance (in Western Canada) in my mind is eight to 10 years behind where they are (in Europe),” said Gowan Canada’s general manager Garth Render. “Are we on the same set of railway tracks headed to where they are? Absolutely. We’ve had some delays in our trip because of the introduction of herbicide-resistant crops. We’ve added a couple of different modes of action they didn’t have.” Whether herbicide-resistant weeds become as bad in Canada depends on what farmers here do over the next five to 10 years, Edmonds said. “If you keep using the same chemistry time after time you’re only going to select out the resistant populations,” he said in an interview. “You have to think about alternating the modes of action and the products and not just alternating the product by name.” That’s where Avadex and Fortress come in. Avadex (triallate) is in Group 8 and Fortress (triallate and trifluralin) contains Groups 8 and 3. Neither group is much used these days, although the soil-applied herbicides were popular 25 to 30 years ago. Avadex sales have jumped in England, where farmers follow up with post-emergent herbicides to control Group 1- and 2-resistant grassy weeds. Herbicide resistance can develop in weeds in as few as four years when a herbicide is repeatedly used on the same land, said Mike Grenier, Gowan Cana-

Herbicide-resistant black-grass is costing English farmers $55 to $100 an acre in herbicide costs and if Canadian farmers aren’t careful they can expect similar problems with herbicide-resistant grass weeds, said Gowan’s John Edmonds. Photo: John Edmonds, Gowan

“Resistance (in Western Canada) in my mind is eight to 10 years behind where they are (in Europe).” Garth Render

da’s research and development manager. Alternating between two herbicides with different modes of action, or ways of killing a plant, can double the time before resistance occurs. Adding another mode of action through a tank mix or separate application can stretch it out to 10 years, he said. “If you bring in the others (Avadex and Fortress) as well hopefully you might even avoid getting resistance.” Diversity is key, Grenier said, noting that in addition to using different modes of actions, farmers should rotate crops and use other techniques to make crops more competitive against weeds. University of Manitoba weed scientist Rob Gulden agrees. “All the things that help the crop help the herbicide are probably just as important, if not more important, in terms of an integrated-management approach to lessen the risk even more,” he said later in a telephone interview.

Tips for applying Avadex and Fortress

Bringing back Avadex and Fortress is a good strategy, but rotating or applying different modes of actions sequentially are not enough by themselves, he said. “It can be a tool to delay it, but we need to think a bit broader. It’s more about having a crop helping the herbicide work more effectively.” Farmers should also be aware that Group 3-resistant wild oats were discovered in southwest Manitoba in the late 1980s. How prevalent they are now isn’t known, Hugh Beckie, a Saskatoon-based weed researcher with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada said in an email. The last Manitoba weed-resistance survey done in 2008 showed 11 per cent of fields had Group 8 (triallate)-resistant wild oats. “So overall, triallate (Avadex or Fortress) is still a good pre-emergence option to control wild oat susceptible or Group 1 or Group 2 resistant,” he wrote. “Similarly, Fortress (triallate and trifluralin) is still a good option for wild oat populations that are not Group 8 resistant, or green foxtail populations that are not Group 3 resistant. We have not documented Group 3 (trifluralin)-resistant wild oat anywhere across the Prairies, so this active ingredient is still useful for wild oat management.” The same survey found 55 per cent of Manitoba fields had Group 1-resistant wild oats, 18 per cent had Group 2-resistant wild oats and nine per cent of fields had both. allan@fbcpublishing.com

Fall is a good time to apply Avadex and Fortress after the surface soil temperature is below 5 C or any time after Sept. 15 followed by a harrow. Good soil contact is necessary for these herbicides to work, said Cory Bourdeaud’hui, Gowan Canada’s Manitoba sales representative. That means ensuring crop residue or lumps of soil don’t prevent the herbicide granules from reaching the soil, he said. “There’s no way the Avadex can penetrate those lumps,” Bourdeaud’hui said. “If there’s a lumpy field the farmer has to harrow it to break those lumps up before he applies it.” Avadex and Fortress shouldn’t be applied to burned fields for 12 months because the carbon prevents them from working, he added. A shallow harrowing will ensure soil contact but might not be necessary in the fall. Snowpack will help push the granules down to the soil, he said. Harrowing in the spring will also “sharpen” control of both herbicides, he said. But farmers should avoid sweeping their fields moving piles of straw, which can pull the granules into concentrated areas leaving other areas untreated. Application rates for both Avadex and Fortress are based on soil organic matter. Fields with higher organic matter require higher rates. Avadex controls wild oats in barley, canola, spring and durum wheat, flax (not including low linoleic acid varieties), peas and canary seed. Fortress controls wild oats, green foxtail and yellow foxtail in canola, flax (not including low linoleic acid varieties), mustard, barley and spring and durum wheat. It also suppresses lamb’s quarters, kochia, redroot pigweed, Russian thistle and wild buckwheat. allan@fbcpublishing.com

OCTOBER 13, 2014 • ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA

Islamic State uses wheat as a weapon The militant group now has control over 40 per cent of Iraq’s wheat supplies ling wheat brings power. As its fighters swept through Iraq’s north in June, they seized control of silos and grain stockpiles. The offensive coincided with the wheat and barley harvests and, crucially, the delivery of crops to government silos and private traders. IS now controls all nine silos in Nineveh Province, which spans the Tigris River, along with seven other silos in other provinces. In the three months since overrunning Nineveh’s provincial capital Mosul, IS fighters have forced out hundreds of thousands of ethnic and religious minorities and seized hundreds of thousands of tonnes of wheat from abandoned fields.

By Maggie Fick

shekhan, iraq / reuters

or Salah Paulis, it came down to a choice between his faith and his crop. A wheat farmer from outside Mosul, Paulis and his family fled when the militant group Islamic State overran the family farm as part of its offensive that captured vast swathes of territory in northern Iraq. Two weeks later, Paulis, who is a Christian, received a phone call from a man who said he was an Islamic State fighter. “We are in your warehouse. Why are you not here working and taking care of your business?” the man asked in formal Arabic. “Come back and we will guarantee your safety. But you must convert and pay $500.” When Paulis refused, the man spelled out the penalty. “We are taking your wheat,” he said. “Just to let you know we are not stealing it because we gave you a choice.” Other fleeing farmers recount similar stories, and point to a little-discussed element of the threat Islamic State poses to Iraq and the region.

Control

The group now controls a large chunk of Iraq’s wheat supplies. The United Nations estimates land under IS control accounts for as much as 40 per cent of Iraq’s annual production of wheat, one of the country’s most important food staples alongside barley and rice. The militants seem intent not just on grabbing more land but also on managing resources and governing in their self-proclaimed caliphate.

Smooth transition

A farmer loads wheat grains onto a truck near the town of Makhmur, August 27, 2014. photo: REUTERS/Youssef Boudlal Wheat is one tool at their disposal. The group has begun using the grain to fill its pockets, to deprive opponents — especially members of the Christian and Yazidi minorities — of vital food supplies, and to win over fellow Sunni Muslims as it tightens its grip on captured territory. In Iraq’s northern breadbasket, much as it did in neighbouring Syria, IS has kept state employees and wheat silo operators in place to help run its empire. Such tactics are one reason IS poses a more complex threat than al-Qaida, the Islamist group from which it grew. For most of its existence, al-Qaida has focused on hit-and-run attacks and suicide bombings.

But Islamic State sees itself as both army and government. “Wheat is a strategic good. They are doing as much as they can with it,” said Ali Bind Dian, head of a farmers’ union in Makhmur, a town near IS-held territory between Arbil and Mosul. “Definitely they want to show off and pretend they are a government.” The Sunni militants and their allies now occupy more than a third of Iraq and a similar chunk of neighbouring Syria. The group generates income not just from wheat but also from “taxes” on business owners, looting, ransoming kidnapped westerners and, most especially, the sale of oil to local traders.

Seizing crops and livestock

In early August, Kurdish farmer Saeed Mustafa Hussein watched through binoculars as armed IS militants shovelled wheat onto four trucks, then drove off in the direction of Arab villages. Hussein said he does not know what became of his wheat. But he knows that IS runs flour mills in areas it controls and he believes that his wheat was likely milled and sold. He had 54 tonnes of wheat on his farm in the village of Pungina, northeast of Arbil, wheat he had been unable to sell to a government silo or private traders because of fighting in the area. The militants also took 200 chickens and 36 prized pigeons. “What made it worse was that I was helpless to prevent this, I couldn’t do anything. They took two generators from the village that we had recently received from the Kurdish government after a very long process,” said Hussein. Residents are too scared to return even though Kurdish fighters are now in control.

Military and economic power

IS is demonstrating that control-

In many ways, IS is replicating in Iraq strategies it developed in Syria. In the year it has controlled the town of Raqqa in northeastern Syria, for instance, IS militants say they have allowed former employees from Assad’s regime to continue to run its mills. The group has set up a wheat “diwan,” or bureau, in charge of the supply chain, from harvesting the crop to distributing flour. The same push to keep things running smoothly can be seen in Iraq. IS fighters have regularly avoided destroying government installations they have captured. When IS took over Iraq’s largest dam it kept employees in place and even brought in engineers from Mosul to make repairs. Baghdad, too, has tried to minimize upheaval. Hassan Ibrahim, head of Iraq’s Grain Board, the Trade Ministry body responsible for procuring Iraq’s wheat internationally and from local farmers, said that government employees in IS-held areas keep in regular touch with head office. “I give instructions to my people to try to be quiet and smooth with those people because they are very violent people. It is not good to be violent with violent people because they will come to kill you. Our aim is to keep the wheat.”

CONTINUES ON NEXT PAGE »

Call for Nominations: Directors for Regions 2,5,8,11 Who may become a director of the Alberta Canola Producers Commission (ACPC)? Anyone who has paid the ACPC a service charge on canola sold since August 1, 2012 is an eligible producer and can stand for election as a Director. An eligible producer can be an individual, corporation, partnership or organization. Eligible producers must produce canola within the defined region in order to be nominated, but do not have to reside within the region. For detailed descriptions about the ACPC regions where elections are being held visit www.canola.ab.ca or call the ACPC office at 1-800-551-6652. Nomination forms are available from the ACPC office. Nominations for the position of Director must be filed in writing at the ACPC office #170, 14315-118 Avenue, Edmonton, Alberta, T5L 4S6 or by fax 780-451-6933 on or before October 31, 2014. For more information contact Ward Toma, ACPC General Manager at 1-800-551-6652

ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA • OCTOBER 13, 2014

Winning hearts and stomachs

In some places, the IS stranglehold on wheat appears to be winning support among Sunnis. Ahsan Moheree, chairman of the government-affiliated Arab Farmers Union in Hawija, says IS has gained in popularity since its fighters took over. Baghdad’s dismissive attitude towards the country’s Sunni Arabs had forced people towards IS, he said. But IS’s ability to provide food had also helped. “They distribute flour to the Arabs in the area. They get the wheat from the Hawija silo... And they run the mill and they distribute to people in a very organized way,” he said.

The year ahead

The big worry now is next season’s crop. In Nineveh Province, home to the capital of the group’s self-declared caliphate, 750,000 hectares (1.8 million acres) should soon be sown with wheat and 835,000 hectares with barley, an Iraqi Agriculture Ministry official said. The official said that the province normally has 100,000 farmers. But thousands have fled. Getting the seeds and fertilizer into the right hands will be a problem. Mohamed Diab, director of the World Food Program’s Regional Bureau for the Middle East, North Africa, Central Asia and Eastern Europe, said that it is “highly unlikely” that displaced farmers would return. “The picture is bleak regarding agriculture production next year,” he said. “The place where displacement has happened is the main granary of the country.”

Sanctions bite and European farmers pay the price A bright future has clouded over as Russia’s ban on food imports send prices crashing BY CHRIS ARSENAULT

CAMPOSANTO, ITALY / THOMSON REUTERS FOUNDATION

he neat rows of manicured trees seem a world away from the barricades of eastern Ukraine, but political tensions between the European Union and Russia are reverberating in Fabio Lambertini’s pear farm in the tranquil Italian countryside. “There is a lot of fear,” said Lambertini, 25, at his family’s farmhouse sitting on the breezy, open plains of Modena. “We are seeing a decrease in prices.” In August, Russia declared a one-year embargo on meat, fish, dairy, fruit and vegetables from the European Union, the United States and other western nations in retaliation for economic sanctions over Moscow’s actions in Ukraine. Before anger over Russia’s support for rebels in Ukraine erupted into a trade war, the future looked bright for Lambertini. Rising demand from emerging markets, and investments in buildings, solar panels and an irrigation system meant sales were expected to rise. Across the continent, figures

are not yet available on how much money EU farmers have lost since Aug. 7 when Moscow imposed the ban. Russia’s move followed EU sanctions on key Russian energy and defence firms. EU farm exports to Russia had been worth about 11 billion euros a year, roughly 10 per cent of all EU agricultural sales. The tit-for-tat sanctions could cost farmers dearly. “These political decisions have nothing to do with simple citizens,” Lambertini said in an interview at his farm north of Rome. “We farmers are the ones paying for this situation.” Italian farmers like Lambertini sold about 706 million euros’ worth of food and drink to Russia last year, trailing other EU members including Poland, Germany, France and the Netherlands The loss of Russia’s growing market for high-end fruits and vegetables is causing a ripple effect throughout Europe as farmers seek to unload perishable produce as harvests peak. Francesco Vincenzi, president of Coldiretti Modena, a local farming association, said Europe had entered a “vicious cycle” on fruit prices.

“Italian pears had 10 to 15 per cent of the Russian market. Other countries had the remaining 90 per cent,” said Vincenzi. “Because of the sanctions, other producers like Holland and Spain are now exporting to European countries that were the typical market for Italian products.” Last year, farmers received about 50 cents per kilo of pears, but Coldiretti said it feared prices would dip to 40 cents as a result of the trade dispute. In 2013, Russia bought 72 million euros’ worth of Italian fruit and vegetables, meat worth 61 million euros, dairy products worth 72 million euros and pasta worth 50 million euros, Coldiretti reported. “We invested a lot of money to enter into the Russian market,” through new promotions and agreements, said Vincenzi. “Now that they aren’t accepting our products, we are losing that investment.” Turkey, China and Latin American countries are rushing to fill Russian shelves now emptied of European food products. Even if the sanctions end, some European farmers worry they will be permanently displaced from the market.

Wine Protected

The Russian ban does not affect alcohol, which should protect wine, which accounted for 16 per cent of Italy’s food and drink exports to Russia last year, according to Coldiretti. If the sanctions drag on, some farmers could consider planting different crops, responding to market demands. But pear trees take about six years before they start bearing fruit. “It isn’t so easy to change the production,” said Fabio’s father, Gaetano Lambertini. The European Union in August announced an initial aid package of 125 million euros for EU fruit and vegetable growers hit by the sanctions. An updated plan is expected to be announced soon, EU officials said. Playing with the family’s dogs and chatting with his father about their newly constructed barn with solar panels on the roof, Fabio Lambertini is optimistic Russians will once again be able to enjoy his pears. He just hopes it happens sooner, rather than later. “Agriculture is a tough business, there are a lot of ups and downs,” he said. “The farming market always has problems. But this is a new one.”

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OCTOBER 13, 2014 • ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA

Community news and events from across the province

Seventeen communities tap into AgriSpirit Fund staff

eventeen Alberta community groups received $185,000 from Farm Credit Canada’s AgriSpirit Fund in 2014. The fund awards rural community groups between $5,000 and $25,000 for community improvement projects, such as recreation and community centres, libraries, and emergency services training facilities. All projects are based in communities with populations less than 150,000 and the 2014 recipients must complete their projects by the end of 2016. Most of the Alberta projects were for upgrading or building community halls, arenas and other community meeting spaces, but funding was also given for a wildfire response truck (Trochu Fire Department), food banks (Athabasca and Vulcan), and a therapeutic park in Coaldale. Other communities receiving grants, which ranged from $5,000 to $20,000, were Le Crete, Cardiff, Rycroft, High Prairie, Munson, Dewberry, Holden, Priddis, Rocky Mountain House, Barrhead, Foremost, Armena, and Bonnyville. In total, the fund gave $1 million to 78 community groups across the country in 2014. Over the past 11 years, AgriSpirit has helped to fund 869 projects. “The FCC AgriSpirit Fund is about making life better for people in rural Canada — giving back to the communities where our customers and employees live and work,” said Sophie Perreault, FCC executive vice-president and chief operating officer. “We’re proud to work in partnership with these great organizations that are making a positive difference. Congratulations to all the recipients.” Nationally, 1,111 applications were received this year, and the next application period opens in spring 2015. Registered charities and non-profit organizations interested in funding can visit www.fccagri spiritfund.ca for eligibility requirements and to apply online.

Robert L. Ross Memorial Scholarship created Alberta producer Mike Kalisvaart pays tribute to business management expert and teacher us take our financial management to a whole new level and helped open us to a wider vision.” new scholarship is being offered to Ross, an Ontario dairy farmer and farm farmers who want to improve their business consultant, died of cancer in farm business management skills. March. The scholarship was created by The Robert L. Ross Memorial Scholarhis family, AME, and Farm Management ship offers free tuition to the CTEAM Canada, and will be offered annually. (Canadian Total Kalisvaart urged Excellence in AgriculAlberta producers, tural Management) particularly younger program and up to farmers and those $4,000 towards travel planning to grow their expenses. farm business, to con“Bob Ross was sider applying. instrumental in the “CTEAM is the creation of CTEAM,” premier Canadian said Heather Broughagricultural busiton, an Alberta farmer ness program and I and principal of Agrilearned a lot during Food Management my time in it,” said Excellence (AME), Kalisvaart, who with which offers the prowife Karen Jansen gram. were winners of “His passion for Canada’s Outstanding farm business manYoung Farmer award agement excellence in 2013. was exemplified as “I would suggest he encouraged and to any farmer who supported the paris becoming estabticipants through lished in their farm his many years of operation to take this involvement with the course to fill gaps in program.” their management One of them was skills and to network Gibbons producer with a large group Mike Kalisvaart, who of very successful The late Bob Ross remained in close graduates from across Photo: Supplied contact with Ross after Canada.” graduating from the The application deadCTEAM program in 2011. line is Oct. 31. Applicants must demon“Bob drew such energy and passion from strate they have a progressive operation helping farmers young and old improve and entrepreneurial spirit; community their business management skills, so this or industry involvement; and say how is a very fitting tribute,” said Kalisvaart. “I the value gained from the program will will always be grateful to him for the role be used. The application and scholarship he played in helping our family and being criteria can be found at such a great friend and mentor. He helped www.agrifoodtraining.com. Staff

what’s

Send agriculture-related meeting and event announcements to: glenn.cheater@fbcpublishing.com Oct. 15-16: Pembina Sheep Grazing Symposium 2014, Thorsby Community Hall, Thorsby. Contact: Tina 780-727-4447 Oct. 16: Beef Cattle Ration Balancing Workshop, Olds College (James Murray Building), Olds. Contact: Fiona McCarthy 403335-3311 ext. 143 Oct. 22: Working Well Workshop, Davisburg. Contact: Jeff Porter 403-333-8126 (also Oct. 23 in Priddis, Oct. 28 in Stettler, and various dates in November in Whitecourt, Lac Ste. Anne County, Clearwater, Pincher Creek, Morinville, Newbrook, Westlock, and Lac La Biche — see www. workingwell.alberta.ca) Oct. 23: Irrigation Management Seminar, MNP Office, Lethbridge. Brenda Martin 403-380-1657 Oct. 27: Harvest Sunlight — Feed the Soil, Grimshaw Legion Hall, Grimshaw. Contact: Monika Benoit 780-523-4033 (also Oct. 28 in Legal, Oct. 29 in Vermilion, Oct. 30 in both Pollockville and Vulcan) Oct. 30: Getting into Farming Information Session, Agriculture Centre, Airdrie. Contact: Ag-Info Centre 1-800-387-6030 Oct. 30: Agriculture Labour Summit, Black Knight Inn, Red Deer. Contact: Bryan Walton 403-250-2509 Nov. 4: Building Soil — Creating Land, Olds College (Land Sciences Building), Olds. Contact: Cassie 403-652-4900 Nov. 5: 16th Annual Red Deer Swine Technology Workshop, Sheraton Hotel, Red Deer. Contact: Lisa Doyle 403-244-7821

A joyous (and odorous) celebration By Alexis Kienlen af staff

From displays to garlic-peeling contests, the village of Andrew is all garlic, all the time during its annual festival. Photo: Courtesy Andrew Garlic Festival

or 16 years, residents of the town of Andrew have gathered to celebrate the stinking rose — and every year, more and more visitors join them. “It’s just grown tremendously,” said Carri Hrehorets, president of the Andrew Agricultural Society in the village of 400 located an hour’s drive northeast of Edmonton. “We get about 1,000 to 1,200 people out for the day.” The Andrew Garlic Festival, held on the second Saturday in October, doesn’t just showcase garlic, it also celebrates the village’s Ukrainian heritage.

“Garlic has been known to be linked to Ukrainians and cooking, growing and gardens,” she said. The agricultural society and its seven members have run the festival for the past five years. There are local garlic growers and a huge farmers’ market with 80 vendors, as well as items such as garlic popcorn, cooked cloves, dips and garlic beans. The evening banquet has a Ukrainian theme, centred around the garlic dishes. Other events include a garlicpeeling contest, a bench show, local entertainment featuring fiddlers and Ukrainian dancers, a dance party and scavenger hunt, and numerous kids’ activities. The local chamber of commerce started the event after hearing

about the success of the Smoky Lake Pumpkin Festival. “Originally our festival was just a basic little farmers’ market and bench show display. I think it started with 20 people showing up that first year,” said Hrehorets. But word spread far and wide, and it now attracts visitors from across Alberta and even neighbouring provinces. The agricultural society operates the volunteer-run arena in Andrew, and some of the funds collected during the garlic festival go to its maintenance. “The garlic festival is just one of the events we do to put funds back into the building,” said Hrehorets. akienlen@fbcpublishing.com

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advertising deadline Wednesday noon

Livestock_Equipment_ Livestock_Services_&_Vet_Supplies_ Miscellaneous_Articles_ Miscellaneous_Articles_Wanted_ Musical_ Notices_ On-Line_Services_

CERTIFIED SEED Cereal_Seeds Forage_Seeds Oilseeds Pulse_Crops Specialty_Crops

AD ORDER FORM

adveRtising Rates & infoRmation

RegulaR Classified

lIVESTOCK Swine Swine_Auction_ Swine_For_Sale_ Swine_Wanted_ lIVESTOCK Specialty Alpacas_ Bison_(Buffalo)_ Deer_ Elk_ Goats_ Llama_ Rabbits_ Emu/Ostrich/Rhea_ Yaks_ Various_

Even if you do not want your name & address to appear in your ad, we need the information for our files.

PLEASE_PRINT_YOUR_AD_BELOW_ ______________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________________________

CAUTION The Alberta Farmer Express, while assuming no responsibility for advertisements appearing in its columns, exercises the greatest care in an endeavor to restrict advertising to wholly reliable firms or individuals. However, please do not send money to a Manitoba Co-operator box number. Buyers are advised to request shipment C.O.D. when ordering from an unknown advertiser, thus minimizing the chance of fraud and eliminating the necessity of a refund where the goods have already been sold. At Farm Business Communications we have a firm commitment to protecting your privacy and security as our customer. Farm Business Communications will only collect personal information if it is required for the proper functioning of our business. As part of our commitment to enhance customer service, we may share this personal information with other strategic business partners. For more information regarding our Customer Information Privacy Policy, write to: Information Protection Officer, Farm Business Communications, 1666 Dublin Ave., Winnipeg, MB R3H 0H1. Occasionally we make our list of subscribers available to other reputable firms whose products and services might be of interest to you. If you would prefer not to receive such offers, please contact us at the address in the preceding paragraph, or call (204)-954-1456. The editors and journalists who write, contribute and provide opinions to Alberta Farmer Express and Farm Business Communications attempt to provide accurate and useful opinions, information and analysis. However, the editors, journalists and Alberta Farmer Express and Farm Business Communications, cannot and do not guarantee the accuracy of the information contained in this publication and the editors as well as Alberta Farmer Express and Farm Business Communication assume no responsibility for any actions or decisions taken by any reader for this publication based on any and all information provided.

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________________________ CLASSIFICATION__________________________ ❏ I would like to take advantage of the Prepayment Bonus of 2 FREE weeks when I prepay for 3 weeks. _

No._of_words_______________________x____$0.60____x_____No._of_weeks___ ______________ __=____ ______________ _ Minimum charge $15.00 per week

❏

VISA

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MASTERCARD

Card_No.___/__/__/__/____/__/__/__/____/__/__/__/____/__/__/__/____

Add $2.50 if being billed / Minus 10% if prepaying ________________ Expiry_Date___/__/_____/__/

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OCTOBER 13, 2014 • ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA

ANNOUNCEMENTS

BUILDINGS

FARM MACHINERY Machinery Miscellaneous

BUILDINGS

TRADE SHOW & CRAFT SALE October 25th, 2014 10am to 4pm (AB time)

40’ X 60’ X 16’ RIGID FRAME STEEL BUILDING

at the Bonanza Community Hall & Bowling Center In Bonanza, Alberta

Available at:

Neerlandia Co-op Association Ltd.

$28,418

Over 120 vendor tables featuring artisans and businesses from around the Peace Region. The best way to shop locally for everyone on your Christmas list.

When you go with steel you get the right deals!

Neerlandia, AB

(780) 674-2820

Pioneer One Steel Buildings

NO ADMISSION FEE • FREE DOOR PRIZE DRAWS • CONCESSION BOOTH

www.dseriescanola.ca

Call toll free 1 (877) 525-2004 or see us online at www.pioneeronesteel.com

Five minutes can get you 5% back from CPS

ACREAGE EQUIPMENT: CULTIVATORS, DISCS, Plows, Blades, Post pounders, Haying Equipment, Etc. (780)892-3092, Wabamun, Ab. H1000 HAYBUSTER, TUB GRINDER, nmew hammers & new governor, $8,500 OBO. Phone: (403)556-0665.

Available at:

Sturgeon Valley Fertilizers

Contact your local CPS representative about our PrePay program and start earning.

Legal, AB

(780) 961-3088

www.dseriescanola.ca BUSINESS SERVICES Financial & Legal

10/14-40516-1A

AUTO & TRANSPORT

40516 CPS_PrePay Print_4x4.indd 1

AUTO & TRANSPORT Autos 10/6/14

HAVE CANOLA? NEED CAPITAL? We buy Canola. We pay you before delivery. Canola for cash before delivery. Need Capital? www.inputcapital.com 844715-7355.

7:55 AM

FARM MACHINERY

AUTO & TRANSPORT Auto & Truck Parts

EXCLUSIVE MERCEDES-BENZ DISCOUNTS for Alberta farmers & ranchers. www.mercedessalesman.com

FARM MACHINERY Grain Vacuums

2004 DODGE DUALLY TRUCK box, white, good condition, asking $1,500. Phone (403)325-4695.

AUTO & TRANSPORT Trucks

2011 BUHLER 6640 GRAIN vacuum. NEW, never used. $19,900. Trades welcome. Call toll free: (877)862-2387 or (877)862-2413.

1980 GMC 7000, STEEL box, hoist, roll-tarp; 1976 Ford F600, steel box, hoist. Phone (403)321-0455.

FARM MACHINERY Parts & Accessories

2005 GMC 3500 DURAMAX dually 4x4 crew cab long box, w/exhaust brake, 5th wheel rails, camper tie downs & full leather, in excellent condition, $23,000 +GST. (403)932-2343 (403)519-7815.

BUILDINGS

Available at:

CHS DynAgra Carseland, AB

(403) 934-4644 www.dseriescanola.ca

FARMING IS ENOUGH OF

STEEL STORAGE CONTAINERS, 20-ft & 40-ft. Wind, water & rodent proof. 1-866-517-8335, (403)540-4164, (403)226-1722 magnate@telus.net

BUSINESS SERVICES BUSINESS SERVICES Crop Consulting

NEW WOBBLE BOXES for JD, IH, MacDon headers. Made in Europe, factory quality. Get it direct from Western Canada’s sole distributor starting at $1,095. 1-800-667-4515. www.combineworld.com

FARM MACHINERY Machinery Miscellaneous

FARM CHEMICAL SEED COMPLAINTS We also specialize in: Crop Insurance appeals; Chemical drift; Residual herbicide; Custom operator issues; Equipment malfunction; Yield comparisons, Plus Private Investigations of any nature. With our assistance the majority of our clients have received compensation previously denied. Back-Track Investigations investigates, documents your loss and assists in settling your claim. Licensed Agrologist on Staff. For more information Please call 1-866-882-4779

A GAMBLE...

Advertise in the Alberta Farmer Express Classifieds, it’s a Sure Thing!

1999 CAT 460 1,400 sep. hrs, rake up, $55,000; MacDon 962, 36-ft pick-up reel, $16,500; MacDon 871 CAT 460 adapter, $3,000. Call:(403)665-2341, Craigmyle, AB.

SOLD COWS. 2006 Haybuster bale processor, model 2650, good shape, stored inside, $13,000. Also calf sheds & round bale feeders. Also have a Westward 30-ft pull swather, $4000, has cut less than 8000-acs. (403)485-6530.

FARM MACHINERY Machinery Miscellaneous

RON SAUER

MACHINERY LTD. (403) 540-7691 ronsauer@shaw.ca

846 Ford Versatile Designation 6, 4WD Tractor 1990, newer 18.4 x 38 dualled tires,12 speed manual, 4 hyds., 6036 hrs., looks & runs good .............................. $28,500 555 JD Crawler Loader, 250 hrs. on rebuilt engine, good condition ................................................... $17,500 8070 AC Tractor, FWA, wheel base extended, duals .. $22,500 275 MF Tractor, diesel, multi power, 3 pth, new 18.4 x 30, front weights, loader available, looks and runs great .. $12,500 B275 IHC Tractor & Loader ................................ $3,500 51’ Degelman Landroller, only done 3,000 acres, as new.... .......................................................... $40,000 Degelman Dozer Frame MF 4000 Series 4WD .. $1,000 41’ Flexicoil B Chisel Plow, 3 bar harrows, excellent condition .............................................. $12,500 Flexicoil 6 Run Seed Treater .............................. $1,000 134’ Flexicoil S68XL Sprayer, 2007, suspended boom, auto rate, joystick, rinse tank, triple quick jets, auto boom height, electric end nozzle & foam marker............. $32,500 10 Wheel MATR (Italy) Trailer Type V-Hayrake, hyd. fold, as new.................................................. $5,000 100’ 65XL Flexicoil Sprayer, complete with windguards,elec. end nozzles single tips, auto rate, excellent condition .............................................. $12,500 NEW 12-39 Sakundiak Grain Auger, 44 HP Generac engine, E-Kay HD mover, power steering, belt tightener, slim fit, lights, scissor lift, remote throttle, new tires ............ $23,500 NEW TL 10-39 Sakundiak Grain Auger, 35HP Vanguard Motor, Hawes mover, clutch & lights, new tires ......$14,500 8 x 1000 Sakundiak Auger, new 30 HP Koehler engine, Hawes mover, gear box clutch, spout ....... CNT $9,000 8 x 1200 Sakundiak Auger, 25 HP Koehler engine, Hawes mover, clutch, runs good ............................... $8,500 7 x 1200 Sakundiak Auger, 18 HP Koehler engine, c/w sweep hyd. drive....................................$2,500 8 x 1400 Sakundiak Auger, 25 HP Robin engine, Hawes mover, clutch, spout, excellent condition, ...........CNT $10,000 New E-Kay 7” Bin Sweep .............**In Stock** $1,785 New E-Kay 7”, 8”, 9” Bin Sweeps available.........Call 8” Wheat Heart Transfer Auger, hydraulic drive .. $1,500 18.4 x 30, tractor tire & tube .....................................$350 New Outback RTK BASE stn ...................................... Call New Outback MAX & STX guidance & mapping ...In Stock New Outback E-Drive, TC’s .................................In Stock New Outback E-Drive X, c/w free E turns ............In Stock New Outback S-Lite guidance ............ **In Stock** $900 New Outback VSI Swather Steering Kit...........In Stock New Outback E-Drive Hyd. kit, JD 40 series ........ $1,000 Used Outback E-Drive Hyd. kits..............................$500

Grow Acropolis Warehousing Inc.

- Wire Roller can now be converted to roll up & unroll flat plastic water hose up to 6” diameter (11” flat) - Hydraulic Drive (roll or unroll) - Mounts to tractor draw bar, skidsteer front end loader, post driver, 3pt. hitch or deck truck (with receiver hitch & rear hydraulics) - Spool splits in half to remove full roll - Shut off/ Flow control valve determines speed - Works great for pulling out old wire (approx. 3--5 minutes to roll up 80 rod or 1/4 mile) - Also works great for swath grazing or rotational grazing The Level-Winder II Wire Roller rolls wire evenly across the full width of the spool automatically as the wire is pulled in Ken Lendvay (403) 550-3313 Red Deer, AB email: kflendvay@hotmail.com Web: www.levelwind.com

**NuVision (Spray Air) & Meridian-Sakundiak Augers, Outback GPS Systems, EK Auger Movers, Belt Tighteners, Bin Sweeps & Crop Dividers, Kohler, Robin Subaru & Generac Engines, Headsight Harvesting Solutions, Greentronics Sprayer Auto Boom Height, Kello-Bilt Discs**

Buy and Sell

Do one little thing and get 5% back on everything

anything you need through the

1-800-665-1362 FARM MACHINERY Machinery Wanted WANTED: NH BALE WAGONS & retrievers, any condition. Farm Equipment Finding Service, P.O. Box 1363, Polson, MT 59860. (406)883-2118

HAYING & HARVESTING

Ask your local CPS representative about our PrePay program and earn 5% toward future crop inputs.

Available at:

Barb Wire & Electric High Tensile Wire Spooler & Water Hose Roller

Alberta Farmer Express classifieds, 1-800-665-1362.

HAYING & HARVESTING Baling Equipment HESSTON 4655 INLINE SMALL square baler, quarter turn chute; New Holland 1033 square bale pickup wagon; 1948 Farmall M tractor, live hydraulics; single bottom 30-in breaking plow; Maxant single frame flail honey uncapper. Call (780)841-2984 WANTED: JD 7810 c/w FEL & 3-PTH; sp or PTO bale wagon; JD or IHC end wheel drills. Small square baler. (403)394-4401

Edmonton, AB

HAYING & HARVESTING Various

(780) 466-4028

1-800-665-1362

FARM MACHINERY Machinery Miscellaneous

www.dseriescanola.ca 40516 CPS_PrePay Print_4x4.indd 2

10/14-40516-2A

2011 MACDON R85 DISC mower conditioner header. No use since $10,470.00 Warranty up-grade work order. Excellent condition. $24,900.00 Trades welcome. Toll free 1-877-862-2387, 1-877-862-2413

10/6/14 7:55 AM

ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA • OCTOBER 13, 2014

TRACTORS Various

Combines COMBINES Combines - Various

Big Tractor Parts, Inc. Geared For The Future

STEIGER TRACTOR SPECIALIST

COMBINE WORLD located 20 min. E of Saskatoon, SK on Hwy. #16. 1 year warranty on all new, used, and rebuilt parts. Canada’s largest inventory of late model combines & swathers. 1-800-667-4515 www.combineworld.com

COMBINES Accessories RECONDITIONED COMBINE HEADERS. RIGID & flex, most makes & sizes; also header transports. Ed Lorenz, (306)344-4811 or Website: www.straightcutheaders.com Paradise Hill, SK.

TracTors

RED OR GREEN 1. 10-25% savings on new replacement parts for your Steiger drive train. 2. We rebuild axles, transmissions and dropboxes with ONE YEAR WARRANTY. 3. 50% savings on used parts.

1-800-982-1769 www.bigtractorparts.com

HEAT & AIR CONDITIONING

TRACTORS Case/IH

2012 CIH STEIGER 500HD. 696-hours, like new, full factory warranty until May 15th, 2015. Loaded w/options-no PTO. Almost anything on trade. $269,000.00 Phone toll free 1-877-862-2387 or 1-877-862-2413.

FINANCE, TRADES WELCOME 780-696-3527, BRETON, AB

CAREERS Help Wanted

BUYING:

HEATED & GREEN CANOLA

NEW-HOLLAND/CIH TECHNICIAN REQUIRED IMMEDIATELY. Sunny Southern Alberta, growing independent dealership, competitive wages, benefits, relocation. Call Bob (403)625-3321 or email service@challengernh.ca

• Competitive Prices • Prompt Movement • Spring Thrashed “ON FARM PICK UP”

1-877-250-5252

CANOLA WANTED Buying Tough, Heated, Green, Canola, Freight Options, Prompt Payment Bonded and Insured

CALL 1-866-388-6284 www.milliganbiofuels.com

• Sprayed foam insulation • Ideal for shops, barns or homes • Healthier, Quieter, More Energy Efficient®

www.penta.ca

1-800-587-4711

LIVESTOCK LIVESTOCK Cattle – Shorthorn 4’S COMPANY 34th ANNUAL Purebred Shorthorn sale, Sun., Dec 7th. Camrose Regional Exhibition AB, 1:00pm. Canada’s longest running private sale. Bred Heifers, Heifer calves, Herd Sire prospects & commercial bred Heifers. View catalogue online, www.canadianshorthorn.com, catalogue’s call (780)763-2209. Please pre-register for online bidding at dlms.ca

HERD DISPERSAL DUE TO personal health issues dual registered, champion bloodlines, 26 females, 17 males, open to offers as must sell. For more info alpacas@eidnet.org

New 30.5L-32 16 ply, $1,995; 20.8-38 12 ply $795; 24.5-32 14 ply, $1,495; 14.9-24 12 ply, $486; 16.9-28 12 ply $558; 23.1-30 12 ply, $1,495; 18.4-26 10 ply, $890; 11R22.5 16 ply, $299. Factory direct. More sizes available new and used. 1-800-667-4515. www.combineworld.com

TRAILERS TRAILERS Livestock Trailers WILSON CATTLELINER ALUMINUM STRAIGHT, 1986, spring ride, weather inserts, barn doors, good condition, asking $10,750. Phone (403)325-4695 We know that farming is enough of a gamble so if you want to sell it fast place your ad in the Alberta Farmer Express classifieds. It’s a Sure Thing. Call our toll-free number today. We have friendly staff ready to help. 1-800-665-1362.

TRAILERS Trailers Miscellaneous

BUYING ALL TYPES OF feed grain. Also have market for light offgrade or heated, picked up on the farm. Eisses Grain Marketing 1-888-882-7803, Lacombe.

Innisfail, AB

FEED GRAIN WANTED! ALSO buying; Light, tough, or offgrade grains. “On Farm Pickup” Westcan Feed & Grain 1-877-250-5252

(403) 227-3466

SEED/ FEED/GRAIN Grain Wanted

AG EQUIPMENT DEALS on your PHONE

Get the APP »» SPRAYING EQUIPMENT Sprayers

Drumheller, AB

(403) 823-4600

www.dseriescanola.ca

AGRICULTURAL TOURS Available at:

Edberg Crop Management Inc. Edberg, AB

Select Holidays

(780) 877-0003

1-800-661-4326

www.selectholidays.com

www.dseriescanola.ca

Give us five minutes and we’ll give you 5% back

BUYING HEATED/DAMAGED PEAS, FLAX & GRAIN “On Farm Pickup” Westcan Feed & Grain 1-877-250-5252 BUYING SPRING THRASHED CANOLA & GRAIN “On Farm Pickup” Westcan Feed & Grain 1-877-250-5252

BOW VALLEY TRADING LTD.

WE BUY DAMAGED GRAIN

Available at:

W. Buis Holdings Limited

10/14-40516-3A

40516 CPS_PrePay Print_4x4.indd 3

Foremost, AB

(403) 867-2436

CAHOF 2014 Ad

9/9/14

3:24 PM

Page 1

AG DEALS TO GO!

10/6/14 7:56 AM

www.dseriescanola.ca TRAILERS Trailers Miscellaneous

Wheat, Barley, Oats, Peas, etc. Green or Heated Canola/Flax

JOIN THE CELEBRATION! Canadian Agricultural Hall of Fame

1-877-641-2798

SPRAYING EQUIPMENT Sprayers 48-FT. 1995 WILSON ALUMINUM Combo tandem hi-boy, new tires, new airbags. Hasn’t been used for 10 yrs, excellent condition, asking $11,500. Phone (403)325-4695.

JD 9400, 9420, 9520, 8970 JD 9860, 9760, 9750, 9650, 9600 JD 9430, 9530, 9630 Case STX 375, 425, 430, 450, 480, 500, 530 CIH 8010-2388, 2188 combine CIH 435Q, 535Q, 450Q, 550Q, 600Q pto avail. JD 4710, 4720, 4730, 4830, 4920, 4930 SP sprayers JD 9770 & 9870 w/CM & duals CIH 3185, 3230, 3330, 4430, 4420 sprayers

1-800-665-1362

SEED/ FEED/GRAIN Feed Grain

Central Alberta Co-op Ltd.

Search for

Kneehill Soil Services Ltd.

See your local CPS expert. Sign up for the CPS PrePay program.

SEED / FEED / GRAIN

www.dseriescanola.ca

ADVERTISING DOLLAR!

*Portion of tours may be Tax Deductible

LIVESTOCK Specialty – Alpacas

Available at:

Stretch your

Available at:

Australia/New Zealand ~ Jan 2015 South America ~ Jan 2015 Kenya/Tanzania ~ Jan 2015 Costa Rica ~ Feb 2015 South Africa/Zambia ~ Feb 2015 India ~ Feb 2015 Japan ~ May 2015 Ireland/Scotland ~ June 2015 Scandinavia ~ June 2015

The Icynene Insulation System®

CASE 2090 (1984) W/CAB, A/C, dual PTO, front weight & duals. Full engine rebuilt 7,000-hrs, in VGC, $14,000 +GST. (403)932-2343 or (403)519-7815

JD 2955 c/w ldr., 3 pth hitch JD 7600 FWA, c/w loader JD 7700 FWA c/w 740 loader JD 4620 FWA, c/w loader CASE IH 4700 Vibra Shank, 34ft. Clamp on Duals, 20.8x38-18.4x38 148, 265, 740, 280, JD ldr.

CAREERS

TRAVEL

TIRES

1997 CIH 9330 4WD. 240-HP, 4700-hrs, 4-hyd, power shift, radar, EZ steer, 500-hrs on drop in engine, excellent condition, no pto. $68,900.00 Phone toll free 1-877-862-2387. 1-877-862-2413.

TRACTORS Various

SEED/ FEED/GRAIN Grain Wanted

4955 JD low hrs, 3 pth, very clean S680 JD Combine low hrs 2011 4730 JD Sprayer, 100 ft. 4050 JD, fwa loader with complete front end NH T8050 with fwa 4920 Macdon, 21 ft. D.S.A.

Hit our readers where it counts… in the classifieds. Place your ad in the Alberta Farmer Express classifed section. 1-800-665-1362.

Walter Browarny (nominated by: Canadian Beef Breeds Council)

Charles Froebe (nominated by: Canadian Canola Growers Association)

Lorne Hepworth (nominated by: CropLife Canada)

Sunday November 9, 2014

GOOD SELECTION OF JD & CASE SP SPRAYERS AND 4WD TRACTORS

“LIKE MANY BEFORE, WE’LL HAVE YOU SAYING THERE’S NO DEAL LIKE A KEN DEAL” • Phone: (403)526-9644 • Cell: (403)504-4929 • Email: kendeal@shaw.ca

Induction Ceremony to Honour

6:00 pm Cocktail Reception 7:00 pm Dinner and Ceremony 48-FT. ROADMASTER TANDEM DROPDECK, 1987, air ride, tires 65%, asking $9,750. Phone (403)325-4695. 53-FT. MANAC DRY VAN, 1997, spring ride, rollup door, fibreglass roof, no leaks. Great for storage or mobile shop, asking $6,450. Phone (403)325-4695.

Centennial Room, Liberty Grand 25 British Columbia Road, Exhibition Place, Toronto ON

For tickets and information contact: Canadian Agricultural Hall of Fame c/o Doug McDonell Tel: (905) 878-4394 Cell: (905) 467-3483 secretary@cahfa.com

FO R NO TH W E BO 20 O 15 KI ED NG IT IO N

OCTOBER 13, 2014 • ALBERTAFARMEXPRESS.CA

ADVERTISE YOUR AG BUSINESS WHERE IT COUNTS.

The Farmer’s Product Guide helps farmers make informed decisions on everything that’s essential to their farm. From equipment and accessories to buildings, technology, tillage and trucks – the Farmer’s Product Guide covers it all. If you’re in the Ag business, the Farmer’s Product Guide offers you some amazing opportunities to reach your target audience! Call to find out about our fully integrated media solutions featuring print, online, email and interactive.

135,000 COPIES PRINTED And distributed through:

FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT:

Terry McGarry Ph: (204) 981-3730 Email: trmcgarr@mts.net

and at all major farm shows.

THOUSANDS OF FUllY SEARCHABlE AG PRODUCT AND SERVICE lISTINGS: WWW.FARMERSPRODUCTGUIDE.COM