MBC121220 by Farm Business Communications

From all of us at the Manitoba Co-operator

HOLIDAY TRADITIONS

DECEMBER 20, 2012

SERVING MANITOBA FARMERS SINCE 1925 | VOL. 70, NO. 51

MANITOBACOOPERATOR.CA

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Twinkling Christmas lights a marvel then and now Long ago, in a much darker time, Manitoba towns and later farmyards took a stand against winter’s gloom by putting up “festoon lighting” to warm the hearts of young and old

For Bill and Vi Fraser who live eight miles west of Neepawa on Highway 16 the lighting of their farm started with one string of lights in 1958. Since then it has steadily grown with even people dropping lights off at their doorstep. It takes about 87 hours to set up their display which can be seen for miles and stays up till the 8th of January. PHOTO: SANDY BLACK By Lorraine Stevenson CO-OPERATOR STAFF

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anta’s elves don’t usually wear steel-toed boots and wield welding torches — but his satellite crew in Carman does. Members of the town’s public works department have made it a personal mission to push back the gloom of winter by turning three-eighths-inch rebar into a growing assortment of candy canes, candles, stars, bells, trees, and snowflakes. “When we started we had a b o u t e i g h t ,” re c a l l s Jo e Richardson, the public works foreman. “I think we have 102 now.”

The work is done whenever time allows and there’s also the annual task of replacing burntout bulbs and repairing torn garlands. And they’re keen to get their works on display early, devoting three or four days in early November to mount them on Hydro poles so that everything is up and twinkling by Remembrance Day. Making their own street decorations is not only cost effective — “a few bucks” for rebar versus as much as $500 for large, factory-made decorations, notes Richardson — but also a chance to get creative. This year, they created shooting stars, with glittering tails. They likely don’t know it, but

the workers in Carman’s public works department are carrying on a tradition that dates back to one of the darkest times in Manitoba’s history — the Great Depression.

“The power comes”

Electric lights first came to rural Manitoba in 1921, when R o l a n d , Mo r d e n , V i r d e n , and Minnedosa were electrified by the Manitoba Power Commission. More, including Carman, soon followed, although it would take four decades before the last of Manitoba’s 523 towns and villages were put on the grid. But it wasn’t until the Dirty Thirties that Christmas lights

began to show up. It was the result of an inspired idea in 1935 from the power commission — offer small towns free electricity or “free light” for the holiday season. The power company’s objective was to boost electricity use and generate some goodwill, and many small towns quickly adopted what was then called “festoon lighting.” Soon, strings of coloured Christmas lights brightened dreary Main Streets where small-town merchants struggled to survive. “From a number of the towns we have received reports of increased Christmas trade by See LIGHTS on page 6 »

TRADITIONS: HOW PIONEERS KEPT THE TREE IN CHRISTMAS » PAGE 24

The Manitoba Co-operator | December 20, 2012

INSIDE

on the lighter side

LIVESTOCK

Garbage bug may help lower the cost of biofuel

Cattle cussing be gone Researchers study genetics to seek out calm cattle

CROPS Hitiching a ride Astor yellows rode the wind into Manitoba last summer

FEATURE Friends in high places The federal Tories support supply management: academic

CROSSROADS Oh Christmas tree where are you? Early pioneers were determined to have one

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Editorials Comments What’s Up Livestock Markets

Grain Markets Weather Vane Classifieds Sudoku

The ground was literally bubbling with microbial activity

University of Illinois researcher out for a long-distance run may have found a solution to making cheaper biofuel. The conventional process for making ethanol today is the age-old one of distillation, which needs high-quality cellulose found in grains such as corn and wheat to work effectively. The microbes that produce ethanol do not work well on hemicellulose, the tougher material found in straw, stover and wood. They convert only the glucose in the cellulose, thus using less than half of the available plant material. “Here at (U of I) and other places in the biofuel world, people are trying to engineer microbes that can use both,” University of Illinois microbiologist Isaac Cann said in a release. C a n n a n d Ro d M a c k i e, also a U of I microbiologist, have been doing research on an organism that they think could be used to solve this problem.

Potential source of wood- and straw-eating bacteria? Mackie, a long-distance runner, found the microbe in the garbage dump of a canning plant while running in Hoopeston, Ill., in 1993. He noticed that the ground was literally bubbling with microbial activity and took samples. He and his son Kevin, who was in high school at the time, isolated microbes from the samples. Among these was a bacte-

rium that was later named Caldanaerobius polysaccharolyticus, which contains all of the proteins and enzymes needed to break down xylan, which is the most common hemicellulose. The researchers say the gene structure of the bacterium makes it amenable for transferr ing to another microbe that can degrade both cellulose and hemicellulose.

READER’S PHOTO

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The Manitoba Co-operator | December 20, 2012

Long-awaited rail service legislation tabled to farmer applause Shippers will have the right to a rail agreement even if it has to be imposed through statutory arbitration By Allan Dawson co-operator staff

anada’s grain sector and other railway shippers are hailing the federal government’s newly tabled rail legislation as another critical step towards better railway service. After six years of consensus building, lobbying, a study and recommendations from an independent panel followed by more consultations, Bill C-52, the Fair Rail Freight Service Act, was tabled in the House of Commons Dec. 11, despite opposition from Canadian National (CN) and Canadian Pacific (CP) railways. The railways say the law will stifle innovation. If passed, the bill will make the railways more efficient and reliable, boosting Canada’s economy, Transport Minister Denis Lebel told reporters in Winnipeg last week. “The goal of this legislation is to make shippers and railways work together,” he said. The bill, which the Canadian Canola Growers Association called “a milestone,” will give all rail shippers the right to service agreements with the railways, an official with Transport Canada said during a technical briefing. That’s key in forcing the railways to define service so they can be penalized if they fail to provide it, said Greg Cherewky, executive director of Pulse Canada and one of the leaders pushing the legislation since 2006. Co - o p e ra t i o n , n o t j u s t among farmers but all rail users, played a major role in getting C-52, he said in an interview Dec. 14. “I can’t say this with absolute certainty, but I would think the level of collaboration seen in this latest round hasn’t been achieved in the past, or at least not in recent memory,” Cherewky said. “It’s all about government having a clear signal from the shipper community.”

“These are good backstop provisions. The railways have nothing to worry about if they provide satisfactory levels of service.” Kevin Bender

If a commercial service agreement can’t be reached voluntarily within 30 days after being requested by a shipper, one will be imposed on the railway through Ca n a d i a n Tra n s p o r t a t i o n Agency (CTA)-led arbitration. “To be eligible for arbitration the shipper has to demonstrate that he or she has made an attempt to reach a contract on service commercially and the shipper also has to give 15 days’ advance notice to the railway that it is seeking arbitration,” the official said. Arbitration will be quick and relatively inexpensive, the official said. Normally it will take no more than 45 days, but the arbitrator can add another 20 days at his or her own discretion. The arbitrated agreement is valid for one year and can’t be appealed. The arbitrator has broad powers to impose service-related conditions in an agreement, including communication protocols and railway performance. The arbitrator will also take into account railway concerns and how an agreement might affect other rail customers. Should a railway breach either a voluntary or arbitrated service agreement the new law allows the railway to be fined up to $100,000 for each violation. “The government believes that this will benefit shippers because it will ensure that railways are held accountable for obligations in arbitrated service agreements,” the official

Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz (l) and Transport Minister Denis Lebel announced details of the long-awaited Fair Rail Freight Service Act. photo: transport Canada

said. “It will provide a quick and inexpensive process for shippers to complain when there has been a breach.” Shippers can still use existing legislation to seek redress for poor rail service, as well as sue the railways. “These are good backstop provisions,” Western Canadian Wheat Growers Association president Kevin Bender said in a news release. “The railways have nothing to worry about if they provide satisfactory levels of service.” Legislation is unnecessary because “there is no evidence of systemic rail service performance problems in Canada,” CN said in a news release. Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz said the railways have stepped up their game. “As the railways found themselves under this lens their service has stepped up exponentially,” he told reporters. The Keystone Agricultural Producers welcomes the bill as a good first step and hopes

it will be passed quickly, KAP president Doug Chorney said in a release. KAP, however, says including provisions for monitoring the law’s impact need to be part of the bill. The Canadian Federation of Agriculture also wants the bill passed quickly and a review of railway costs. (See sidebar) T h e Na t i o n a l Fa r m e r s Union says the government is acknowledging the railways need to be regulated. President Terry Boehm said he doubts individual shippers have enough market power to influence railway behaviour. Confidential agreements could result in shippers bidding against each other for rail service, he warned. “Without a legislative backstop, it is nearly impossible for even the largest shippers to negotiate service agreements that reflect what would happen in a competitive marketplace,” Western Grain Elevator Association executive director Wade Sobkowich said in a

release. “We are optimistic that this legislation will allow for meaningful commercial negotiations with the railways by providing an arbitration process and legislated penalties.” Liberal MP Ralph Goodale and NDP MP Malcolm Allen both said the bill is a “good first step,” but they will be vigilant during the committee stage. Cherewky said he and other shippers will go over the legislation closely too. “We do have to go through this line by line and understand everything that’s in there,” he said. “My first impression is that it’s positive and headed in the right direction.” Tabling C-52 is a milestone, but the process isn’t over, he said. “Yes, it’s very satisfying to reach this point. We’re not done. This is the right step and now it’s a matter of ensuring that this piece of legislation does what we want it to do and that we get it put into place.” allan@fbcpublishing.com

Rail service issues being addressed, now look at rail costs The CFA and NFU say farmers pay the railways too much for hauling grain By Allan Dawson co-operator staff

Most farm groups have nothing but praise for the federal government’s new bill, the Fair Rail Freight Service Act. But the Canadian Federation of Agriculture and National Farmers Union are calling on Ottawa to now review railway costs for shipping Western grain to the West Coast and Thunder Bay. Federal ministers have said the government’s focus was on rail service. Almost two years ago former minister of state for transport Rob Merrifield warned a costing review could see farmers pay even more. “It’s (revenue cap) only gone up 6.2 per cent

— less than the cost of living — in a decade so it’s not something that’s getting out of hand on us,” he said. A study commissioned by the Canadian Wheat Board several years ago estimated the railways were earning close to 60 per cent of their variable costs, compared to 20 per cent in the late 1980s. The report concluded farmers were collectively overpaying the railways $6 a tonne to ship grain or a total of $200 million a year. Although the amount the railways can earn from shipping western Canadian grain to export is capped, the cap is adjusted annually for grain volume and inflationary railway costs. On Aug. 1 those inflationary costs jumped

a record 9.5 per cent, which works out to an extra $3 a tonne or almost $87 million during the current crop year. Farmers complain while the cap is adjusted for inflation it’s not adjusted to reflect increased railway efficiency resulting from hauling longer trains from fewer elevators. Last spring the Western Canadian Wheat Growers Association argued the cap should be adjusted to reflect costs that would otherwise exist if competitive market forces were at play. The lack of competition between railways was what led to the cap in the first place. How likely is it Ottawa will review rail costs? One industry observer, who asked not to be named, said not likely. The government’s new bill appears to deliver what farmers and

other shippers are seeking. And it comes even though the railways, which are powerful politically and economically, oppose it. And while the railways might be earning considerably more shipping grain than they did a decade ago, farmers are the only shippers protected by a revenue cap, which has kept grain transportation costs under inflation. Meanwhile, farmers are enjoying high grain prices. Given all that, how safe is the cap? Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz has said in the past farmers might be willing to pay the railways more to get better service. And the railways have also said the cap should end. allan@fbcpublishing.com

The Manitoba Co-operator | December 20, 2012

OPINION/EDITORIAL

Making peace with the land

ometimes it’s downright painful watching two positive forces on a collision course simply because they don’t know how to talk to each other. Take environmental crusader David Suzuki’s speech to the recent convention of members of Manitoba Conservation Districts Association (MCDA), a group that might be described as “eco-rednecks.” Suzuki was invited there to talk. The Laura Rance MCDA was there to listen. It’s too bad there Editor wasn’t an opportunity for those roles to be reversed, because Suzuki might have learned something about how to protect the environment by working with people instead of picking fights. Suzuki and this audience were, for the most part, on the same page. Both recognize the need to conserve and protect the natural environment, the importance of diversity and the need to find change how we think about our place in the ecosystem. Much of Suzuki’s core message was already said by others at the conference, albeit in different words. He was treated to spontaneous bursts of applause when he spoke against omnibus legislation that is undermining environmental safeguards without public discussion. His talk received a standing ovation. This was from a group that is “getting it done” on the landscape. Conservation districts are on the front lines of dealing with the effects of a compromised landscape and climate change. They are making change — and changing minds — by demonstrating that it is in people’s individual self-interest to do right by the environment. C.D.-assisted projects such as off-site watering improve herd health. Improved herd health means better productivity. Erosion control makes for better soil. Better soil produces more crop for less cost. And so it goes. To his credit, Suzuki acknowledged to the audience of 1,000 people that despite isolated victories in stopping dams, saving forests and stopping pipelines, the environmental warriors are losing ground. “We thought we had celebrated these great victories, but in fact they were just skirmishes and we’ve done nothing to change the way people see themselves in the world. So we didn’t shift the paradigm,” Suzuki said. “I believe the environmental movement has fundamentally failed in making that shift in the way that we see ourselves on the planet.” He noted that humans, who became the dominant species because of their intelligence and ability to foresee and take action to avoid danger have reached a point in history where they are ignoring warnings that their survival as a species is at risk. “We are turning our backs on the very trait, the ability that got us to where we are now.” Why? “We have elevated the economy above the very things that keep us alive,” he says. “I’ve spent the last 50 years of my life fighting for a better future, fighting to protect forests, fighting to protect endangered fish and I just don’t think we can continue this kind of fighting. Because every time there is a fight, there is a winner and a loser or else both sides compromise like mad. I don’t think we can compromise anymore and I don’t think we can afford losers.” Until then, Suzuki, the elder statesman, had the audience on side. But during questions, Suzuki the scrapper re-emerged to call pesticides “the dumbest thing ever invented,” and to urge a largely rural crowd to get rid of a federal government many of them helped elect. Sigh. Scientists have recently come up with an explanation for why environmentalists are polarized along partisan lines. A University of California Berkeley study concluded it’s all in how we frame those issues when talking to each other. Conservative thinkers react more positively to messages built around a need to protect the purity and sanctity of the Earth, whereas liberal thinkers responded better to arguments built around a moral obligation to care. For example, Suzuki says humans have a duty to lessen their environmental footprint and limit consumption to within the laws of nature for the planet’s sake. Livestock producers understand that — they would call it the planet’s “carrying capacity.” Exceed it and be doomed. The research findings, published in Psychological Science, indicate that reframing pro-environmental rhetoric according to values that resonate strongly with conservatives can reduce partisan polarization on ecological matters. “These findings offer the prospect of pro-environmental persuasion across party lines,” said Robb Willer, a co-author of the study. “Reaching out to conservatives in a respectful and persuasive way is critical, because large numbers of Americans will need to support significant environment reforms if we are going to deal effectively with climate change, in particular.” If we are to make peace with the land, we must first make peace with each other. laura@fbcpublishing.com

Research needed to verify effectiveness of E. coli vaccine Irradiation  CCA says that as in the U.S., it should be approved for ground beef Alberta Beef Producers Grass Routes newsletter

he beef recall at XL Foods Inc. put the spotlight on additional E. coli interventions, with a good deal of the focus on the E. coli vaccine licensed in Canada. The Canadian Cattlemen’s Association believes that research is required to verify that the vaccination of cattle has a public health benefit by comparing beef products made from vaccinated and unvaccinated animals. The need for this work is also recognized by public health authorities. Another consideration is that the vaccine does not reduce shedding by cattle of other types of pathogenic E. coli. These strains include the six additional types of E. coli (the so-called Big Six) that U.S. and Canadian beef processors are now required to test for in addition to E. coli 0157:H7. Unlike the vaccine, other types of food safety interventions such as irradiation, antimicrobial sprays or carcass pasteurization can reduce all types of foodborne pathogens. Challenges around the practical application of the vaccine — and not cost as was implied in some media coverage — have also tempered its use in the industry as a critical control point. The need for three separate injections spaced over a period of time plus a withdrawal period, and pre-

OUR HISTORY:

venting vaccinated cattle from mixing with unvaccinated animals or those shedding E. coli; a determination that can’t be made visually, are the significant challenges cited by industry. More than a decade ago, cattle producers submitted an application for the approval of ground beef irradiation to Health Canada recognizing that this is a proven and highly effective intervention. While Health Canada’s scientific review of our application was successfully completed, final approval has not yet been received. The CCA believes that Canadians should have the choice to purchase irradiated ground beef, as consumers in the U.S. do currently. Canadian cattle producers strongly support the ultimate objective of reducing, and if possible eliminating, E. coli-related illness associated with beef. The Canadian cattle industry has made financial contributions to the development of the current vaccine and has instigated ongoing research projects which examine the effectiveness of multiple types of pre-harvest (on-farm) interventions. Currently, we are awaiting results of a trial which compares the effectiveness of the vaccine to a probiotic product mixed in feed. We have assembled an expert advisory of North American scientists from industry, government and academia to help us understand developments in the area of pre-harvest food safety interventions. In addition, Canadian cattle producers are providing financial support to research relating to food safety interventions which can be used inside processing facilities.

December, 1927

he dedication of our predecessor publication The Scoop Shovel to the principles of co-operation was clearly evident on the cover of the December, 1927 issue. As was common with farm publications of the time, the issue had two short stories, both on a Christmas theme. In “Jeff’s Christmas Concert,” Jeff gets what he wished for — his mother recovering from the flu, his father returning from Ontario on Christmas Eve, and a chest of “real tools.” In “The Melting of Mr. Mellor,” on Christmas Eve a wealthy businessman reluctantly gives his daughter permission to marry a young man from a farming family in the wheat pool movement, “the new way of doing things.”

The Manitoba Co-operator | December 20, 2012

COMMENT/FEEDBACK

The need for change in the Canadian pig industry Straw-based group-housing systems are used, or are being implemented, worldwide as gestation crates have been banned in a growing number of countries By Olivier Berreville

n Canada, large industrial operations designed to raise hundreds to thousands of pigs in confinement have largely replaced the small, mixed farms that dominated the landscape before the Second World War. These pig factories typically rely on liquid manure systems and have been widely criticized for their negative impact on the environment, and worker health. Pig industry animal welfare issues may now be coming to the fore with the December 8 CTV W5 airing of footage shot by a Mercy For Animals undercover investigator who worked for 10 weeks at Interlake Weanlings, a 3,000-sow operation recently purchased by Maple Leaf Foods from the Puratone Corporation, located near Arborg, Manitoba. I was one of the scientists asked by the animal protection organization Mercy For Animals Canada to review the undercover footage before its release. The footage revealed numerous welfare issues. Male piglets were routinely castrated in a crude and extremely painful fashion. Their skin was cut into and their abdomens squeezed to expel their testicles, which were then cut off with scissors. No anesthetics or analgesics were used. The failure to use anesthetics is so inherently cruel that castration has been banned in some countries (i.e. U.K., Ireland). The European Union is moving towards a full ban on castration — with or without anesthetics or analgesics — by 2018.

Alternatives exist

Letters

The severe pain caused by the procedure is fully unnecessary. Studies have shown that a mere three per cent of intact male pigs (boars) develop tainted meat from hormone release. Alternatives such as vaccinations exist. The methods used by Interlake Weanlings to kill undesired piglets and compromised sows were also ineffective and cruel. Piglet thumping (smashing a piglet’s head on the concrete or against a metal pole) proved unreliable in bringing about sufficient brain damage to kill. Piglets were often left conscious and suffering. The use of a captive bolt pistol that fires a metal bolt into a sow’s skull left many sows conscious and suffering, as evidenced by eye blinking after receiving the blow. The majority of the footage was of pigs confined to filthy, metal gestation crates — 1.2-square-metre cages where pregnant pigs are imprisoned until they are moved to another crate (called a “farrowing crate”) where they give birth and nurse piglets until forcibly weaned. The video documented animals suffering from painful pressure wounds, eye infections and various other painful conditions such as uterine or rectal prolapses. Some of these health-compromised sows were left to suffer for days and actively abused. For example, a lame sow was kicked,

We welcome readers’ comments on issues that have been covered in the Manitoba Co-operator. In most cases we cannot accept “open” letters or copies of letters which have been sent to several publications. Letters are subject to editing for length or taste. We suggest a maximum of about 300 words. Please forward letters to Manitoba Co-operator, 1666 Dublin Ave., Winnipeg, R3H 0H1 or Fax: 204-954-1422 or email: news@fbcpublishing.com (subject: To the editor)

slapped, and pulled by her ears to force her to walk to a location where she was then killed. The video showed how intensive confinement in sow stalls causes chronic psychological distress. These sows exhibited various stereotypical behaviours such as repetitive bar biting. Such a barren, restrictive environment is unacceptable for any animal, particularly animals as intelligent and sensitive as pigs.

Widely used

These systems of extreme confinement are not restricted to this barn but widely used across Canada. Yet, alternatives exist. For instance, hoop systems where pigs are group housed on straw, protected from the elements when needed, allowed access to the outdoors and the ability to interact with others, were widely used before the development of large industrial production units. Hoop barns can easily be adapted, at minimal cost, to house gilts and sows in groups on straw. Providing straw or some other form of rooting material is a critical requirement in any conversion to group housing. Sows need a substrate that allows them to root, forage and make a nest for their upcoming piglets. Straw relieves frustration and boredom, reducing the risk of aggression. Straw-based systems are better suited to assist government in achieving its environmental sustainability objectives with regard to the wellestablished problems with liquid hog manure. Composted manure can more easily and cheaply be transported to crop areas deficient in phosphorus and is a less costly alternative to existing standard liquid manure storages and expensive technologies such as anaerobic digestion manure treatment systems. Properly composted manure kills pathogens and drug-resistant bacteria, stabilizes nutrient retention and renders many harmful chemicals benign. Group-housing hoop systems require less concentration of pigs per site, further improving environmental performance.

Straw based

Straw-based group-housing systems are used, or are being implemented, worldwide as gestation crates have been banned in nine U.S. states, Australia, New Zealand, and the entire European Union. A growing number of grocery chains are requiring their pork suppliers to phase out sow stalls. These systems could easily be implemented throughout Canada. Many Manitoba sow barns were built between the late 1990s and 2004, during the rapid government-supported expansion of the industry. According to Manitoba Agriculture swine economic specialists a barn’s lifespan is 15-20 years. Given the age of existing barns, most of the province’s pig producers now need to replace barns, equipment or both.

Animal welfare issue not that complicated Here are my comments on the December 13, 2012 article entitled “National exposé is not a balanced view: MPC.” This article provided Manitoba Pork Council comments on the Puratone video shot by Mercy for Animals Canada that was aired on W5. Firstly the statement, “But you have to remember that video was taken over a three-month period and heavily edited” — so what? Is the implication that these things didn’t happen, or is the complaint that the hours where abuse wasn’t captured on film were taken out? Sec-

Photo: mercy for animals canada

Consequently, the costs to convert to group housing are costs the industry will necessarily have to absorb in the next decade. These are not new or unexpected costs. Manitoba pig producers are now in a unique and timely position to transition from sow stalls to alternative systems using group housing on straw. Despite this, the Manitoba Pork Council in its March, 2011 booklet Embracing a Sustainable Future, has committed only “to encouraging producers to phase out gestation stalls by 2025.” Similarly, Ontario Pork recently voted to recommend revising the voluntary pig code of practice to require loose housing for pregnant sows with a similar timeline for voluntarily retrofitting of existing facilities. No provincial government, including Manitoba, has taken steps to end the use of gestation crates. The undercover footage should heighten growing public concern and action about the use of sow stalls and other routine, inhumane, industrial hog production practices. Will Manitoba Pork and other provincial marketing groups now make a real, meaningful commitment towards a phase-out of gestation stalls without government enacting regulations that support ending what is one of the most egregious forms of confinement used in modern agriculture?

The W5 report can be found here:

http://www.ctvnews.ca/w5/undercover-investiga tion-reveals-disturbing-and-inhumane-treatmentof-factory-farm-animals-1.1070919 Link to Mercy For Animals Canada’s footage: http://www.mercyforanimals.ca/pigcruelty/ Olivier Berreville has a PhD in biology from Dalhousie University. Growing up around farm animals in Europe, he has also acquired field experience documenting the confinement, transportation and slaughter of animals in Canada. He has presented on various aspects of farmed animal welfare at universities, institutes, and conferences.

ondly, the statement that “the operation shown is the exception, not the norm” — aren’t the tail docking and castration without analgesic before and painkillers after a standard practice for producers? In fact, I distinctly recall an article that said “some” producers are “thinking” about providing pain relief: exception versus the norm? And again the issue of sow stalls is raised. MPC chair Karl Kynoch dusted off the animal welfare concerns by organizations such as Mercy for Animals Canada and turned it into, “they really want everybody to stop eating meat.” Although this organization is in favour of a vegetarian diet, the organization’s representative, Twyla Francois, clearly states that “we realize

that this isn’t possible for all people, and so we want to see these animals raised humanely in a group-housing situation, with straw bedding.” MPC’s ongoing and apparently never-ending research into housing alternatives in conjunction with the U of M, with a target date of 2025 also strikes me as insincere. To suggest that organizations have an agenda other than animal welfare reflects a lack of recognition that the public is no longer willing to accept the standard practices of the pork industry. It really isn’t that complicated. Leslie Yeoman, Co-founder, The Humane Education Network (THEN), Winnipeg, Man.

The Manitoba Co-operator | December 20, 2012

FROM PAGE ONE LIGHTS Continued from page 1

the merchants, attributed to the bright, cheerful atmosphere created by the lighting,” stated the Manitoba Power Commission’s System News in its January, 1936 issue. “With very few exceptions, the towns were delighted at the opportunity to put on a display of festooned lighting,” and “opinions vary as to which one made the best job of it,” it went on to say. T h e r e’s n o m e n t i o n o f Car man, but System News notes “Killarney blazed forth with five stringers across the Main Street, each with 25 25-watt lamps.” There were also seven large Christmas trees placed at intervals down the street “each glowing profusely with 10-watt coloured lamps.” Hinting at the competitive sport lighting up at Christmas was to become, the item adds: “Brandon will probably have an argument to advance when it hears this, as that city was certainly well decorated too.”

Cost goes down

It’s hard to imagine these days just how marvellous five 25-lamp stringers and seven lit-up Christmas trees would have seemed to rural townsfolk at that time. In the early part of the last century, only the exceptionally well off could afford to light up with electricity, and in the early 1900s, it cost upwards of $300 (the equivalent of more than $2,000 today) to purchase lights for a typical Christmas tree, according to Manitoba Hydro records. And the cost of keeping the lights on was high, too. Electricity was 20 cents per kilowatt-hour in 1900, and even though the cost was halved following construction of the Pinawa Generating System in 1906, it was still a hefty sum. In

Trait Stewardship Responsibilities Notice to Farmers Monsanto Company is a member of Excellence Through StewardshipSM (ETS). Monsanto products are commercialized in accordance with ETS Product Launch Stewardship Guidance, and in compliance with Monsanto’s Policy for Commercialization of BiotechnologyDerived Plant Products in Commodity Crops. This product has been approved for import into key export markets with functioning regulatory systems. Any crop or material produced from this product can only be exported to, or used, processed or sold in countries where all necessary regulatory approvals have been granted. It is a violation of national and international law to move material containing biotech traits across boundaries into nations where import is not permitted. Growers should talk to their grain handler or product purchaser to confirm their buying position for this product. Excellence Through StewardshipSM is a service mark of Excellence Through Stewardship. ALWAYS READ AND FOLLOW PESTICIDE LABEL DIRECTIONS. Roundup Ready® crops contain genes that confer tolerance to glyphosate, the active ingredient in Roundup® agricultural herbicides. Roundup® agricultural herbicides will kill crops that are not tolerant to glyphosate. Acceleron® seed treatment technology for corn is a combination of four separate individually-registered products, which together contain the active ingredients metalaxyl, trifloxystrobin, ipconazole, and clothianidin. Acceleron®, Acceleron and Design®, DEKALB®, DEKALB and Design®, Genuity®, Genuity and Design®, Genuity Icons, Roundup®, Roundup Ready®, Roundup Ready 2 Technology and Design®, Roundup Ready 2 Yield®, RIB Complete and Design™, RIB Complete™, SmartStax®, SmartStax and Design®, VT Double PRO™, VT Triple PRO™ and YieldGard VT Triple® are trademarks of Monsanto Technology LLC, Monsanto Canada, Inc. licensee. LibertyLink® and the Water Droplet Design are trademarks of Bayer. Used under license. Herculex® is a registered trademark of Dow AgroSciences LLC. Used under license. Respect the Refuge and Design is a registered trademark of the Canadian Seed Trade Association. Used under license. (3701-MON-E-12)

This was the third year for the Man. Agriculture Museum’s Winter Wonderland Dec 7, 8, 14, and 15 from 5 to 9 p.m. Admission is $5, children under four free. Sleigh rides, ice skating, jam pail curling, bonfire, children’s holiday crafts and sliding hill are also part of the fun. Lights for the pioneer village are from donations from residents in the community. photo: sandy black

“From a number of the towns we have received reports of increased Christmas trade by the merchants, attributed to the bright, cheerful atmosphere created by the lighting.” Manitoba Power Commission’s System News January, 1936

the 1930s, the average annual wage in Canada was $850 and far less in hard-pressed Prairie towns and villages. In fact, although outdoor holiday lighting first became available in North America in 1927, it didn’t really catch on until the 1950s and 1960s, w h e n l ow e r e n e r g y c o s t s and postwar production of all things domestic made Christmas lights affordable and available to average income earners.

Gleaming

By mid-centur y, a modern household would be filled with the gleam and glow of multicoloured bubble lights and tinsel, which had debuted in the late 1940s. The expansion of suburbia also meant more yards for townsfolk to take their decorating outdoors, and that was w h e re o u t d o o r C h r i s t m a s light displays took off, says Manitoba Hydro spokeswoman Anita Mitchell. It was the men doing that decorating. Those handy with a hammer, saw, and a few strings of Christmas lights had found a way to make their house stand out, says Mitchell. “Every house was the same in the suburbs, and people wanted to differentiate their homes,” she said. And being a guy thing, it soon became competitive. “Men started making Nativity displays and lighting them on the lawns, and decorating their rooftops and windows and trees. It was the kickstart of the outdoor lighting we see today.”

Farm electrification

Decorating private homes with lights eventually caught on everywhere. Manitoba Co-operator 1 x 84 li B/W

All the decorations on Hydro poles around Carman were manufactured by the town’s public works staff. In early November they spend a couple of days affixing the stars, candles, trees and other Christmas shapes to Hydro poles across town. photo: lorraine stevenson

A light bulb moment — ditch the candles on the Christmas tree

Carman’s holiday street lights. Photo: Laura Rance

Tucked under the eaves and around doors of farm homes in Manitoba, Christmas lights also came to symbolize one of the most successful rural development projects of the last century — farm electrification. Even though electrification of towns had been underway for nearly two decades, by 1939 only 1,000 of the then 59,000 farms in the province were hooked up to electrical service. Farmers had to come to town to see the lights and wait until after the end of the Second World War (when the province introduced a major farm electrification program) to get “the power.” But by 1956, 48,000 farms were electrified. By then most towns had electricity too. Beausejour, Jo rd a n ( a t t h e c o r n e r o f Highways 3 and 23 south of Carman), and The Pas, plus several northern towns and the cities, including Thompson and Churchill, were the last to get hooked up between 1958 and 1961. The Manitoba Power Commission’s offer of free power for Christmas lights lasted from 1935 to 1986. Manitoba Hydro (which merged with the commission in 1961) continues to offer municipalities discounted ra t e s f o r f e s t o o n l i g h t i n g programs. lorraine@fbcpublishing.com

• Electric lights were first strung on trees in North America in 1882 — three years after Thomas Edison invented the light bulb. However, it wasn’t until about the 1920s when families began to switch over from candles. • Many of the early electric light sets burned so hot they were almost as hazardous as the candles they replaced. • In the early days of electric lighting, people thought that light bulbs would burn longer in an upright position, so they spent a great deal of time making sure each stood straight up. Source: Manitoba Electrical Museum and Educational Centre

All That Glows: Then & Now Take a tour through history of Christmas decorating at the Manitoba Electrical Museum and Educational Centre. Open Monday to Thursday from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. Special extended hours for All That Glows: Then & Now include: Saturdays, Dec. 1-29, from 1-4 p.m. Friday, Dec. 28, from 1-4 p.m. Open Dec. 27-29. Closed Dec. 23-26 and Dec. 30-Jan. 1. Call 204-360-7905 for more information or to arrange a group tour.

The Manitoba Co-operator | December 20, 2012

BRIEFS

A CLASSIC WINTER SCENE

Churchill slightly less busy as grain monopoly ends WINNIPEG / REUTERS Churchill’s grain shipments were slightly down this year, despite a government subsidy to encourage shippers to use the northern port. The port handled 432,434 tonnes of grain, mostly wheat and durum, but also barley and canola. That’s well down from last year’s 507,000 tonnes and about four per cent less than the 10-year average of more than 450,000. Ottawa offered shippers a subsidy this year of $9 per tonne of grain moved, part of a five-year, $25-million subsidy effort to help the port adjust to the demise of the single desk. Two new shippers used the port in 2012, privately held grain handler Richardson International Limited and Nearco Transportation Consulting.

Hoar frost and horses in the Bennie farm near Waskada.

U.S. congress in stalemate on food stamp budget cut WASHINGTON / REUTERS Lead negotiators on the overdue U.S. Farm Bill have kicked upstairs to President Barack Obama and House Speaker John Boehner the contentious issue of how much to slash the budget for food stamps. Unable to agree after months of debate, leaders of the House and Senate Agriculture committees finally elevated the issue to the White House. House Republicans want the largest cuts in a generation in the widely used program, some $16 billion over 10 years. The Democrat-run Senate voted months ago to cut $4 billion from the food stamp budget. Enrolment in the safety net program hit a record 47.7 million people at latest count, up 600,000 people in a month as emergency benefits were offered in disaster areas.

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World wheat stocks surprise WASHINGTON / REUTERS Global wheat stockpiles will end the marketing year higher than expected, while U.S. corn inventories remain extremely low as lower prices bolster demand from feeders, processors and exporters, says a new report. The USDA pointed to “the slow pace of sales” in raising its estimate of U.S. wheat ending stocks by seven per cent to 754 million bushels. Traders had expected 712 million bushels. The agency also raised its forecast for global wheat inventories to almost 177 million tonnes, from 174 million in November following estimates of larger crops from Australia, Canada and China.

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The Manitoba Co-operator | December 20, 2012

Professor says federal Tories are true friends of supply management Professor says much of the national media may hate supply management, but Ottawa’s actions in trade negotiations speak louder than trash talk By Shannon VanRaes Co-operator staff

ritics of supply management insist the federal Conservatives are just pretending to be friends of dairy and poultry farmers, but Bruce Muirhead says that’s not so. “I actually think the Conservatives are really staunch supporters of supply management and I don’t think there is any artifice on their part,” the University of Waterloo professor told an audience of dairy producers in Winnipeg. It doesn’t appear that Canada’s supply-managed commodities are on the table in free trade talks with Europe and that’s likely because Ottawa made concessions in other areas. And that, said the expert in Canadian foreign trade policy, is what friends do for friends. He also said Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz appears to be working hard to keep New Zealand at bay during Pacific trade talks. That’s a tougher slog as that country is a “dairy imperialist” and is home to Fonterra Dairy Co-op, which is responsible for about 30 per cent of the world’s exported dairy products, said Muirhead. But don’t expect the federal Tories to shield dairy farmers from domestic attacks. In recent years, national pundits like Andrew Coyne,

“I actually think the Conservatives are really staunch supporters of supply management and I don’t think there is any artifice on their part.” Bruce Muirhead

of the right-leaning Sun News Network, and organizations such as the Canadian Restaurant and Foodservices Association have stepped up attacks on supply management, said Muirhead. It’s hard to know why these attacks have managed to hold the public’s interest, but it may be partly due to people’s misperception that supply management is a system of government-enforced regulations, he said. “It’s not government at all, but I think the fact that people perceive it to be a regulatory system is enough for them to think of it as bad,” he said. “Today, people see regulation as bad.” That didn’t happen overnight though. Muirhead said it began with a political shift in the 1980s when neo-liberal ideology gained ground, successfully painting government as part of the problem and the private sector as the solution. What’s surprising is that such a tiny area of national produc-

tion, like dairy, has garnered so much attention, he said. That surprises Dairy Farmers of Canada president Wally Smith as well. “O u r f o c u s g r o u p s a n d our research is showing that farmers are still a very highly esteemed group of people,” he said. “They’re seen to be hard working and honest.” It’s hard to pinpoint why a respected group of people would be targeted for a very successful model of production, he said. However, there have been some positive developments around the public image of supply management in recent years. Muirhead said the 2008 financial collapse has landed some punches on deregulation, making regulatory bodies seem more palatable. “The possibility that supply management will now last — after the events of 2008 — seems to me much greater than it might have been five or 10 years ago,” he said. shannon.vanraes@fbcpublishing.com

Professor Bruce Muirhead speaks to producers during the Dairy Farmers of Manitoba’s annual conference in Winnipeg. Photo: Shannon VanRaes

Dairy industry continues national pool talks Allocation policies differ among provinces and may present a hurtle during national fluid milk pool negotiations By Shannon VanRaes co-operator staff

Wally Smith updates dairy producers on national milk pool negotiations during Dairy Farmers of Manitoba’s annual conference in Winnipeg. Photos: Shannon VanRaes

David Wiens, chairman of Dairy Farmers of Manitoba, speaks to producers during the organization’s annual conference in Winnipeg.

“Manitoba is on the record as supporting an all-milk national pool, one where we share revenues and markets across the country. I think it helps to strengthen our industry and provides further stability.” David Wiens

he effort to create a national milk pool is moving for ward — again, says the head of the Dairy Farmers of Canada. “I t h i n k w e’re m a k i n g progress,” president Wally Smith told attendees at the re c e n t D a i r y Fa r m e r s o f Manitoba conference. International trade issues diverted attention away from national pool negotiations earlier this year, he said, but discussions will resume in February. “Now we’re going to engage in a strategic plan to tr y and set a firm direction as to where we want to arrive, what our short-term objectives are, and what we hope to achieve,” said Smith. Currently, Canada’s nine milk-producing provinces only pool returns and markets for certain industrial milk classes. Other classes, such as fluid milk, are not pooled. There have been on-again, off-again discussions about a national pool since the mid-1990s, and those talks

have led to two regional pools — the eastern (P5) and the western (P4). Manitoba started out in the eastern pool, and then transferred to the western pool, with an overlap period when it belonged to both. The province will benefit from the establishment of a national pool, said David Wiens, chairman of the Dairy Farmers of Manitoba. “Manitoba is on the record as supporting an all-milk national pool, one where we share revenues and markets across the country,” he said. “I think it helps to strengthen our industry and provides further stability.” In recent years, price differences between the two pools have been a stumbling block. Fluid milk prices tend to be higher in the eastern pool, but the western pool handles larger volumes of industrial milk and has an overall higher return. However, in the past that situation has been reversed. The harmonization of allocation policies among the provinces has been another sticking point in the process. Smith said the complexity

of the dairy industry means hurdles are to be expected, but aren’t necessarily insurmountable. “We don’t necessarily all have the same outlook,” said Wiens. “But often these discussions can generate good policy along the way, which will strengthen us as well.” With the dair y industr y being at the centre of recent attacks on supply management, Wiens said the more unified the industry is, the better able it will be to respond to any crisis it may face. But he wouldn’t venture a guess on when a national pool might be created. “I don’t think I’d want to make a prediction on that,” said Wiens. “But the process itself, I think, is healthy for the industry.” But Smith said time is of the essence. “I think there is the political will to get there, it’s just a matter of can we get there quickly enough? We can’t squander the government support that we have,” Smith said. shannon.vanraes@fbcpublishing.com

The Manitoba Co-operator | December 20, 2012

WHAT’S UP

A FRESH COAT OF SNOW PAINT

Please forward your agricultural events to daveb@fbcpublishing. com or call 204-944-5762. 2013 Jan. 5-12: Crop Production Week, Saskatoon Inn, 2002 Airport Dr. (and other venues), Saskatoon. For more info visit www.cropweek. com/cpw.html. Jan. 6-7: Manitoba Forage Seed Conference, Victoria Inn, 1808 Wellington Ave., Winnipeg. For more info visit www.forageseed. net. Jan. 7-10: Western Canadian Crop Production Show, Prairieland Park, Saskatoon. For more info visit www.cropproductiononline.com or call 1-888-931-9333. Jan. 7-11: MAFRI 2013 Beef and Forage Week: Vita – Jan. 7th, Eriksdale - Jan. 8th, Ste Rose du Lac – Jan. 9th , Holland – Jan. 10th, Teulon – Jan. 11th. For more information or to register, contact your local MAFRI office. Jan. 14: Manitoba Farm and Rural Support Services free workshop on sleeplessness with Dr. Carlyle Smith, 7-9 p.m., MAFRI GO Office, 1129 Queens Ave., Brandon. To register call 1-866-367-3276 or 204-571-4183. Jan. 15-17: Manitoba Ag Days, Keystone Centre, 1175-18th St., Brandon. For more info visit www. agdays.com. Jan. 16: Manitoba Farm and Rural Support Services workshop on sleeplessness, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Super 8, 1457 Main St. S., Dauphin. Registration $20, lunch included. Pre-register at 1-866367-3276 or 204-571-4183. Jan. 16-18: Western Canadian Wheat Growers Association annual convention, Sutton Place Hotel, 10235-101st St., Edmonton. For more info call 306-586-5866. Jan. 17: Manitoba Farm and Rural Support Services workshop on sleeplessness, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Royal Canadian Legion, 425 Brown Ave., Neepawa. Registration $20, lunch included. Pre-register at 1-866-367-3276 or 204-571-4183. Jan. 18: Manitoba Farm and Rural Support Services workshop on sleeplessness with Dr. Carlyle Smith, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Sun Gro Centre, 360 Veterans Lane, Beausejour. Registration $20, lunch included. Pre-register at 1-866-367-3276 or 204-571-4183. Jan. 19: Manitoba Farm and Rural Support Services workshop on sleeplessness with Dr. Carlyle Smith, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Friendship Centre, 306 N. Railway St., Morden. Registration $20, lunch included. Pre-register at 1-866-367-3276 or 204-571-4183.

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Jan. 22-24: Red River Basin Land and Water International Summit Conference, Alerus Center, 120042nd St. S, Grand Forks, N.D. For more info call 204-982-7250 or visit www.redriverbasincommission.org.

The Manitoba Co-operator | December 20, 2012

LIVESTOCK MARKETS Cattle Prices Winnipeg

December 14, 2012

Cattle traffic to slow as feedlots fill for holiday

Steers & Heifers — D1, 2 Cows 62.00 - 66.00 D3 Cows 54.00 - 58.00 Bulls 72.00 - 78.00 Feeder Cattle (Price ranges for feeders refer to top-quality animals only) Steers (901+ lbs.) 115.00 - 131.00 (801-900 lbs.) 123.00 - 132.00 (701-800 lbs.) 127.00 - 140.00 (601-700 lbs.) 134.00 - 147.00 (501-600 lbs.) 145.00 - 162.00 (401-500 lbs.) 152.00 - 183.00 Heifers (901+ lbs.) 95.00 - 116.00 (801-900 lbs.) 105.00 - 120.00 (701-800 lbs.) 110.00 - 125.00 (601-700 lbs.) 115.00 - 135.00 (501-600 lbs.) 120.00 - 144.00 (401-500 lbs.) 130.00 - 147.00

Heifers

(901+ lbs.) (801-900 lbs.) (701-800 lbs.) (601-700 lbs.) (501-600 lbs.) (401-500 lbs.) (901+ lbs.) (801-900 lbs.) (701-800 lbs.) (601-700 lbs.) (501-600 lbs.) (401-500 lbs.)

Futures (December 14, 2012) in U.S. Fed Cattle Close Change December 2012 126.20 0.13 February 2013 131.47 0.45 April 2013 135.37 0.42 June 2013 131.45 0.25 August 2013 131.30 0.55 October 2013 134.75 0.65 Cattle Slaughter Canada East West Manitoba U.S.

Alberta South $ 119.00 - 120.00 118.25 - 122.00 64.00 - 75.00 55.00 - 66.00 74.21 - 74.21 $ 122.00 - 132.00 125.00 - 136.00 130.00 - 143.00 136.00 - 151.00 146.00 - 169.00 160.00 - 186.00 $ 114.00 - 125.00 115.00 - 126.00 120.00 - 131.00 124.00 - 140.00 130.00 - 150.00 140.00 - 165.00

($/cwt) (1,000+ lbs.) (850+ lbs.)

Feeder Cattle January 2013 March 2013 April 2013 May 2013 August 2013 September 2013

Good demand may meet short supplies in the new year Terryn Shiells

Ontario $ 92.09 - 125.24 101.16 - 117.43 47.71 - 65.66 47.71 - 65.66 57.66 - 79.00 $ 125.40 - 140.81 122.41 - 141.25 118.41 - 145.64 126.77 - 158.65 130.13 - 172.34 131.46 - 174.42 $ 107.38 - 124.05 114.00 - 127.82 110.31 - 126.08 109.63 - 137.52 113.34 - 146.87 119.44 - 151.00

Close 153.12 155.07 156.00 157.27 161.50 162.05

Change 4.87 4.27 3.95 3.57 3.63 3.65

Cattle Grades (Canada)

Week Ending December 8, 2012 45,919 13,275 32,644 NA 639,000

Previous Year 54,498 15,477 39,021 NA 646,000

Week Ending December 8, 2012 445 18,749 12,915 764 657 11,575 16

Prime AAA AA A B D E

Previous Year 484 20,587 18,330 773 759 9,184 482

Hog Prices Source: Manitoba Agriculture

(Friday to Thursday) ($/100 kg) MB. ($/hog) MB. (All wts.) (Fri-Thurs.) MB. (Index 100) (Fri-Thurs.) ON (Index 100) (Mon.-Thurs.) P.Q. (Index 100) (Mon.-Fri.)

$1 Cdn: $ 1.014 U.S. $1 U.S: $0.9860 Cdn.

COLUMN

(Friday to Thursday) Slaughter Cattle

Slaughter Cattle Grade A Steers Grade A Heifers D1, 2 Cows D3 Cows Bulls Steers

EXCHANGES: December 14, 2012

Current Week 161.00E 149.00E 150.62 156.92

Last Week 161.94 150.44 151.05 152.04

Futures (December 14, 2012) in U.S. Hogs Close December 2012 82.12 February 2013 85.90 April 2013 90.65 May 2013 98.55 June 2013 100.02

Last Year (Index 100) 167.03 154.32 160.14 164.44

Change -1.33 1.45 1.68 1.25 1.00

CNSC

ctivity at auction marts across Manitoba was steady for the most part during the week ended Dec. 14, though numbers started to decline slightly. Activity is starting to slow down ahead of auctions being closed for Christmas holidays. Most markets will hold their last sales of 2012 during the Dec. 17-21 time period, and will reopen again in early to mid-January. See the schedule table for exact dates. Dave Nickel, manager of Gladstone Auction Mart, isn’t expecting very many cattle will be sold at its last sale of the year on Tuesday, Dec. 18. He noted there probably won’t be enough cattle sold to make up a market report. “It’s just a couple of head, and then of course a little turkey dinner sort of thing and that’s going to be the year,” he said. Most people have already marketed their feeder cattle for the year. And, those who haven’t, will wait until the new year, he said. Another reason why there probably won’t be a lot more cattle movement in 2012 is that feedlots are filling up for now, and won’t have much room again until the new year, according to Nickel. The cattle that were for sale during the week ended Dec. 14 brought in steady to stronger prices, with feeder cattle seeing the most upward price action. “The 700-pound-weight feeder cattle were definitely quite a bit stronger, as were the 500-lb. weights,” Nickel said. “And the 300- to 400-pounders and 400- to 500-lb. weights were pretty steady.” Nickel noted a lot of the demand for the cattle came from eastern buyers, with some from the West as well, but very little, if any at all, interest came from the United States. Buyers from the U.S. were less interested because of the stronger Canadian dollar versus their U.S. currency. The stronger Canadian dollar makes buying cattle from Canada more expensive for U.S. buyers.

Auction markets’ holiday schedules Last sale of 2012

First sale of 2013

Killarney

Dec. 17, 2012

Jan. 14, 2013

Gladstone

Dec. 18, 2012

Jan. 15, 2013

Grunthal

Dec. 18, 2012

Jan. 8, 2013

Heartland, Brandon

Dec. 20, 2012

Jan. 8, 2013

Heartland, Virden

Dec. 19, 2012

Jan. 9, 2013

Ashern

Dec. 19, 2012

Jan. 16, 2013

Ste. Rose

Dec. 20, 2012

Jan. 10, 2013

Winnipeg

*Dec. 17, 2012

Jan. 4, 2013

* — Winnipeg has its last Friday sale Dec. 14, but will have a special sale Dec. 17 before the break.

The strong demand, as well as a lack of supply, helped to keep prices steady during the week, and Nickel expects the market is “going to be fairly aggressive in the new year.” Manitoba cattle producers and interested buyers will be keeping a close eye on how many feeder cattle actually come on to the market in the new year. “The majority of your feeder stock has been moved already, and for that reason I think there’s not going to be a lot of cattle on offer next year,” he said. Many people have already marketed their feeder cattle because prices have been strong, and with feed prices being high, they were more willing to sell them earlier, Nickel said. Prices in the new year will also remain strong, as demand is expected to be good. “There’s going to be some room in the feedlots, and of course it’s going to set a new demand,” he said. On the slaughter side, prices are still suffering a little bit from the XL Foods plant closure at Brooks, Alta. earlier in the year, as there continues to be a backlog of cattle coming on to the market. Slaughter prices were also slightly off during the week, due to a seasonal increase in cattle coming up for sale, Nickel noted. Terryn Shiells writes for Commodity News Service Canada, a Winnipeg company specializing in grain and commodity market reporting.

Other Market Prices news

Sheep and Lambs $/cwt Ewes Lambs (110+ lb.) (95 - 109 lb.) (80 - 94 lb.) (Under 80 lb.) (New crop)

Winnipeg — Next sale is Dec. 19, 2012 — —

Chickens Minimum broiler prices as of May 23, 2010 Under 1.2 kg................................... $1.5130 1.2 - 1.65 kg.................................... $1.3230 1.65 - 2.1 kg.................................... $1.3830 2.1 - 2.6 kg...................................... $1.3230

Turkeys Minimum prices as of December 23, 2012 Broiler Turkeys (6.2 kg or under, live weight truck load average) Grade A .................................... $2.040 Undergrade .............................. $1.950 Hen Turkeys (between 6.2 and 8.5 kg liveweight truck load average) Grade A .................................... $2.035 Undergrade .............................. $1.935 Light Tom/Heavy Hen Turkeys (between 8.5 and 10.8 kg liveweight truck load average) Grade A .................................... $2.035 Undergrade .............................. $1.935 Tom Turkeys (10.8 and 13.3 kg, live weight truck load average) Grade A..................................... $2.000 Undergrade............................... $1.915 Prices are quoted f.o.b. farm.

Toronto 79.17 - 106.52 116.44 - 127.49 121.35 - 136.32 115.54 - 139.53 123.88 - 255.20 —

SunGold Specialty Meats 40.00 - 60.00

Both firms being purchased are in financial trouble

Eggs Minimum prices to producers for ungraded eggs, f.o.b. egg grading station, set by the Manitoba Egg Producers Marketing Board effective June 12, 2011. New Previous A Extra Large $1.8500 $1.8200 A Large 1.8500 1.8200 A Medium 1.6700 1.6400 A Small 1.2500 1.2200 A Pee Wee 0.3675 0.3675 Nest Run 24 + 1.7490 1.7210 B 0.45 0.45 C 0.15 0.15

Goats Kids Billys Mature

Winnipeg ($/cwt) — — —

Toronto ($/cwt) 130.76 - 262.61 — 81.10 - 213.34

Horses <1,000 lbs. 1,000 lbs.+

Winnipeg ($/cwt) — —

Competition Bureau OKs two hog producer takeovers

Toronto ($/cwt) 6.49 - 26.42 23.12 - 43.58

ottawa /reuters / Canada’s Competition Bureau has approved two mergers in the domestic hog industry, where producers are struggling to cope with heavy losses caused by higher feed prices. The bureau said Dec. 17 it would let Maple Leaf Foods Inc. buy hog producer Puratone Corp. for $42 million as well as allow Olymel LP to buy Blue Sky, Canada’s second-largest hog producer, out of receivership for $65.25 million. “In both investigations, the bureau

concluded that the mergers were unlikely to lead to a substantial lessening or prevention of competition,” it said in a statement. Soaring grain costs caused by a severe U.S. drought mean North American hog farmers are losing as much as $50 for every pig they raise, forcing some to exit the industry. Packers are concerned about finding enough pigs to slaughter. Canada is the world’s third-largest pork exporter. Puratone, which is based in the western Canadian province of Manitoba, raises 500,000 hogs annually. It entered court protection from creditors in September. Big Sky, which produces about one million pigs per year and is based near Humboldt, Saskatchewan, entered receivership in early September.

Looking for results? Check out the market reports from livestock auctions around the province. » PaGe 37

The Manitoba Co-operator | December 20, 2012

GRAIN MARKETS Export and International Prices

column

Speculators in play on both sides of canola market CNSC

he ICE Futures Canada canola market drifted lower for most of the week ended Dec. 14, but saw a sharp bounce on Friday to end relatively unchanged. The early weakness was said to have uncovered some fresh export interest, while the relative firmness in the Chicago soy complex was also supportive for canola. Speculators were on both sides of the market, and the nearby outlook is also a little mixed for the commodity. The January contract is facing resistance at $600 per tonne, and a break

For three-times-daily market reports from Commodity News Service Canada, visit “ICE Futures Canada updates” at www.manitobacooperator.ca.

Year Ago

Chicago wheat (nearby future) ($US/tonne)

291.35

319.36

212.82

Minneapolis wheat (nearby future) ($US/tonne)

325.06

342.14

299.71

Coarse Grains

U.S. Department of Agriculture currently estimates total world palm oil production in 2012-13 at 53.3 million tonnes, which compares with soyoil at 43.2 million and rapeseed/canola at 23.5 million. Canola and soybean prices remain historically high (despite recent setbacks) while palm oil dropped to its weakest levels in three years this week. Stocks of palm oil in Malaysia, the world’s second-largest producer of the commodity, were reported to be at record-large levels. Canola may have some quality attributes going for it to differentiate itself from palm oil, but price is still king at the end of the day and the weight of the palm oil market does not appear to be going away any time soon. Malaysia is expected to set its export taxes on palm oil in January at zero per cent in an effort to move some of those large stocks. A resulting increase in exports would cause palm oil prices to rise, but the increased movement of palm oil would be a bearish story for the other vegetable oils.

US corn Gulf ($US)

—

US barley (PNW) ($US)

—

Chicago corn (nearby future) ($US/tonne)

280.41

295.87

227.95

Chicago oats (nearby future) ($US/tonne)

239.75

233.92

193.88

Chicago soybeans (nearby future) ($US/tonne) Chicago soyoil ($US/tonne)

542.47

532.00

408.46

1,072.07

1,097.43

1,080.01

Winnipeg Futures ICE Futures Canada prices at close of business December 13, 2012 Western barley

Last Week

Week Ago

December 2012

240.00

245.00

March 2013

248.00

May 2013

249.00

Canola

Last Week

Week Ago

January 2013

590.20

598.60

March 2013

587.00

595.10

May 2013

585.70

593.30

Soy crops loom large

above that could set the stage for a move toward $620. On the other side, chart support can be found around $575. With activity usually slowing down over the Christmas/New Year’s period, the thinner volumes could lead to some choppiness and larger price swings heading into January. Canada’s canola crop may not have lived up to expectations this year, and the need to ration that tight production amongst the steadily growing stable of export and domestic customers looking for the product will remain a supportive influence. Canada may be a major player on the world stage when it comes to canola, but when looking at the vegetable oil market as a whole, the country is a follower more than anything. On a number of occasions during the week, activity in the Malaysian palm oil market halfway around the world contributed to the bearishness in canola. While soyoil is a close second and rapeseed/canola a more distant third, palm oil easily accounts for the largest percentage of all vegetable oil consumed globally. The

The other global vegetable oil story at play in the canola market these days is the state of soybean crops in South America. Weather conditions in both Brazil and Argentina, the two largest growers on the continent, were looking relatively favourable for seeding and development and the likelihood of a large crop is overhanging the oilseed markets. However, soybeans at the Chicago Board of Trade managed to post solid gains in most months during the week, as there is still enough uncertainty over the size of the South American crop to keep exporters looking to make sure their needs are covered with U.S. beans. Wheat and corn futures in the U.S. were lower during the week, with the largest losses in wheat. USDA raised its ending stocks projection for U.S. wheat to 754 million bushels, which was above trade guesses. Poor export demand was the key factor behind the bearish stocks forecast, but the initial sell-off in reaction to the numbers may be enough to change the outlook in subsequent reports. There was some optimism starting to build late in the week that U.S. wheat prices were finally at a point that they were uncovering some interest in the export market. The ongoing drought issues across much of the U.S. Plains should also remain supportive for wheat overall, as winter wheat in the country will need more moisture going forward.

Special Crops Report for December 17, 2012 — Bin run delivered plant Saskatchewan Spot Market

Lentils (Cdn. cents per pound) Large Green 15/64

20.85 - 21.50

Canaryseed

Laird No. 1

20.20 - 20.85

Oil Sunflower Seed

Eston No. 2

20.00 - 22.00

“From a farmer’s eyes, what more do you want?” said Brad Vannan, president and chief operating officer of ICE Futures Canada. “For people to see value in those tools, they have to perceive risk. There are a lot of unusual things that are happening right now, none of which really demonstrate the value of the futures contracts that were built.” Feedback from the commercial grain trade is that the contracts are well structured, and delisting them would be premature, Vannan said. They need at least another full crop cycle, and maybe several, to prove themselves,

24.85 - 28.50 —

Desi Chickpeas

27.00 - 28.75

Field Peas (Cdn. $ per bushel)

Beans (Cdn. cents per pound)

Green No. 1

Fababeans, large

—

13.00 - 15.00

Medium Yellow No. 1

Feed beans

—

Feed Peas (Cdn. $ per bushel)

8.25 - 8.75

No. 1 Navy/Pea Beans

—

Feed Pea (Rail)

No. 1 Great Northern

—

Mustardseed (Cdn. cents per pound)

No. 1 Cranberry Beans

—

Yellow No. 1

38.75 - 41.75

No. 1 Light Red Kidney

—

Brown No. 1

32.75 - 36.75

No. 1 Dark Red Kidney

—

Oriental No. 1

26.40 - 27.75

No. 1 Black Beans

—

No. 1 Pinto Beans

—

5.00 - 8.80

Source: Stat Publishing SUNFLOWERS

No. 1 Small Red

—

No. 1 Pink

—

Fargo, ND

Goodlands, KS

23.10

24.40

—

Report for December 14, 2012 in US$ cwt NuSun (oilseed)

Phil Franz-Warkentin writes for Commodity News Service Canada, a Winnipeg company specializing in grain and commodity market reporting.

Spot Market

Other ( Cdn. cents per pound unless otherwise specified)

Confection Source: National Sunflower Association

ICE Canada sticking with grain futures contracts winnipeg / reuters / ICE Futures Canada plans to continue offering its seldom-traded Canadian grain futures contracts, saying conditions this year were highly unusual. ICE Canada launched milling wheat, durum and barley contracts in January to capitalize on the impending demise of the CWB’s single desk. But instead of seeing price volatility spurring the trade to aggressively manage their risk, wheat prices have been high and relatively steady, with fluid grain movement and lots of buyers.

Week Ago

Wheat

Malaysia’s palm oil markets contributed to bearishness Phil Franz-Warkentin

Last Week

All prices close of business December 13, 2012

he said. Open interest, however, is a paltry 83 positions in the three contracts combined, compared with about 155,000 in ICE Canada’s signature canola contract. CWB isn’t using ICE wheat contracts yet, as it waits for liquidity to build, said Chris Palmer, a trader at CWB. “It’s pretty hard to get new contracts going,” he said. “The pie is only so big. It might be an issue of people going with what they know. The wheat market is pretty well represented with high-quality (grades) in Minneapolis and medium in Kansas and lower in Chicago.

“For people to see value in those tools, they have to perceive risk. There are a lot of unusual things that are happening right now, none of which really demonstrate the value of the futures contracts that were built.” Brad Vannan

president and chief operating officer of ICE Futures Canada

The Manitoba Co-operator | December 20, 2012

briefs

Genomics could produce a tool to improve food safety By Alex Binkley co-operator contributor / ottawa

Mapping the genome of deadly pathogens could provide a new weapon in the battle against listeria and E. coli bacteria. Ottawa, Genome Canada and industry are offering $1 million for the development of a rapid and specific test for E. coli, which contaminated beef and temporarily closed down XL Foods. Earlier this year, Genome Canada offered $600,000 for a similar test for listeria, the bacteria in deli meats that killed 22 and sickened scores more in 2008. It’s hoped genomics will also lead to tests able to detect the pathogens in a food product within an hour — instead of the day or two it now takes. Research teams led by a Canadian academic institution have been invited to bid on the E. coli project by Jan. 14. The teams can use experts from around the world in their research. The listeria project has already begun. “Drawing together the brightest minds from multiple scientific disciplines in a team environment is a good way to stimulate ideas,” said Stan Blade, head of Alberta Innovates Bio Solutions. “That’s the strength of this funding initiative, and we’re confident this research will lead to a rapid test that will assist the food-processing industry with real-time decision-making to ensure that Canadian food products are safe.”

Trait Stewardship Responsibilities

Notice to Farmers

Monsanto Company is a member of Excellence Through Stewardship® (ETS). Monsanto products are commercialized in accordance with ETS Product Launch Stewardship Guidance, and in compliance with Monsanto’s Policy for Commercialization of Biotechnology-Derived Plant Products in Commodity Crops. This product has been approved for import into key export markets with functioning regulatory systems. Any crop or material produced from this product can only be exported to, or used, processed or sold in countries where all necessary regulatory approvals have been granted. It is a violation of national and international law to move material containing biotech traits across boundaries into nations where import is not permitted. Growers should talk to their grain handler or product purchaser to confirm their buying position for this product. Excellence Through Stewardship® is a registered trademark of Excellence Through Stewardship. ALWAYS READ AND FOLLOW PESTICIDE LABEL DIRECTIONS. Roundup Ready® crops contain genes that confer tolerance to glyphosate, the active ingredient in Roundup® brand agricultural herbicides. Roundup® brand agricultural herbicides will kill crops that are not tolerant to glyphosate. Genuity and Design®, Genuity Icons, Genuity®, Roundup Ready®, and Roundup® are trademarks of Monsanto Technology LLC. Used under license.

Southern councils can’t make numbers work for bus service Efforts in southern Manitoba to explore offering inter-community bus service stalled By Lorraine Stevenson co-operator staff

fter two years trying to figure out how to offer regional shuttle bus service in fast-growing southern Manitoba, councillors have shelved the idea — at least for now. “There is definitely a need,” said Henry Siemens, City of Winkler councillor, in a recent interview. “There’s just no model that makes sense for our area right now.” The existing demand for the service isn’t enough to justify the cost and logistics of operating it, said Siemens, who chaired a transit subcommittee involving Winkler, Morden and the RMs of Stanley and Thompson while their region engaged in a provinceled greenhouse gas emissions-lowering project, the (Community Led Emissions Reductions) program. Offering some form of public transit service potentially reduces the numbers of private vehicles now travelling between Winkler and Morden daily, including commuters and those going to and from Boundar y Trails Hospital between the two centres.

But after polling residents about their transportation habits, investigating the licensing process on behalf of an intermunicipal carrier, and even putting out a call for business plans from private operators, they’ve had to put the idea on hold, Siemens said. To start with, no one came forward with an offer to try it, he said. “The numbers just don’t add up,” Siemens said. Outside the commuter hours, the ridership numbers aren’t there. Any service would also need to be heavily subsidized by participating municipalities. Municipalities met last month to discuss it once again before the committee was dissolved. But the idea isn’t going off the table, the Winkler councillor said. “Right now we are in a bit of a holding pattern,” he said, adding the participating councils remain “strongly supportive” of the whole idea. “We just don’t really know where to be able to take it from here.”

Northern needs

If relatively well-populated southern Manitoba has hurdles to overcome to provide

“Right now we are in a bit of a holding pattern. We just don’t really know where to be able to take it from here.” Henry Siemens

City of Winkler councillor on how to develop a regional shuttle bus service

bus service, it doesn’t look good for other, more thinly populated regions, including Manitoba’s north. Improving intercommunity transportation was raised by delegates during the Association of Manitoba Municipalities’ annual convention last month. There is barely any service now, and not much incentive for the private sector to offer more, northern councillors said. “It’s not a money-making situation there. It needs to be subsidized,” said Karen MacKinnon, a councillor for Flin Flon, who raised the matter before the “bear pit” of cabinet ministers at the convention. “For anyone who needs health care, thank God for air transportation,” she added. The province deregulated

the transport sector this past year, changing rules to make it easier for private-sector carriers to enter the market. Provincial Infrastructure and Transportation Minister Steve Ashton told AMM delegates that consultations held last spring showed Manitobans don’t want tax dollars to subsidize bus service. “Our goal at the end of the day is to get the private sector to do what it’s good at,” Ashton said, adding that the province believes it’s set the rules so that sustainable bus service for rural and northern areas will eventually develop. “We’re in a transition,” Ashton said. “But now we’ve got an opportunity for communities and for private-sector operators to get into the business.” lorraine@fbcpublishing.com

Food safety group asks court to limit GM patents The courts are being asked whether farmers should be able to save their seeds from year to year By Carey Gillam reuters

U.S. public interest group is asking the courts to limit patent protection for genetically modified crops so farmers can save their seeds and protect themselves against litigation. The case that the high court will hear next year involving an Indiana soybean farmer Ve r n o n B ow m a n i s b u t a “microcosm of a systemic problem,” and the outcome of

the case could have far-reaching impacts as Monsanto and other biotech seed developers expand their dominance of agricultural seeds, according to the Center for Food Safety. “Patenting should not interfere with a farmer’s right to s a v e s e e d s ,” s a i d A n d re w Kimbrell, the group’s lawyer. “They should not resell them or repackage them or become c o m p e t i t o r s o f Mo n s a n t o, but the seeds they buy they should be able to use them in a natural way for planting.

This is not only about farmer rights, it’s about farmer survival.” But a Monsanto official said his company needs to have its technology protected by patents. “ The U.S. patent system protects — and should protect — the rights to easily replicated technologies like herbicide-tolerant seeds, just as it does for those who invent computers or life-saving medicines,” said David Snively.

The case dates to 2007 when Monsanto sued Bowman, who said he bought the seeds as part of an undifferentiated mix of “commodity” seeds from a grain elevator. He also argued that Monsanto’s patent r ights were exhausted after its initial sales of the seeds. Monsanto prevailed a n d Bow m a n w a s o rd e re d to pay more than $84,000 in damages. He is one of more than 100 farmers sued by Monsanto in recent years.

Critics want Washington to slash farm subsidies by at least $100 billion Groups say reducing crop insurance premium subsidy and making insurers pay all of their overhead expenses would save $53 billion By Charles Abbott washington / reuters

ongress should slash at least $100 billion in costs from the U.S. Farm Bill — three or four times what’s currently proposed, say a dozen anti-deficit and environmental groups. The groups said the $5-billion-a-year “direct payment” subsidy to farmers should be eliminated as part of temporary legislation that would bridge

the gap to a new five-year law in 2013. That would give lawmakers time for a clear-eyed overhaul of farm policy, they said. Milk prices at the grocery store could double next month under an outmoded statute that took effect with expiration of the 2008 farm law on Sept. 30. It would be the first major impact of the failure to pass a new farm law. Congressional leaders now hope to attach the Farm Bill to a deficit reduction pack-

age needed by year’s end to avoid automatic tax increases and spending cuts in January. They’re aiming at $23 billion to $36 billion in Farm Bill reductions. But critics say that’s far too little, and that it is too late in 2012 for lawmakers diligently to consider and debate a mammoth $500-billion bill covering everything from crop subsidies to food stamps, soil conservation and rural economic development.

It would be “relatively easy” to save $100 billion over 10 years, said Scott Faber, of the Environmental Working Group, an organization whose goal is to protect public health. Two simple changes in the crop insurance program — lowering the premium subsidy to 30 per cent from the current 62 per cent and ending a federal payment to insurers to cover part of their overhead expenses — could save $53 billion, he said.

The Manitoba Co-operator | December 20, 2012

briefs

A Frosty bird feeder

Dodge Ram rear axle failures Transport Canada release

Ultrasound can kill E. coli bacteria on spinach University of Illinois scientists report that a combination of chlorine washing and ultrasound can reduce E. coli 0157:H7 bacteria on spinach by more the 99.99 per cent. U of I professor of food science and human nutrition Hao Feng said the U.S. Department of Agriculture is looking for proposed technologies that can achieve a fourto six-log reduction in pathogen cells. A six-log reduction would achieve a millionfold reduction in pathogenic bacteria. The food-processing industry can now achieve a onelog or tenfold reduction. In comparison, the U of I technique yields a fourlog reduction. “Combining technologies is the key to bridging the gap between our current capacity and what USDA would like to see. The use of ultrasound exposure during chlorine washing gives the industry a way to significantly enhance microbial safety,” Feng said in a release.

This snowman near MacGregor is doing double duty, feeding the birds while adding a holiday flair to the deck. photo: donna gamache

SPECIAL EDITION Manitoba Ag Days - Taking place Jan. 15, 16 & 17, 2013

The Manitoba Co-operator is presenting a great opportunity for you to feature your business, products or booth at Manitoba Ag Days in the Jan. 10th edition.

at the Brandon Keystone Centre The Manitoba Ag Days Show is a winter indoor exposition of agricultural production expertise, technology, and equipment held in Brandon every January. The Show attracts exhibitors and visitors from across Canada and North Central United States and provides an annual opportunity for producers to comparison shop for everything they need for their agricultural operations.

DEADLINE: JAN. 3rd · ISSUE DATE: JAN. 10th Contact your Manitoba Co-operator Sales representative to book your space today!

Terry McGarry Ph: 204-981-3730 Fax: 204-253-0879 Email: trmcgarr@mts.net

RISKS AND REWARDS OF FALL

OCTOBER 11, 2012

Triathlete creates home-grown energy bar » PAGE 44

SERVING MANITOBA FARMERS SINCE 1925 | VOL. 70, NO. 41

Communications breakdown added to emergency Firefighting made more dangerous without communications By Lorraine Stevenson CO-OPERATOR STAFF

SEE YOU AT THE SHOW!

GREAT GORP PROJECT

The pros and cons of applying in dry soil » PAGE 17

olunteer firefighters racing to reach fire-threatened Vita last week passed hundreds of vehicles headed the other direction and wondered what they were headed into, said veteran firefighter Alain Nadeau. “I’ve been doing this for 33 years and this was the scariest I’ve seen,” said the weary La Broquerie fire chief on Friday after an exhausting week. The air was so smoke filled around the southeastern village “we could barely breathe,” he said.

GOT SEED? By Daniel Winters CO-OPERATOR STAFF / MELITA

ising corn acres and severe drought in the Midwestern United States may crimp supplies of popular corn seed varieties for the com-

ing year. “It’s really short,” said Ron Rabe, a Dekalb agronomist, who gave a brief talk on corn production in Manitoba at a recent WADO field tour. Derek Erb, who farms near Oak Bluff and sells Pioneer Hi-Bred corn

$1.75

MANITOBACOOPERATOR.CA

Rising demand and dismal growing conditions in the drought-stricken United States may limit supplies seed, said farmers looking to secure seed for next spring should act quickly to secure their supplies, even if it means placing orders earlier than usual. Pioneer Hi-Bred’s top varieties, which include D95 and D97, account for roughly half the acres seeded in the province. Erb said that with the harvest and quality testing still underway in some areas, it’s difficult to estimate how much corn seed will be available for next year. One thing’s for sure, waiting until Ag Days in January to secure supplies will

Some corn seed companies were predicting a shortage of seed for next year, even before the season’s first snowstorm Oct. 5 put a crimp in this year’s harvest. PHOTO: LAURA RANCE

Corn seed might be tight next spring

See GRASS FIRES on page 6 »

Publication Mail Agreement 40069240

Transport Canada is seeking information from the public on 2009 and 2010 model year Dodge Ram 1500 and Dakota pickup trucks concerning possible safety issues. The issues are related to the rear axle pinion nut that may have been incorrectly manufactured and could loosen. Some drivers of these specific models have advised Transport Canada of a noise which could be heard just prior to the failure. Chrysler Canada will conduct a voluntary safety recall to install a pinion nut retainer on all affected vehicles built between July 1, 2009 and November 30, 2009. For specific information about this road safety recall, please visit: Transport Canada recall 2012327. Transport Canada continues to examine the possible relevance of this issue for vehicles manufactured outside this time period. Anyone who experiences this condition and has not already reported it to Transport Canada, or anyone who experiences this condition in the future, is asked to call Transport Canada Defect Investigations at 1-800-333-0510, or file a complaint at: https://wwwapps.tc.gc. ca/Saf-Sec-Sur/7/PCDBBDPP/Index.aspx.

be too late. “I would pretty much bank on that,” said Erb. Dry conditions throughout the province have seen the corn harvest arriving about a month earlier than usual, and seed orders have started coming in sooner than usual too. Even with the possibility of a shortage of corn seed, Erb doesn’t expect the price of Pioneer’s supplies to rise much more than it has in recent years. Rob Park, of RJP Seeds in Carman, who deals in Hyland seed varieties, See CORN SEED on page 6 »

The Manitoba Co-operator | December 20, 2012

WEATHER VANE

Your smartphone just got smarter. Get the Manitoba Co-operator mobile app and get the latest ag news as it happens. Download the free app at agreader.ca/mbc

IF CR HISTM AS DAY BE BR IGHT A ND CL E A R, THER E W IL L BE T WO W IN TERS IN THE Y E A R.

Low confidence in Christmas forecast Issued: Monday, December 17, 2012 · Covering: December 19 – December 26, 2012 Daniel Bezte Co-operator contributor

orecast confidence continues to remain low with a split flow in the jet stream making it difficult to forecast the strength and timing of weather systems. This forecast period looks as if it will start off with a weak area of low pressure moving through southern regions. This system will likely bring a little light snow sometime between Tuesday evening and Wednesday evening. A strong system then looks like it will slide by to our southeast on Thursday. This system will help to pull down a weak ridge of high pressure during the second half of the week. This will result in mainly sunny skies and cooler temperatures. Highs are expected to be around -12 C with overnight lows in the -20 to -24 C range. As we approach Christmas the forecast is starting to become interesting. The weather models are showing a large area of low pressure moving in off the Pacific and into the northwestern U.S. on Sunday. This low is then forecast to track to the southeast and strengthen as a Colorado low.

Again, there is a lot of uncertainty with this forecast, so a lot can change, but here is how it looks like things will play out. The models have been keeping most to all of the energy with this system to our south, but so far this year, storm systems have been moving farther north than the models usually predict. Southern regions could see some light snow on Christmas Day with the best chance of snow coming on Boxing Day as the system moves through Minnesota. Temperatures will be mildest over extreme southern regions along with the southeast, with highs expected in these regions to be around -5 C. Farther north temperatures will be cooler, with highs only expected to be around -10 C. Once this system moves to our east cold air will move in with highs by the end of next week only expected to be around -16 C and overnight lows in the -24 C range. Usual temperature range for this period: Highs, -20 to -4 C; lows, -31 to -13 C. 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.

WEATHER MAP - WESTERN CANADA

Precipitation Compared to Historical Distribution (Prairie Region) November 1, 2012 to December 13, 2012

Record Dry Extremely Low (0-10) Very Low (10-20) Low (20-40) Mid-Range (40-60) High (60-80) Very High (80-90) Extremely High (90-100) Record Wet Extent of Agricultural Land Lakes and Rivers

Produced using near real-time data that has undergone initial quality control. The map may not be accurate for all regions due to data availability and data errors. Copyright © 2012 Agriculture & Agri-Food Canada Prepared by Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada’s National Agroclimate Information Service (NAIS). Data provided through partnership with Environment Canada, Natural Resources Canada, and many Provincial agencies.

Created: 12/14/12 www.agr.gc.ca/drought

This issue’s map shows the total amount of precipitation we have seen across the Prairies so far this winter compared to historical averages. So far this winter precipitation amounts have been around average (light green) to above average (dark green and blue). Only a few areas of southern Manitoba are below average.

Weather of Christmas past

Manitoba has seen some snowy Decembers, but relatively few Christmases with heavy snow By Daniel Bezte CO-OPERATOR CONTRIBUTOR

ust before Christmas I like to write about and revisit the topic of Christmas weather. I always start by pointing out that secretly (well, I guess not that secretly anymore) I kind of hope or wish for a big Christmas snowstorm. To be stuck at home with family with a raging blizzard on Christmas morning just seems to hit some kind of chord with me — as long as the power stays on and everyone is safe and sound. Like I said, every couple of years I like to look back at Christmas past, to see just what kind of weather December, and more specifically, Dec. 24-26, has served up over the years. Each time I do this I usually realize that I have made some mistakes, or we have broken some new records recently, so once again here is the new and improved version. The first thing I thought we should do is look at the December temperature records for our three main

EXTREMES OF CHRISTMAS PAST Greatest one-day snowfall (cm)

Warmest (C)

Coldest (C)

Winnipeg

5.4, Dec. 25, 1999

–37.0, Dec. 24, 1996

8.0, Dec. 25, 2009

Brandon

6.4, Dec. 25, 1999

–37.0, Dec. 26, 1996

18.0, Dec. 25, 1942

Dauphin

8.1, Dec. 25, 1999

–37.0, Dec. 26, 1996

6.4, Dec. 26, 1959

areas of agricultural Manitoba: Brandon, Dauphin and Winnipeg. Looking back over the last 60 or so years, I think this is the first time that all three areas consistently had nearly identical high and low records. The next interesting thing is that both the high and low records for all three of our stations occurred recently. Looking at the warmest December ever, it occurred back in 1997, when temperatures at all three of our major locations averaged around the freezing mark, with daily maximum temperatures hovering around -1.0 C. There were eight to 10 days during that December where highs were above zero, and in some locations, the highs were never colder than -10 C. Looking at

the overnight lows, the average across all three stations was also remarkably similar, with values coming in around -10 C. There were only a couple of cold nights with temperatures around -25 C, and these occurred right at the end of the month. Last December was also very warm, but temperatures fluctuated a little more than in 1997, with a couple of short cold snaps with lows in the -22 C range and highs in the -12 C range. On t h e f l i p s i d e o f t h e coin, the coldest December occurred only a few years later, back in 2000. This was the year our thermometer decided to take a break and head south for the winter. Overall it was a bitterly cold month where temperatures struggled to

achieve a daily maximum high of -17 C and where overnight lows plunged regularly to around -27 C. Nearly half the month had overnight lows colder than -30 C, with Christmas Eve bottoming out near -35 C. We’ve seen some pretty snowy Decembers in the past. The record snowiest December for Winnipeg was back in 1955, when the capital region saw over 52 cm of snow during the month. Dauphin’s record came one year later in 1956, when that region saw over 72 cm of snow. Brandon, once again, holds the all-time record for December snowfall when in 1948, the region experienced over 80 cm of snow for the month! Now let’s narrow in and look at the three days that surround Christmas and see just what kind of weather has happened in the past. The official (or unofficial) coldest day of the year for Winnipeg was recorded on Christmas Eve way back in 1879, when the mercury/alcohol thermometer recorded a bone chilling -47.8 C, but that

was when there was no city of Winnipeg around to influence the weather. So that will be tough to beat for Winnipeg. Now let’s narrow in on more recent Christmas weather events (read: the last 60 or so years). The first thing I have to say is that I can’t, from weather records, easily pick out any big storms that have hit over Christmas. There have been smaller storms like the one that hit southern areas of Manitoba on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day in 2009, when snow combined with 30- to 50-km/h winds brought fairly miserable conditions. The only positive with that storm was that it was fairly warm. That said, the table shows what I’ve found for the period of Dec. 24-26 for Christmases past. Precipitation-wise, with the exception of 1942 in Brandon, we have not seen a significant snow event over Christmas for as far back as I have looked. Maybe this will be the year we see a big Christmas storm! Check out the forecast to see what might be in store for us this year.

The Manitoba Co-operator | December 20, 2012

Pork and beef dispute still on with South Korea

treehugger

South Korea buys one-tenth of Canadian pork production, but the market could be lost in a few years without a deal to reduce tariffs By Alex Binkley co-operator contributor / ottawa

espite a state visit by South Korean Prime Minister Kim Hwang-sik, an impasse that could see Canadian pork and beef excluded from the Asian country appears no closer to resolution. For more than a year, Canada’s pork and beef farmers, supported by the Canadian Meat Council and other groups, have been pressing Ottawa to conclude a free trade deal with Korea before those commodities are shut out of the South Korean market by tariffs and health rules.

While those issues were raised during the Korean leader’s visit, nothing was resolved, meat industry officials say. The country has already reached free trade deals with the U.S., Europe and Chile that will wind down duties on farm and food imports from those countries while Canadian meat will still face tariffs of 20 per cent or higher. That means Canadian pork farmers could lose access to a market that could be worth close to $500 million in a few years. Canada is currently the secondlargest pork exporter to South Korea, selling about $300 million worth of product.

“It would be devastating to farmers to lose 10 per cent of our exports,” said Jurgen Preugschas, chair of the Canadian Pork Council. “It would be even more of them at risk. We need to get back to the table and negotiate a deal.” As well, South Korea still blocks Canadian beef over the 2003 discovery of BSE in Alberta, even though a new case hasn’t been found for years. Canada began free trade talks with South Korea in 2004 but they stalled in 2008 over the objections of Canadian automakers, farm spokesmen say.

briefs

South Africa restricts Brazilian beef imports over BSE doubt brasilia / reuters / South Africa is restricting imports of beef from Brazil following a case of atypical BSE. Japan has also suspended imports, despite Brazilian claims that atypical BSE is different from regular BSE. Atypical BSE can arise in elderly cattle due to a sponta-

neous genetic mutation that causes it to begin producing the proteins, known as prions, that can trigger BSE. In April, the U.S. reported a case of atypical BSE in an animal which never entered the food chain, but the country escaped a backlash from importers. In this case, the

13-year-old cow in southern Brazil that tested positive for the prions died of other causes in 2010 and never actually developed the neurodegenerative disease. That long delay explains part of the concern, although officials say it was caused by a logistical anomaly at the laboratory.

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The Manitoba Co-operator | December 20, 2012

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The Manitoba Co-operator | December 20, 2012

CROPS

Blame the jet stream for aster yellows outbreak However, outbreaks in 2000, 2007, and now 2012 could indicate a growing problem with the airborne pests By Daniel Winters CO-OPERATOR STAFF / SOURIS

“It’s really unusual that we’ve had three bad years in the past 12 years.”

n ill wind bloweth no man good — especially when it comes from the south early in the growing season and brings in troublesome insect pests. Last spring, the jet stream scooped up highly infected aster leafhoppers and deposited them in large numbers in Manitoba fields leading to one of the worst years ever for aster yellows. “We had quite large populations blow in early,” said entomologist John Gavloski, who presented his top 10 insect pests from the 2012 growing season at a recent crop production meeting. Tiny, about the size of the number “1” on a penny, aster leafhoppers can do considerable damage to canola, and can also affect cereals, flax, sunflowers, and vegetables such as carrots, said the Manitoba Agriculture, Food and Rural Initiatives official. However, unless they are infected with the phytoplasm that causes aster yellows, their presence does not necessarily cause an outbreak of disease. “If we get a lot of them blow in and they are not infected, it won’t be a bad aster yellows year,” said Gavloski, adding that determining infection is only possible through lab analysis. The tiny critters pierce plant tissues with their beaks, inject saliva along with any infectious pathogen present, and then suck up the goo that comes out. Of the 359 leafhopper species in Manitoba, only aster and potato leafhoppers pose any significant threat to crops. Aster yellows in canola causes club-shaped, empty, purplish pods. “Early in the season, if you’re kicking around in the grass around your fields and you stir up lots of leafhoppers, don’t automatically assume that it’s going to be a bad year because we’ve got a lot of leafhopper species that aren’t pests,” said Gavloski. Aster leafhoppers can be identified by their whitish-grey wings

JOHN GAVLOSKI

John Gavloski, a MAFRI entomologist, explains the impact of aster leafhoppers on canola at a recent crops meeting in Souris. PHOTO: DANIEL WINTERS

PHOTOS: JOHN GAVLOSKI

and six dark spots on their heads that are visible only under magnification. Two of the spots are their eyes, and the rest non-functional head markings. Aster leafhopper damage on barley leaves is often mistaken for some other disease, and even though their damage is more noticeable on canola, they actually prefer to feed on cereals, said Gavloski. Freshly arrived swarms tend to feed on canola for a short period, then pack up and move on to cereals, their more preferred host. Vegetable producers plagued by infected leafhoppers are forced to spray almost weekly throughout the growing season to protect their high-value crops.

“If they were to do one or two sprays, it would do next to nothing,” said Gavloski. Spraying canola and wheat to prevent infection is “hit and miss,” he added, but if the timing is “just right” and no more swarms arrive afterwards, some success might be gained. It’s easy to overestimate aster yellows in canola because clubshaped pods are lighter and remain standing amid the other plants weighed down by full pods. This makes even a five per cent infection rate “look horrible,” he added. Gavloski toured many fields this summer where farmers pegged the aster yellows infection rate at 60 to 70 per cent, but upon closer inspection, he found it was more

like 30 to 40 per cent, which is still economically damaging. Incidence of aster yellows seems to be on the rise, with outbreaks in 2000, 2007, and now 2012. In past decades, aster yellows outbreaks were a once-in-20-years phenomenon because the little critters can’t overwinter in Manitoba. “It’s really unusual that we’ve had three bad years in the past 12 years,” said Gavloski. “But we haven’t yet had two bad years in a row. Not to say that it can’t happen, but there’s no expectation next year will be bad.” Bertha army worms were also an issue in western cereals this year, after blowing in during May. The nocturnal defoliators like thick canopies and can be hard to spot in the daytime. Flocks of blackbirds or seagulls in a field may indicate an army worm infestation in that spot, he added. Whether or not next year will see further problems is impossible to predict, because like aster leafhoppers, it depends on when and how many adult moths blow in. Although some agronomists recommend it as a cost-saving measure, mixing insecticide with fungicide to kill army worms runs the risk of eliminating the natural pollinator effect which is estimated to be worth 10 to 15 per cent of canola yields. “If you don’t have something at an economic threshold, don’t just throw in an insecticide just because it’s cheap. You may do more harm than good,” said Gavloski, adding that spraying during the flowering stage is particularly harmful to pollinators.

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The Manitoba Co-operator | December 20, 2012

Doubling down by intercropping can significantly boost yields per acre Growing peas and canola in the same field can boost yields by up to 60 per cent and provide a form of insurance if one suffers because of weather or disease By Daniel Winters CO-OPERATOR STAFF

ntercropping is showing promise as a way to squeeze two paycheques from the same field. “Why would you want to intercrop? Well, you get more grain per acre,” said Scott Chalmers, a diversification technician with the Western Agricultural Diversification Organization (WADO). The goal is to achieve 80 per cent yield for both crops seeded together in the same field — but added together, that means you get up to 60 per cent more production than if you divided the field in two and seeded each crop separately. Like any kind of farming, it requires Mother Nature’s cooperation. For example, in 2011 intercropped peas and canola hit that extra 60 per cent mark. But this year, it was in the 12 to 15 per cent range — largely because poor weather and diseases such as aster yellows hit canola hard. “Peas had a fantastic year and were very competitive, which hurt the canola even more,” Chalmers said at a recent crop production meeting. “But we know that when we grow peas in this region quite often we have a terrible yield and the canola can make up for that.” One way to explain the benefits of intercrops is to look at the yield in terms of “land equivalency ratio.” Basically, this means calculating back from the check strips to determine how much land it would take to get the same amount of grain if the crops were grown separately. Compared to $200-per-acre returns with monoculture canola seeded with a 90-pound nitrogen input, the net returns from the peas and canola intercrop returned over $400 per acre. However, high prices meant straight peas would have paid more than $500 per acre (based on WADO’s average yields of 60 bushels per acre). But Chalmers said one of the benefits of intercropping is that it comes with a built-in insurance policy that hedges against failure of one crop or the other. Farmers keen to try intercropping should seed a check strip nearby as a comparison to determine if the two-for-one crop actually yielded better results, he said. Plot trials showed seeding peas and canola mixed together in the same row yielded better results than other intercrop seeding variations, which included alternating paired rows of each crop or even triple rows. “We’re starting to see a trend that mixed rows are the best even though we’re fertilizing the rows for the canola,” said Chalmers. The yield bump could be explained by root leakage of excess nitrogen produced by the peas that is sucked up by the canola. He added that research at the University of Manitoba and European Union has shown that live, growing peas can “leak” nitrogen into the root zone and provide a benefit to nearby non-nitrogenfixing plants. Downsides from intercropping include problems getting crop insurance, the extra headache of having to separate the two crops

“You’ll hear your combine kind of groan, but that’s just money in the bank.”

SCOTT CHALMERS

at harvest time, and the need to desiccate the crop pre-harvest to ensure consistent maturity. Intercropping peas and canola may also tempt farmers to tighten rotations, and that can speed up proliferation of diseases such as sclerotinia, he added. Also, the sheer volume of biomass generated with a pea-canola intercrop can be nerve-racking at harvest. “You’ll hear your combine kind of groan, but that’s just money in the bank,” said Chalmers. A different kind of intercropping has been developed by Iowa farmer Clay Mitchell, who has tried to capitalize on the notion that grain growers are actually harvesting sunlight via grain. Mitchell planted narrow strips of corn in a north-south orientation interspersed by soybeans in the same field. The theory was

Scott Chalmers, a WADO diversification specialist, presents results from this summer’s intercrop plots near Melita. PHOTO: DANIEL WINTERS

that outside rows of a cornfield tend to yield much higher than the inside, more shaded areas because they get additional sunlight in the early morning and evening. Mitchell tested the theory by

planting 12 rows and hand picking each. The outside four rows yielded 366 bushels to the acre compared to 275 bushels per acre for the eight inside rows. “It kind of gives him an edge effect in boosting his corn yields,”

said Chalmers, adding Mitchell uses a controlled traffic GPS guidance system to alternate the areas seeded to corn and soybeans within each field. daniel.winters@fbcpublishing.com

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The Manitoba Co-operator | December 20, 2012

BRIEFS

Lower-protein wheat persists in Australia, rains disrupt harvest

Wheat crop swells to second biggest in 16 years

Wet weather is slowing the harvest, raising concerns of a shortage of protein wheat SYDNEY / REUTERS

heat gathered across the Australian east coast continues to show lowerthan-average protein levels, traders said, while wet weather is slowing the harvest there, stoking concerns of a global shortage. The harvest in New South Wa l e s a n d Q u e e n s l a n d , the states that produce t o p - q u a l i t y h a rd w h e a t , contains less protein than usual, traders and farmers said, compounding expectations for lower national output. “Wheat harvested is still down on historical averages (for protein content),” said Tom Howard, general manager at marketer Philp Brodie Grains. The development comes as the outlook for global wheat supply has b e e n s h a k e n by f e a r s o f export curbs by Russia and Ukraine, along with expectations of smaller crops in key producer Argentina. Analysts and traders have cut their estimate for Aus-

tralia’s 2012-13 wheat output to 20.47 million tonnes and reckon exports could shrink to a three-year low, a Reuters poll showed Nov. 8,

as unfriendly crop weather dents yields. Asia’s top buyers, who rely on Australia for the bulk of their milling wheat supplies,

may be forced to impor t larger volumes of high-protein spring wheat from the United States and Canada, supporting global prices.

Freshly cut wheat stands under approaching storm clouds near Roma, 430 km (267 miles) west of Brisbane in this October 29, 2011 file photograph. PHOTO: REUTERS / TIM WIMBORNE

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REUTERS / This year’s wheat harvest is the second biggest in 16 years, according to a new Statistics Canada report. However, a disappointing canola crop came in slightly smaller than StatsCan’s last prediction, and lower than the trade expected, further stretching already tight supplies. Canadian farmers produced 27.2 million tonnes of all wheat in 2012, up 7.6 per cent from 2011. Selling it won’t be a problem, said Neil Townsend, CWB’s director of market research. “There is going to be some demand out there given the stock situation and supply situation in the major exporters,” he said. But despite a record harvested area, canola production dropped 8.9 per cent from last year’s output to 13.3 million tonnes, said StatsCan. That’s about 400,000 tonnes below a recent Reuters survey of grain traders and analysts. “The Canadian canola situation is very, very tight,” said Townsend, adding it sets up a battle between domestic crushers and exporters for scarce supplies. StatsCan also reported tight stocks of barley (production down to 8.0 million versus 8.6 million in 2011) and oats (2.7 million tonnes). StatsCan surveyed 29,300 farmers between Oct. 26 and Nov. 14.

Drought dents U.S. farm sector income — but only barely

By Colin Packham

WASHINGTON / REUTERS U.S. farm income will drop by three per cent this year because of the drought and surging production costs. But since last year’s income was a record high, it will still be one of the best ever. However, it’s a different story on the expense side. The USDA says production costs rose eight per cent this year. Much of that rise came from higher feed costs. “Despite gains in almost all sources of farm income, larger increases in farm expenditures, especially for purchased feed, have more than wiped out those priceled gains to farm income,” the USDA report stated. The largest increases in farm income would come from insurance indemnities, it added. So far, crop insurers have paid out $6.3 billion on losses this year, and some analysts are predicting the tab will hit $20 billion, nearly double the record set last year.

The Manitoba Co-operator | December 20, 2012

Beautiful Hoar Frost

briefs

Global grain reserves tighten even as food prices fall

High humidity and mild temperatures are creating many scenes like this one across the province. photo: rosalyn lockie

rome / reuters / Global food markets face further volatility in 2013 as stocks and supplies of key cereals have tightened, even as world food prices fell to their lowest since June. The Food and Agriculture Organization’s index measuring prices of foods from grains and oilseeds to meat and dairy averaged 211 points in November, down three points from October as sugar, oils and cereals prices declined. However, the agency trimmed its forecast for global cereal production in 2012, estimating a 2.8 per cent decline from the previous year to 2.282 billion tonnes. It also slightly cut its forecast for world cereals stocks at the close of crop seasons ending in 2013, expecting them to stand at around 495 million tonnes, down five per cent from their opening level. “The lower the stocks, that means any unexpected development creates more variability in the prices than would otherwise,” said FAO senior economist Abdolreza Abbassian. “This is what we have been witnessing over the last few years. I don’t think 2013-14 will be that much different until we build up stocks to levels that the trade community feels are comfortable.”

Broker sued in alleged wheat futures scam chicago / reuters / U.S. regulators are suing a futures broker and two trading companies for attempting to manipulate wheat futures by electronically entering and immediately cancelling orders they did not intend to fill. The Commodity Futures Trading Commission said Eric Moncada, who worked for BES Capital LLC and Serdika LLC in New York, in October 2009 entered and cancelled within seconds numerous orders for 200 or more wheat contracts on the Chicago Board of Trade. Through his alleged scheme, Moncada attempted to create a misleading impression of increasing liquidity to move prices upward and downward at different times, the CFTC charges. As he was entering and cancelling orders, Moncada placed smaller orders to take advantage of any resulting price movements in the market, the CFTC alleged. During eight days in October 2009, Moncada manually entered a total of 710 orders for 200 or more wheat contracts and manually cancelled at least 98 per cent of them, according to the complaint.

The Manitoba Co-operator | December 20, 2012

U.S. spring wheat protein premiums rebound on export demand U.S. trader says Canadians offering more attractive prices to Asian buyers By Michael Hirtzer REUTERS

rowing export demand recently helped reverse what had been a historic discount between hard red spring wheat with 15 per cent protein and the lower grades, trade sources said. The biggest U.S. spring wheat crop in two years and the second straight year with above-average protein content led to an “inversion” in the closely watched protein scales at the Minneapolis Grain Exchange. “It’s the same old story, whatever is not available is worth the most. Typically protein is not available and it commands

U.S. winter wheat abandonment could top 25 per cent

taining 13 per cent protein, the widest discount since December and only the second time in five years a discount was seen, according to Reuters data. The discount has since reversed course, with the higher-protein wheat hitting a premium of about seven cents per bushel Oct. 30, the biggest in a month. Discounts of high-protein wheat are rare as wheat buyers often are willing to buy higherprotein grain and then “blend it down” with low-protein wheat. In 2008, high-protein 15 per cent wheat hit a record premium of roughly $8.75 per bushel more than 13 per cent protein wheat when tight

the premium. This year, it’s no secret that we’re high wheat protein,” said Tim Emslie, research manager at CHS Hedging Inc. in St. Paul, Minnesota. Spring wheat, valued for its high protein and gluten content, is used to bake bagels, rolls, pizza crust and pasta. This year’s crop, grown primarily in the northern U.S. Plains, averaged 16.6 per cent protein, equal with the average protein in last year’s crop that was the most in five years, according to the U.S. Wheat Associates. The glut of protein led to spring wheat containing 15 per cent protein trading last month at more than a 40-cents-perbushel discount to wheat con-

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Northwest said there was steady demand for what he called a “healthy” crop. “There is a demand for the higher-protein wheat,” he said. Concerns of poor-quality grain at other major exporters — due to too much rain in Argentina, too little in Australia — could lead to more demand from the United States, traders and analysts said. However, Canada currently is offering the most attractive prices for wheat exports into Asia, the Pacific Northwest trader said. Early last month, China bought at least 295,000 tonnes of Canadian spring wheat in the largest such purchases in years.

Get AheAD AnD stAY AheAD

By Carey Gillam

.S. winter wheat farmers could abandon more than a quarter of the new wheat crop due to devastating weather, although decisions on abandonment will not be made until spring, experts said this week. Historic drought, coupled with record warm weather and high winds sweeping across the Plains, have left the new crop in the worst condition in decades. With no significant improvement soon, many farmers could give up on their wheat acres. Abandonment levels could exceed 25 per cent, said Mark Hodges, a wheat industry consultant and executive director of Plains Grains Inc., which represents producers from around the Plains. “The potential is there,” he said. “We are nowhere near a normal crop. But Mother Nature is very fickle,” Hodges said. “Should we get some moisture, and I’m not saying the likelihood is high... we could still produce some wheat. But the likelihood of significant moisture is not great before spring.” According to data compiled by U.S. Department of Agriculture meteorologist Brad Rippey, since the 1950s there have been only two years in which U.S. winter wheat abandonment reached or exceeded a quarter of the crop. In the 1988-89 season abandonment was 25 per cent, and in 2001-02 it was 29 per cent. Current U.S. winter wheat conditions are worse than those observed than at this point in the season, and the lowest on record for this time of year, said Rippey. Twenty-six per cent of the new U.S. winter wheat crop was rated poor to very poor in late November by the USDA.

spring wheat supplies pushed MGEX futures to an all-time peak $24 per bushel. Many U.S. flour mills covered their needs for high-protein wheat during harvest and in recent weeks aggressively bid for lower-protein grain. Mills blend their wheat to achieve a consistency in the flour they produce. But while domestic demand for high-protein spring wheat was decreasing, foreign buyers stepped up purchases. U.S. exporters in the most recent reporting week sold 189,515 tonnes of spring wheat, led by top buyer Japan. The sales were the largest in eight months. A trader in the U.S. Pacific

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The Manitoba Co-operator | December 20, 2012

briefs

No emails please

Brazil cuts greenhouse gases from deforestation By Marcelo Teixeira sao paulo / reuters

A line of mailboxes south of Minnedosa awaits the old-fashioned Christmas greetings. photo: linda boys

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GrainCorp rejects ADM offer, higher bid seen

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Energy is on track to overtake deforestation for the first time as the biggest source of greenhouse gas emissions in Brazil as Amazon rainforest destruction recedes and energy use in Latin America’s largest economy continues to rise, a new study shows. Greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from land use change in Brazil stood at 569 million tonnes in 2011, a 64 per cent drop from 2005, while energy use emissions rose 33 per cent in the same interval to 436 million tonnes. “This year, considering the projected fall in Amazon deforestation, it is possible to estimate total emissions would fall below 1.5 billion tonnes, and for the first time GHG gases from energy use and agriculture will lead,” said independent consultant Tasso Azevedo. Last year, land use change — namely deforestation — accounted for 36 per cent of the country’s greenhouse gas emissions, while energy and agriculture accounted for 27 per cent and 28 per cent respectively. Brazil has had success in reducing deforestation, traditionally its main source of heattrapping gases, an achievement that should allow the country to reach a voluntary target to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by at least 36 per cent by 2020.

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sydney / reuters / GrainCorp has rejected a sweetened $2.9-billion bid from Archer Daniels Midland, putting pressure on the U.S. agribusiness giant to boost its offer for Australia’s last major independent grains handler. ADM was likely to nudge up its bid of A$12.20 (C$12.65) as it targets the purchase to give it a doorway to supply fast-growing Asia nations seeking food security, analysts said. “They might tinker with it on the margins but it’s probably not going to be significantly higher,” said Min TangVarner, a Morningstar analyst who covers ADM.

The Manitoba Co-operator | December 20, 2012

Washington cuts food bank donations Drought pushed up prices and cut surpluses the U.S. government normally buys and gives to food banks los angeles / reuters

he worst U.S. drought i n m o re t h a n h a l f a century has weakened the safety net for the 50 million Americans who struggle to get enough to eat. Demand for food assistance ticks higher during t h e w i n t e r h o l i d a y s, a n d t h i s s u m m e r ’s d r o u g h t has not only driven up grain and beef prices, but reduced Washington’s need to buy food in order to support agricultural prices and remove surpluses. Most of the products from those gover nment purchases are sent to food banks, which then distribute them to food pantries, s o u p k i t c h e n s a nd e me r-

gency shelters. The decline in gover nment donations has hurt. “People have been coping with economic distress for a really, really, really long time... After several years of tapping all the resources we have, we’re starting to see that we’re coming up short,” said Carrie Calvert, an official with Feeding America, the nation’s largest hunger relief organization. G ov e r n m e n t c o m m o d i ties once made up 28 per c e n t o f t h e f o o d f l ow i n g through the Feeding America network, which includes about 90 per cent of U.S. food banks, which provide food for about 37 million people annually. That figure has now fallen to 17 per cent.

U.S. President Barack Obama greets a woman as he participates with first lady Michelle Obama and their daughters Sasha and Malia in a service event at Capital Area Food Bank in Washington, November 21. Photo: REUTERS/Yuri Gripas

“Hands off our water,” say upstream states in Missouri River row By Charles Abbott washington / reuters

utspoken Montana Governor Brian Schweitzer and three other “upstream” governors are fighting a bid to draw down Missouri River reservoirs to keep barge traffic moving on the Mississippi. Farm groups and processors in the U.S. Midwest are urging President Barack Obama to order an emergency release to boost water volume on the droughtshrunk Mississippi, as shippers warn low water levels will make it nearly impossible to move crops to export markets at the Gulf of Mexico. Water levels are forecast to drop to near-historic lows by midDecember on the “middle river” — the stretch from St. Louis to Cairo, Illinois. The Missouri flows into the Mississippi just north of St. Louis. But Schweitzer said doing that would harm communities and businesses in his state, as well as those in North Dakota, South Dakota and Kansas. “I would appeal to the rule of law and to common sense,” he said. Besides providing water for irrigation, drinking water and industrial uses, the reservoirs are a centrepiece for tourism. A rancher and businessman, Schweitzer suggested using the man-made Lake of the Ozarks, a vacation mecca in central Missouri. “Stand along your own shorelines and open those flood gates. You go first,” said Schweitzer. The Missouri River reservoirs, built from the 1930s to the 1960s, form the largest U.S. reservoir system. The Corps of Engineers says it was given eight purposes for operation of the system, from flood control, water supply, and fish and wildlife but supporting barge movement on the Mississippi was not one of them.

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The Manitoba Co-operator | December 20, 2012

COUNTRY CROSSROADS CON N EC T I NG RU R A L FA M I L I E S

Pioneer ingenuity helped maintain

CHRISTMAS TRADITIONS When resources were scarce, creative solutions had to be found

By Barb Galbraith CO-OPERATOR CONTRIBUTOR

ecorating an evergreen tree for Christmas was a custom brought by early immigrants from many homelands to Canada. Homesteaders on the Prairies, however, found that tradition initially thwarted by a lack of trees and space. Trees were only common a l o n g t h e l a k e s h o re s a n d streams or in marshy areas of the southern grasslands. In 1902, the newly established Dominion Forest Nursery Station at Indian Head (in what was then still the Northwest Territories) expanded a distribution program for farmstead shelterbelts. Early offerings included ash, willow, box elder (Manitoba maple) and elm, based on previous experimental plantings to determine suitable varieties for the Prairie ecosystem. Had it even been available, there was no space for a full evergreen tree in the oneor two-room shelters that were hastily built upon arrival. Soddies were the first homes constructed due to lack of wood and stone. Very few settlers could afford to order lumber delivered to the bald prairie. Chunks of sod were cut and stacked to form walls. Wind and snow leaked through cracks. Straw and newspaper served as insulation. Only doors and windows were framed with wood. Roof construction varied. An old saying about sod roofs was that

if it rained for three days outside, it would rain for six inside. By 1905, and if they had the cash, families in the West could purchase many things through the T. Eaton Company’s Winnipeg-based mail-order catalogue, often referred to as the Homesteader’s Bible. Goods ranged from small personal items up to full prefab houses, but did not include Christmas trees. The first mass-produced artificial trees in North America didn’t appear until the 1930s. The Addis Brush Company employed the same material and methods as they used to manufacture their toilet brushes, but added the extra step of dying the bristles green.

Even if they had been available, few settlers could have afforded this luxury. Cashstrapped families chose which items to order with great care. No telephone or home mail delivery meant a long trip to town to place the order and another to pick it up. In the book, Rocky Mountain C h r i s t m a s : St o r i e s o f t h e West, John H. Monnett wrote: “Indeed, the determination of homesteaders to celebrate the Yuletide is revealed in the adaptations and innovations they devised on the treeless prairie. In numerous cases, dried tumbleweed, sagebrush, or even pieces of scrap wood nailed together were decorated at

Christmastime. Homesteaders on the sod-house frontier would go to extreme lengths to simulate the beloved Christmas tree for their children.” South Dakota settler Rosina Kiehlbauch wrote of Russian immigrants in the short story, Christmas in the New World: “There ( Johannes) selected a straight, stout willow about the thickness of his thumb and hoped for inspiration. He took it to his workbench, bored holes into it where branches could be and whittled down willow tips to fit the holes. In spite of the make-believe branches, it was only a bare, stiff, ungainly tree skeleton, but somehow there was an innate, sturdy courage

PHOTO: THINKSTOCK

about it and who could say that the Christmas spirit was not in its heart?” When presented with Johannes’ creation, his wife, Codray, took the label from a can of chicory and boiled it to release the red dye. She added scraps of paper and then hung them to dry before cutting a fringed edge. These she twisted around each “branch.” With leftover paper, she made rosettes to decorate the tips. T h e Fa m i l y He ra l d a n d Weekly Star’s Prim Rose At Home pages printed families’ unique solutions to the hardships of living on isolated farms. These can be found in Norah L. Lewis’s book, Dear Editor and Friends: Letters from Rural Women of the North-West, 1900-1920. Morning Albertan told of a Christmas in 1882: “My husband went to the nearest swamp and cut down a goodsize tamarack, bringing it home on the sleigh… In those days Christmas trees were rare in our vicinity, so we invited all the children in the neighbourhood.” Letter writer “Rosebush” explained how in 1904 “(w)e were on the prairie and not a tree in sight. The boys went out to the sandhills and got ground cedar, then the boys and girls came the night before and built up a tree.” Prairie pioneers showed great ingenuity in taking what was available and turning it into something fitting with cherished family traditions.

The Manitoba Co-operator | December 20, 2012

COUNTRY CROSSROADS

RecipeSwap

Send your recipes or recipe request to: Manitoba Co-operator Recipe Swap Box 1794, Carman, Man. ROG OJO or email: lorraine@fbcpublishing.com

Ask for the recipe Lorraine Stevenson Crossroads Recipe Swap

here is no meal like a Christmas Day or Eve dinner to remind us of our country’s multicultural flavour. Holiday feasts draw us to tables laden with foods and specially prepared dishes as varied and diverse as our families’ countries of origin. These are very special dinner table traditions, which could easily have disappeared had not someone in our family taken the time to learn — and pass along — the recipe. Every year, when we bite into that perfect Christmas stollen, or pudding, or cabbage roll, we’re reminded how lucky we are to still have that special person among us who knows how to make it along with all the subtle little tricks and touches that make it perfect. Do you say, every year, “gotta get this recipe” and “gotta learn how to make that?” Get it this year. Learn it now. Know it so you can pass it along in Christmases yet to come. Wishing you a blessed Christmas and all the best in 2013.

Roasted Squash Soup Christmas Eve fare varies from home to home and culture to culture, yet many traditional suppers are often meatless and usually light in households where the biggest feast is served Christmas Day. Here’s a filling soup that will be perfect for a December 24 supper. 1 acorn or butternut squash, cut into eighths 2 carrots, peeled and sliced 1 red onion, quartered 1 red pepper, cut in half 1 head of garlic 1/4 c. canola oil Salt and pepper to taste 1 tsp. dried basil 2 c. chicken broth

Preheat oven to 350 F. Combine squash, carrots, red onion, red pepper and garlic in a medium bowl. Toss with canola oil, salt, pepper and basil. Place mixture on baking sheet, making sure the squash is cut side down. Roast in oven for 50 minutes or until tender. Using a big spoon, scoop the squash out of its skin and into the food processor. Remove skin from red pepper and garlic. Place in food processor. Add onions and carrots. Purée the mixture, slowly adding the chicken broth. A smooth texture is desired. To make croutons: 4 slices multi-grain bread, cut into small pieces 1/4 c. canola oil Salt and pepper to taste 2 tbsp. Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 350 F (180 C). Toss bread with canola oil, salt, pepper and Parmesan cheese. Place on baking sheet. Bake for 20 minutes, until crisp. Stir occasionally. Yields 6 servings, Source: Manitoba Canola Growers Association

Tasty Prairie Pie Fish dishes are a popular choice on Christmas Eve too. I have made this recipe several times and vouch for its simplicity and wonderful flavour. Serve with a side salad as a light “night before” meal. 6 Freshwater Fish frozen lake whitefish fillets, 4 oz. each, cooked 2 tbsp. butter 1/2 c. chopped onion 1 garlic clove, crushed 1 c. diced zucchini 2 tbsp. flour 1/2 tsp. salt Dash of pepper 1/2 tsp. thyme 1/2 tsp. basil 2 c. tomatoes, peeled, seeded and chopped 1 9-inch pie crust

Break fillets into chunks. Sauté onion, garlic and zucchini until vegetables are tender. Blend in flour, seasonings and herbs. Add tomatoes and cook five minutes or until sauce is thick. Add fish and pour into a 9-inch pie plate. Cover with pastry, trim and flute. Bake at 400 F for 25 to 30 minutes or until pastry is golden brown. Allow pie to stand 10 minutes before serving. Serves 6. Source: From Lake to Plate recipes of Fresh Water Fish Marketing Corporation

Turkey And Mozzarella Stuffed Veggies If your preferred Christmas Day meat is turkey, you’re bound to have leftovers. Make sure you have a bag of fresh spinach, and a few tomatoes and medium-size zucchini on hand to put this tasty post-Christmas Day lunch or supper together. 1 tbsp. butter 1/4 c. onion, chopped 1 clove garlic 3/4 c. fresh spinach, chopped 2/3 c. turkey stuffing leftovers or (a mixture of cooked sausage meat and bread crumbs) 1 c. turkey, cooked and diced 1/2 c. tomato or vegetable juice 6 medium-size tomatoes, tops removed and emptied OR 3 peppers, cut in half and emptied OR 3 zucchinis cut in half, lengthwise and emptied 3/4 c. mozzarella, grated

Preheat oven to 400 F. In skillet, melt butter over high heat, and sauté onion and garlic two minutes. Add spinach, stir well and cook one more minute. Stir in stuffing mix, turkey and tomato juice. Remove from heat. Arrange tomatoes (peppers or zucchinis) in an ovenproof plate. Distribute mixture evenly inside vegetables. Sprinkle with mozzarella and bake 20 minutes. Preparation time: 15 minutes. Cooking time: 25 minutes. Yields 6 servings. Source: Dairy Farmers of Canada

Photo: Canola Info

Mini Peppermint Cupcakes On the Canola Info website you’ll find a collection of “skinny mini” desserts for delicious and low-cal desserts for your festivities. At just 110 calories these sweet little cupcakes are a wonderful way to finish off a big Christmas dinner or serve for a New Year’s Eve treat. 1-1/2 c. all-purpose flour 3/4 c. granulated sugar 1 tsp. baking soda 1 tsp. salt 1/2 c. cocoa powder 1/2 c. canola oil 1 c. skim milk 1 tsp. vinegar 1 tsp. peppermint extract Chocolate Glaze: 1/2 c. heavy cream 4 oz. bittersweet chocolate, chopped 1 tbsp. honey 1/2 tbsp. prepared coffee Garnish: 1/2 c. coarsely crushed red and white striped hard peppermint candies or candy canes

Preheat oven to 350 F. Line mini cupcake pan with paper cupcake liners. In medium bowl, mix together flour, sugar, baking soda, salt and cocoa powder. In large bowl, mix canola oil, milk and vinegar. Add half of dry ingredients into oil. When well combined, add peppermint extract. Slowly mix in remaining dry ingredients until fully combined and free of lumps. Scoop batter into cupcake liners with small ice cream scoop or spoon. Bake cupcakes for 12 minutes. Cool completely on rack. While cupcakes are cooling, make glaze. In saucepan, mix cream, chocolate, honey and coffee on low heat. Stir until smooth. Let cool. Dip cooled cupcakes in chocolate glaze. Place on rack and sprinkle with crushed peppermint candies. Let glaze harden. Yield: 36 mini cupcakes. Tip: To crush the peppermint candies, put them in a zip-top bag and crush with a rolling pin or use a food processor. Source: www.canolainfo.org

The Manitoba Co-operator | December 20, 2012

COUNTRY CROSSROADS

Great Dane Rescue Foxwarren couple saves dogs By Darrell Nesbitt FREELANCE CONTRIBUTOR

aving been involved in Great Dane Rescue for 30 years, a Foxwarren couple is proud to say that close to 270 of these dogs have been saved by their outlet New Hope for Danes. “We became involved with Great Dane Rescue because we had dogs of this breed and saw how many were advertised in the papers, on the Internet, etc.,” said Elaine Dixon, who along with her husband Cam, saw a need for education and helping these dogs that were being bounced from home to home. Dixon is a director of the Great Dane Club of Canada and her husband is vice-president of the Mid-West Division. Servicing not only Manitoba, but also British Columbia, northern Ontario and Saskatchewan, their mission is to rescue all Danes who are not wanted, can no longer be kept for various reasons, or are in undesirable situations, and place them in loving, caring homes where they can truly be a part of the family. “We have had Danes for 30 years and found so many people want a Dane until they realize the work involved or what a major part of the family they must be,” Dixon said. “Danes think they are human and demand to be treated as such. They are funny, usually calm, but get excited when people come, as they think everyone is coming to see them.” And despite being a large dog, they prefer being a couch potato versus scampering in the yard. Over the years the Dixons, who live in a rural setting, have had 11 Danes, with the major-

ity owned being retired Show Danes. Presently, they own two Great Danes and also have a rescue.

Reasons for rescue

Dixon said there are numerous reasons for the need to rescue these dogs including the size of the animal, divorce and death, and moving to an apartment that doesn’t take pets. New Hope for Danes website serves as a positive tool in hearing from people who want to give up their Great Dane, as was the case of a lady who wanted the Dixons to take her 11-month-old fawn male as she was too busy to look after him. Not turning their backs, the Dixons will help with this dilemma and find a forever home for the dog. All rescued Danes are checked out health-wise, all shots up to date, and neutered or spayed at the Shoal Lake Veterinary Clinic. A placed Dane does come with a cost, depending on how much the Dixons had to spend on him or her. Dixon said it goes according to age; a very young dog would be more, however, some older ones have been given free of charge just so they can have a forever home for a few years. In these circumstances, the older dogs are normally placed with people who have had Danes and understand them.

Apollo of dogs

The Great Dane combines in its distinguished appearance, dignity, strength, and elegance with great size and a powerful, well-formed, smooth-muscled body. In the show ring accepted colours are brindle, fawn, blue, black and harlequin. In res-

Elaine Dixon with her dogs (l to r) Aisha, Brianna, and Khanor.

cue there is also merle, a mixture of the other colours, and white. The majority of white are deaf and so far, New Hope has placed three deaf Danes. Males are usually 32 inches and over at the shoulder, and females are 30 inches and over. To help out with food, veterinarian costs, and travel expenses, the Dixons gratefully accept financial donations, which can be sent to New Hope for Danes, Box 106, Foxwarren, Man., R0J 0R0. “To see a Dane that has lived in four different homes or has been badly abused become a loved member of the family in a forever home is priceless,” Dixon said emotionally. “There are so many stories I could tell about the rescues.” Perhaps what people don’t

PHOTO: DARRELL NESBITT

know is that Danes are totally different than other dogs. They are very sensitive and get their feelings hurt easily. Cancer and heart conditions are their main enemy, and they have to be house dogs.

Seeking charity status

Having formed a board, New Hope for Danes is working to become a registered not-forprofit charity. Dixon said the board, of which she serves as president, came to light thanks to one of the ladies who adopted a 10-month-old and said she would like to help in British Columbia. The difficulty for the Dixons of having to drive to Regina, Winnipeg and farther to pick up a Dane, has been nulli-

fied as New Hope for Danes n ow h a s f o s t e r h o m e s i n every province served — two in Winnipeg, one in Brandon, two in Saskatchewan and two on Vancouver Island, where this year alone five Danes have been rescued and adopted out. To learn more about this special organization, visit the website, www.newhopefordanes.org, phone 204-847-2159 or email cedixon@xplornet.com. Knowing the sensitivity these wonderful dogs possess, the Dixons and many other pet lovers like them in Manitoba and across Canada, share this same message, “Once you have a Dane… it will always be a Dane.” Darrell Nesbitt writes from Shoal Lake, Manitoba

Please feed the birds By Eva Krawchuk FREELANCE CONTRIBUTOR

hat a special morning I had recently. Everyone’s aware of the declining bird population — some species down by 75 per cent and that’s catastrophic. Can you imagine the excitement and delight of seeing a flock of evening and pine grosbeaks at my very own feeder out my very own window? Not once in the 50 years of living here in the city has there been a visit from these little beauties. Common in the Interlake area, our family had their company when we farmed there, but until now I’ve never seen them in the city. Nuthatches, house finches, redpolls, pine siskins and chickadees are more numerous than in past years — perhaps because of my “meal planning.” Small, black sunflower seeds are the ticket, and not many winter birds can resist feasting on them. Beef fat is another essential. Most stores will give this to you when they have it on hand. Place it in a container that cannot be accessed by squirrels and have a baffle under those feeders for that same reason. Ensure the seed feeders are too high for deer to partake of this fine dining. The message? Please feed the birds. Eva Krawchuk writes from Winnipeg

PHOTO: EVA KRAWCHUK

Wishing you a Happy Christmas from Country Crossroads

The Manitoba Co-operator | December 20, 2012

COUNTRY CROSSROADS

Christmas at our house By Stan Harder FREELANCE CONTRIBUTOR

hristmas decorations are a matter of choice and can be really commercial or completely unpretentious. In our family household we appreciate personal input — what is pleasing to us — and the mantel display is simplicity itself. Handmade, solid wood birdhouses blend well with brighter, seasonal surroundings and can be reused year after year. We also like to decorate outside with ice candles, which are best lined up in a series. To make, we partially fill various-size containers with water and set them outdoors to freeze. After they show an inch of ice on the sides we invert, pour warm water on the outer sides and the ice slips out. A small tapped hole allows

remaining water to drain, leaving a hollow shell on a solid base. Ice freezes in various designs, and seen in the light of a flickering candle placed inside can make for a remarkable sight. Our simple “Charlie Brown” tree is to remind us of our ancestors’ humble agrarian roots, a gentle reminder that today’s prosperity was not always so. Our parents and grandparents survived the Great Depression and if they had a tree at all it was nowhere near the glittering monuments that are displayed today. This lonely branch is a silent but poignant reminder that our health and good fortune could be as fleeting as the slowly fading needles on each year’s unassuming Charlie Brown tree, to remind us to enjoy today’s Christmas and to be thankful for our place in it.

The birdhouses we display on the mantel are handmade and fit in well with other seasonal items. PHOTO: BY STAN HARDER

A real Christmas tree By Albert Parsons

ural Christmas trees? So far our family has resisted the urge to buy that perfect artificial tree. I think one of the great joys of the holiday season is the ritual of choosing, erecting and decorating a natural Christmas tree. It is almost a daylong process, and in this hurry, hurry, rush, rush society in which we live, I understand why many people are not willing to expend so much time and effort. However, I do think that families, particularly those with young children, are missing a great opportunity to spend quality time for a day in a co-operative, pleasurable undertaking.

FREELANCE CONTRIBUTOR

admit it. I am an old-fashioned gardener. I like things natural and am quite uncomfortable with some of the trends in gardening which have a lot more to do with accessories and other “stuff” and less and less to do with real live plants. I am also not a great fan of some of the newer hybrid plants, which have been bred to look perfect — no wayward branches, no errant blooms poking out here or there. Does it come as any surprise, then, that I am also a fan of nat-

Make a CHOCOLATE BAR SLEIGH

Just the trip to the Christmas tree farm or garden centre to choose the tree allows us to breathe in the aroma of Christmas and to marvel at the beauty of the poinsettias and to smell and touch the natural trees and wreaths made from real evergreen boughs. For a while we leave the artificial world of tinsel behind and enjoy some aspects of Christmas that are truly natural. Anyone who has taken children to pick out a real tree knows that this is a heavyduty job that can take hours of serious deliberation. What an adventure, which can be made

Thoughts on Christmas

even more connected to the real, natural world by choosing to go to a Christmas tree farm and actually cutting your own tree — an outdoor activity undertaken while enjoying the fresh air and snowscape of our winter wonderland. Fitting the tree into the trunk or tying it onto the car roof involves more co-operative effort, as does carrying it into the house and getting it set up in an appropriate stand. Teachable moments abound: discussing where and how the trees are grown and why the end of the tree trunk must be

cut off to allow the tree to take up water. Then the decorating begins — many of the decorations will lead to reminiscences and recalled memories of past celebrations and perhaps even of lost loved ones — mini family history lessons. All the while that the tree is being put up and decorated, and for some time after, the evergreen aroma will waft throughout the house. I cannot imagine the holiday season without that true smell of Christmas. Albert Parsons writes from Minnedosa, Manitoba

A Christmas Dilemma ’Twas just days before Christmas and out on the farm We’ve got a big woodpile to keep ourselves warm We’ve put up the tree and we’ve made all the pies

PHOTO: KAREN CHIC

By Karen Chic FREELANCE CONTRIBUTOR

This quick craft not only looks festive but also makes a sweet treat for giving.

Supplies:

• 2 candy canes • 6 or more snack-size bars • Hot glue gun

• 1 regular-size Kit Kat bar • Metallic curling ribbon • A helper

Instructions:

Using the Kit Kat bar as the sleigh’s base, arrange the snack-size bars on top. Once you are satisfied with the arrangement of all the “gifts,” tie together with ribbon. This step is accomplished easily with assistance from a “little helper” to tie the ribbon while you hold the gift pile in place. Curl the ribbon. Next, get your helper to hold the candy canes on the table while you apply a small amount of hot glue, then place the Kit Kat on top of the candy canes. Karen Chic writes from Komarno, Manitoba

By Addy Oberlin

And we’ve hidden the toys from the grandchildren’s eyes

FREELANCE CONTRIBUTOR

There are lights in the windows, a wreath on the door

The Christmas tree is up. It is not a very big one, but there is enough room under it to put the presents. The baking is done and the house is almost ready to receive family and friends. The little girl asks her mother: “Why do we celebrate Christmas?” Her mom thinks for a moment and answers: “So we can do nice things for each other.” The girl looks at her mother in surprise and asks: “We only do nice things for others at Christmas? Let us pause a moment amidst the busyness of getting ready and think about why we celebrate Christmas… It is the celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ. When we celebrate Christmas let us do something nice for others — something that He would be pleased with, however, not only during the Christmas season, but the whole year through. Wishing you all a blessed Christmas. Addy Oberlin writes from Swan River, Manitoba

And we just got some phone calls from kinfolks galore They’re arriving by car, on a plane and a bus Have we got beds to hold ’em I’m starting to fuss There’s the spare room, the kids’ room, the den and the hall There’s the roll-away, air-bed, and for someone small We can drag out the futon — we’ll get ’em all bedded But quite frankly my dear, there’s something I’ve dreaded The beds we can manage, but all of us know We have only one bathroom, then it’s out in the snow And that can be chilly, as well you may guess So we’ll just have to hope they can make do with less Than the usual allotment of time they would spend And maybe for some — they could bathe with a friend The main thing is that we’re together again, But we hope that no blizzards will block up our lane Company’s lovely, please don’t get me wrong As long as they don’t become storm-stayed too long. I’ll miss my hot showers, but I’ll cook up a storm We’ll fire the woodstoves and stay nice and warm The kids will go sliding… the grownups will talk The aunties and grandmas will go for a walk And we’ll send our good wishes to folks far and near Merry Christmas to all and a Happy New Year! Edie Mowat writes from her farm outside of Brandon, Man.

The Manitoba Co-operator | December 20, 2012

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The Manitoba Co-operator | December 20, 2012

AUCTION SALES Saskatchewan Auctions

ANTIQUES

AUCTION SALES Saskatchewan Auctions

ANTIQUES Antiques For Sale

Harvest Salvage Co. Ltd.

2 SETS OF LIGHT driving harness; 2 sets of general purpose leather harness; Scotch tops; Antique ivory spread rings; several horse collars; several leather halters; cutter tongue eaveners & neck yokes; a good selection of antique horse machinery. Phone:(204)242-2809.

1-866-729-9876 5150 Richmond Ave. East BRANDON, MB. www.harvestsalvage.ca New, Used & Re-man. Parts

AUCTION DISTRICTS

Tractors Combines Swathers

Parkland – North of Hwy 1; west of PR 242, following the west shore of Lake Manitoba and east shore of Lake Winnipegosis. Westman – South of Hwy 1; west of PR 242. Interlake – North of Hwy 1; east of PR 242, following the west shore of Lake Manitoba and east shore of Lake Winnipegosis. Red River – South ofHwy 1; east of PR 242.

The Pas

Before auction day, you need the

Spring 2013 Auction Guide.

Birch River

Every year, more farmers are choosing Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers to conduct their farm auctions. Showcase your agricultural equipment & real estate in our Spring 2013 Auction Guide and maximize your exposure.

Swan River Minitonas Durban

Winnipegosis

Roblin

Dauphin

Grandview

Ashern

Gilbert Plains

Fisher Branch

Ste. Rose du Lac Russell

Parkland

Birtle

Riverton Eriksdale

McCreary

Gladstone

Rapid City

Melita

Boissevain

Killarney

Pilot Mound Crystal City

Elm Creek

Sanford

Call your local representative today for a free, no hassle, proposal:

Beausejour

Ste. Anne

Carman

Mariapolis

Lac du Bonnet

Winnipeg

Austin Treherne

Westman

Waskada

Stonewall Selkirk

Portage Carberry

Brandon Souris

Reston

Interlake

Langruth

Neepawa

Hamiota

The deadline to be included is February 7, 2013.

Lundar

Erickson Minnedosa

Virden

Arborg

Gimli

Shoal Lake

St. Pierre

242

Morris Winkler Morden

Altona

Steinbach

Daryl Martin – Agricultural Territory Manager Manitoba dmartin@rbauction.com or 306.421.5066

Red River

AUCTION SALES AUCTION SALES Manitoba Auctions – Parkland

Melvin And Ruth FRiesen FARMs GladStone /auStin mb

thuRsdAy APRil 4th 10 AM tRACtORs: Versatile 2360, 2210 Mfwd. Versatile 835, 276, By Directional /Loader, Harvest , Case IH 8010 and 2388 Combines , MF 9220 Swather • 2011 - AS1020 Apache 100ft Sprayer 1000gal Tank, 292 running hrs SCS5000 Raven Monitor, • Case IH FM750 GPS auto boom shut off 380/80R38 frt 380/90R46 rear + 520/85R42 set. • Tillage Seeding • Trucks • Skid Steers etc

We will be conductiong this auction with nickel Auctions Austin, MB 204-637-3393 See our website www.billklassen.com or call 204-325-4433 cell 6230 Bill Klassen Auctioneers bill@billklassen.com

AUCTION SALES Manitoba Auctions – Red River

Merry Christmas to all our Clients,Auction Attendees, and Friends. May you experience the True Meaning of Christmas as you Celebrate with Family and Friends. From Management & Staff

800.491.4494

| rbauction.com

AUTO & TRANSPORT Auto & Truck Parts REMANUFACTURED DSL ENGINES: GM 6.5L $4,750 installed; Ford/IH 7.3L $4950 installed; GM Duramax/Ford 6.0L, $8,500 installed; new 6.5L engines $6500; 24V 5.9L Cummins, $7,500 installed; other new/used & reman. engines available, can ship or install. Thickett Engine Rebuilding, 204-532-2187, Binscarth. 8:00am-5:30pm Mon.-Fri.

AUTO & TRANSPORT Trucks BUCKET TRUCK 32-FT Sale- Trade, good working order. (204)726-1760. FOR SALE: 1975 GMC 6500 truck 8x16 box & hoist, 5x2 trans, 10-20 tires, new safety, $6,300 OBO; 1993 F250 7.3 engine, automatic trans, extended cab, bucket seats, $2,600 OBO. Phone (204)745-2784.

AUTO & TRANSPORT Vehicles Various OVER 200 VEHICLES LOTS OF DIESELS www.thoens.com Chrysler Dodge (800)667-4414 Wynyard, Sk.

BUILDING & RENOVATIONS BUILDING & RENOVATIONS Roofing

PRICE TO CLEAR!! 75 truckloads 29 gauge full hard 100,000PSI high tensile roofing & siding. 16 colours to choose from. B-Gr. coloured......................70¢/ft.2

Multi-coloured millends.........49¢/ft.2

Ask about our blowout colours...65¢/ft.2 Also in stock low rib white 29 ga. ideal for archrib buildings BEAT THE PRICE INCREASES CALL NOW

FOUILLARD STEEL SUPPLIES LTD. ST. LAZARE, MB. 1-800-510-3303

Winkler, MB • 1-204-325-4433

BUILDINGS AFAB INDUSTRIES IS YOUR SUPERIOR post frame building company. For estimates and information call 1-888-816-AFAB(2322). Website: www.postframebuilding.com

WATROUS SALVAGE

BUSINESS SERVICES STEINBACH, MB. Ph. 326-2443

BUSINESS SERVICES Crop Consulting

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

2408 GRAIN HANDLER DRYER 4 yr Old Grain Handler Dryer. Very Good Shape. Power on the dryer is 480V. This is a very clean & well taken care of machine. Capable of drying all types of grains including seed grains at equal rates. Capacity of the dryer: 1300-bph 5-pts 800-bph 10-pts. This price below doesn’t include shipping or set up. Customer is welcome to come PU & set up them selfs if wanted. Customer is responsible for all taxes or duty fees required to get across the border. PRICE: $87,000. (701)788-8927

FARM MACHINERY Grain Handling

CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENT WANTED TO BUY an excavator, prefer 200-270 JD, Komatsu, Hitachi or Case, prefer 2000-2005, has to have thumb. Phone (204)871-0925.

FARM MACHINERY FARM MACHINERY Fertilizer Equipment FERTILIZER SPREADERS, 4-9-TONNE, $2500 up; Large selection 8T tender, $2500; 16T, $5900. www.zettlerfarmequipment.com (204)857-8403.

FARM MACHINERY Grain Bins BIG BINS & FLOORS at old prices, 20,000-56,000bu. bins holding prices until spring. NEW MOISTURE CABLES! Call Wall Grain for details (204)269-7616 or (306)244-1144 or (403)393-2662. CUSTOM BIN MOVING Book now! Fert Tanks. Hopper Bins/flat. Buy/Sell. Call Tim (204)362-7103 or E-mail Requests binmovers@hotmail.com SUKUP GRAIN BINS Heavy Duty, hopper or flat bottom, setup available. Early order discount pricing now in effect. Call for more info (204)998-9915 WANTED: NEW OR USED grain bin hoppers, w/ or w/o skids, w/ or w/o bins. Phone (204)655-3458 pls lvg message.

FARM MACHINERY Grain Cleaners WANTED: GRAVITY TABLE IN good condition, 400 Kip Kelly or larger capacity, or equivalent. Phone (204)655-3458 pls lvg message.

BAlejA FArms WednesdAy April 24th 10 Am

BUSINESS OPPORTUNITIES

NEW SUKUP GRAIN DRYERS w/canola screens, 1 or 3PH, LP or NG. Efficient & easy to operate. Early Order discount pricing now in effect. (204)998-9915

SELLING NEVIN SEEDS, a well established bird seed company, included in sale are all bagging & packaging equip, bins, etc. as well as business contacts. Reason for selling: semi-retiring. Phone:(204)763-4470 or (204)761-3931.

NEW MC DRYERS IN STOCK w/canola screens 300-2,000 BPH units. Why buy used, when you get new fuel efficient & better quality & control w/MC. Call Wall Grain for details (204)269-7616 or (306)244-1144 or (403)393-2662.

BUILDINGS

trACtOrs: •2009 JD 9430 with 475 Hours. JD 5603 /Loader 360 hours • Ford 8770 mfwd 1700 hrs, COmBine: • 2009 JD 9770 sts 600 hrs, • 2002 MacDon Harvest pro 8152 Swather, 30 ft 850 hrs, • 2006 Case IH model SPX 3185, 750 gal tank, 90 ft Boom, two set of Nozzles, 320/90/P42 tires, Hyd, thread adjustment, wired for outback auto steer, only 400 hrs, Excellent Trucks tillage and seeding, also consigned CIH 2388 Combine

The Real Used FaRm PaRTs sUPeRsToRe Over 2700 Units for Salvage • TRACTORS • COMBINES • SWATHERS • DISCERS Call Joe, leN oR daRWIN (306) 946-2222 monday-Friday - 8 a.m. - 5 p.m.

Large Inventory of new and remanufactured parts

SELLING WELL ESTABLISHED FEEDLOT Cleaning Business in South Central MB included in sale, 2 vertical beater spreaders, rubber tracked skidsteer, including customer list. Reason for selling pursuing other interests. Phone (204)466-2818 or (204)871-2787.

FARM MACHINERY Grain Dryers

Sperling, MB

“For All Your Farm Parts”

www.fyfeparts.com

NEW & USED TRACTOR PARTS NEW COMBINE PARTS

CONCRETE FLATWORK: Specializing in place & finish of concrete floors. Can accommodate any floor design. References available. Alexander, MB. 204-752-2069.

Winkler, MB • 1-204-325-4433

FYFE PARTS

1-800-667-9871 • Regina 1-800-667-3095 • Saskatoon 1-800-387-2768 • Winnipeg 1-800-222-6594 • Edmonton

WaTRoUs, sK. Fax: 306-946-2444

AUTO & TRANSPORT Winkler, MB • 1-204-325-4433

FARM MACHINERY Parts & Accessories

AGRI-VACS

Tired of shovelling out your bins, unhealthy dust and awkward augers? Walinga manufactures a complete line of grain vacs to suit your every need. With no filters to plug and less damage done to your product than an auger, you’re sure to find the right system to suit you. Call now for a free demonstration or trade in your old vac towards a new WALINGA AGRI-VACS Fergus, ON: (519) 787-8227 Carman, MB: (204) 745-2951 Davidson, SK: (306) 567-3031

Combines FARM MACHINERY Combine – Case/IH 2008 CASE-IH 2588 combine w/2015 PU, 476 sep hrs, 594 engine hrs, Pro 600 monitor, y/m, rice tires, hopper topper, shedded, heavy soil machine, $170,000 open to offers. (204)735-2886, (204)981-5366.

FARM MACHINERY Combine – John Deere YEAR END SALE AT WHOLESALE PRICES: JD 930 Flex w/Crary air reel,$10,900; 930 Flex w/new Crary air reel, $16,750; 06 635 Hydraflex, $18,840. Also have new 30-ft pole header trailer w/lights, $3,000; New 38-ft header trailer w/front dollies, 2-rear axles w/brakes & lights $6,800. Phone:(204)746-6605 or (204)325-2496.

Toll-Free 1-800-881-7727 Fax (204) 326-5878 Web site: farmparts.ca E-mail: roy@farmparts.ca FARM MACHINERY Salvage GOODS USED TRACTOR PARTS: (204)564-2528 or 1-877-564-8734, Roblin, MB. TRACTORS FOR PARTS: IHC 1486, 1086, 886, 1066, 966, 1256, 656, 844, 806, 706, 660, 650, 560, 460, 624, 606, 504, 434, 340, 275, 240-4, W9, WD6, W6, W4, H, 340, B-414; CASE 4890, 4690, 2096, 2394, 2390, 2290, 2090, 2470, 1370, 1270, 1175, 1070, 970, 870, 1030, 930, 830, 730, 900, 800, 700, 600, 400, DC4, SC; MF 2745, 1805, 1155, 1135, 1105, 1100, 2675, 1500, 1085, 1080, 65, Super 90, 88, 202, 44, 30; JD 8640, 3140, 6400, 5020, 4020, 3020, 4010, 3010, 710; Cockshutt 1900, 1855, 1850, 1800, 1655, 1650, 560, 80, 40, 30; Oliver 66; White 4-150, 2-105; AC 7060, 7045, 7040, 190XT, 190, 170, WF; Deutz DX130, DX85, 100-06, 90-06, 80-05, 70-06; Volvo 800, 650; Universal 651, 640; Ford 7600, 6000, 5000, Super Major, Major; Belarus 5170, 952, 825, 425, MM 602, U, M5; Vers 700, 555, 145, 118; Steiger 210 Wildcat; Hesston 780. Also have parts for combines, swathers, square & round balers, tillage, press drills, & other misc machinery. MURPHY SALVAGE (204)858-2727 or toll free 1-877-858-2728 .

FARM MACHINERY Snowblowers, Plows FOR SALE: SHULTE 7-FT front mount snow blower, cylinders included, good condition, $800; Loader arms & cylinders for Leon front-end loader, no mounts, $500. Phone:(204)825-8354 or (204)825-2784.

Tillage & Seeding FARM MACHINERY Tillage & Seeding – Air Drills 2006 CASE CONCORD ATX 3310 w/ADX 2230 tank, C-shank, Bourgault knock-ons, 3-in. Carbide Tip Openers, 10-in. spacing, excellent condition, low acs. Always shedded. (204)467-2787. FOR SALE: 33-FT FLEXI-COIL 5000 Air Drill w/1720 tank, 9-in spacing. Phone (204)825-2334 or (204)825-7127.

FARM MACHINERY Tillage & Seeding – Seeding JD 610 AIR SEEDER 41-ft., harrows Haukaas markers c/w flexicoil air cart, 3 tanks, 2320 model, good working condition, $17,000 OBO. Phone (204)792-4257, Oakbank, MB.

Combine ACCessories

FARM MACHINERY Tillage & Seeding – Tillage

FARM MACHINERY Combine – Accessories

2008 7450 EZEE-ON CHISEL plow, 45-ft. w/12-in. spacing, knock-on shovels, VGC, asking $31,000 OBO. Phone (204)248-2268 or (204)745-7557, Notre Dame, MB. JD 61-FT, 2410 DEEP tiller w/harrows 2 yrs old, like new; Summers 60-ft. deep tiller w/ or w/o anhydrous unit & hitch. Call Ron (204)626-3283 or 1-855-272-5070.

TracTors FARM MACHINERY Tractors – Case/IH

See our website www.billklassen.com or call 204-325-4433 cell 6230 Bill Klassen Auctioneers bill@billklassen.com

HEADER TRAILERS & ACCESSORIES. Arc-Fab Industries. 204-355-9595 charles@arcfab.ca www.arcfab.ca

STRONGEST POSTS INDUSTRY-WIDE Toll Free:1-877-239-0730 www.mcdiarmid.com/farm

FARM MACHINERY Loaders & Dozers BUHLER ALLIED LOADER MODEL 2895-S w/joystick, bucket & grabel fork, fits 9820 Case IH, loader built for 150-250 HP, $7,500. Phone (204)871-0925. Stretch your advertising dollars! Place an ad in the classifieds. Our friendly staff is waiting for your call. 1-800-782-0794.

CASE IH 140-HP 5088, 3-PTH, FEL, cab & A/C, very good rubber, $17,000. Phone (204)871-0925. FOR SALE: 2290 CASE 1982 3,300 original hours, very good shape. Phone:(204)768-9090. TRACKMAN TRACKS FOR STX450 Quad, brand new, $7,500 each. 2 used scraper tracks for STX450, no rips or tears, $4,500 each. (204)871-0925

FARM MACHINERY Tractors – John Deere JD 4020 W/CAB, Phone:(204)239-0035.

LOADER

bale

fork.

The Manitoba Co-operator | December 20, 2012

save! Renew early and

FARM MACHINERY Tractors – John Deere

FARM MACHINERY Machinery Miscellaneous

1979 JD 4440, W/148 FEL w/joystick, $19,500. www.waltersequipment.com (204)525-4521, Minitonas, MB.

FOR SALE: NEW GX 630 20-HP Honda engine, electric start, oil alert, 1-in. shaft, retail price $2,370 per engine, make an offer; 1998 Ford LX 4x4WD 1/2-Ton, 144,280-kms, safety, 4.2 engine, price asking $5,490 OBO; New 1,250-gal Equinox water tanks available. (204)823-1559.

2003 JD 7420 (135 Eng HP 115 PTO HP) CAH, MFWD, 16-SPD Trans w/LH reverser, 3-PTH w/quick hitch, 540/1000 PTO, Frt Fenders, 18.4x38, 16.9x26, rear WTS, 6,342-hrs., JD 741 Loader, 7ft. bucket, joystick. (SN10748) $69,500. Call Gary Reimer (204)326-7000, Reimer Farm Equipment located #12 Hwy N, Steinbach, MB www.reimerfarmequipment.com

INTERNATIONAL 810 SUNFLOWER HEADER w/trailer 20-ft, $3000; 820 Flexhead, $2000; 1020 30-ft, $8000; JD 925, $6500; JD 930, $7500; Large selection used grain carts, 450-1050-bu also Gravity wagons, 250-750-bu; new 400-bu w/12T wagon, $7100; 600-bu, $12,000; tarps available; grain screeners, hutch #1500, $1500; #1600, $2000; DMI 48-in, $2500; Kwik Kleen 5 tube, $4500; 7 tube, $6500; Hutchmaster rock cushion disc 25-ft, $9500; JD 331 30-ft, $9500; Bushog 21ft, $7000; DMI ripper 7 shank, $11,900; Valmar applicator, $850. Phone (204)857-8403.

FOR SALE: 7610 MFWD, PQ, LHR, 3-pt, 4,600 OMG hrs, w/740 S/L FEL, Grapple, Mint; 2, 4650 MFWD, 15-SPD, 3-pt, fact duals; 2, 4455 MFWD, 15-SPD, 3-pt w/280 FEL; 2, 4450 MFWD, 15-SPD, 3 pt; 4250 MFWD, 15-SPD, 3-pt; 4055 MFWD, 15-SPD, 3-pt; 2555 MFWD, 3-pt. All tractors can be sold w/new or used loaders. MITCH’S TRACTOR SALES LTD Box 418 St. Claude, MB R0G 1Z0 Phone: (204)750-2459

JD MODEL 1050 CULTIVATOR, 61.5-ft, $6,000. Phone:(204)386-2775 or Cell:(204)476-6631. Plumas, MB.

JD 3130 W/CAB HEAT, low hrs, 3PTH, excellent for snowblower & all around utility tractor, $12,500. Can take trade. Phone: (204)746-6605 or (204)325-2496.

LOW HRS; KOMATSU WA 320-1 3yd loader; (306)236-8023, Goodsoil, SK.

FARM MACHINERY Tractors – 2 Wheel Drive STEVE’S TRACTOR REBUILDER specializing in JD tractors in need of repair or burnt, or will buy for parts. JD parts available. Phone: 204-466-2927 or cell: 204-871-5170, Austin.

Renew your subscription to the Manitoba Co-operator for 2 years BEFORE we mail your renewal notice, and we'll extend your subscription by 2 additional months. That's 26 months for the price of 24. OR - Renew for one year and receive 13 months for the price of 12!

FARM MACHINERY Tractors – 4 Wheel Drive 2003 2290 Vers 335-HP 4WD, upper rear weights, 20.8R42 duals, 1 owner 3,470-hrs, good condition, $75,000. Call (204)436-2173 or (204)745-8463.

FARM MACHINERY Tractors – Various FOR SALE: 9680 FORD/VERS, 8,600-hrs, 20.8-42 Michelin tires; JD 7800 MFWD tractor, 5,600-hrs, 14.9-46 tires, Hub duals. (701)265-2221, Hamilton, ND.

Call, email or mail us today!

1·800·782·0794

Email: subscription@fbcpublishing.com M S E R : 12345 2010/ 12 P UB John Smith Company Name 123 E x a m p l e S t . Town, Province, POSTAL CODE

Your expiry date is located on your publication's mailing label.

FARM MACHINERY Machinery Miscellaneous 1998 FORD LX 4X4, 4WD drive, half ton, 143,992-km, V6, 4.2 engine, safetied, $5,490 OBO, very good; 1999 Ols Intrigue GLS Sedan, V6, 3.8 engine, counsel trans, bronze colour, no rust, safetied, $3,290 OBO; New HD LR 177 1,250-gal Equinox tank, yellow, retail $878, special $565; New LR 175 Equinox tank, 1,250-gal tank, black retail $578, 1 left special $425; 1 New Honda motor 20-HP electric start, V twin, oil alert, retail $2,080 special $1,800. (204)822-1354, cell (204)823-1559.

FARM MACHINERY Tractors – Various

Big Tractor Parts, Inc. Geared For The Future

STEIGER TRACTOR SPECIALIST

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.

70-FT. HEAVY DIAMOND HARROWS, $1,750; 7x41 Allied Auger, $300; Service tank w/pump, $165. Phone (204)745-2784.

ROTARY MOWERS: JD 709, $3000; Woods 7-ft, $3000; Woods 10-ft Batwing, $3500; 15-ft Batwing, $4500; IH 9-ft Sicle mower, $1650; NH 9-ft, $2200; Balers: JD 535, $5900; JD 530, $3900; JD 510, $1500; Scrapers: 440, $3900; 640, $5000; New Box Scrapers: 10-ft, $2250; 12-ft, $2450; 9-ft 3-PH blade, $900; JD 780 spreader, $8000; New Idea #3634, $4000; H-S 400-bu, $2500; Meyers 550, $11,900; Summers 70-ft heavy harrow, $14,000; Degelman 70-ft Strawmaster, $22,000; Leon 12-ft blade, $3000; 10-ft, $2500. Phone (204)857-8403 SKIDSTEERS BOBCAT 530, $4,900; Mustang 332, $4,500; Gehl 6625, $12,900; Snowblowers VType 3-PH, $250; Homemade 3 Auger, $1,000; 8-ft. Single Auger, $800; Lorentz 8-ft. $1,700; McKee 7ft., $1,400; Front Blade Leon 12-ft., $3,000; 10-ft. $2,000; JD 9-ft., $2,500; Breaking Disc 12-ft. Kewannee, $18,000; Weigh Wagon Auger, $2,500; 150-bu. Feeder Cart, $750; 12-ft. Feed Body, $1,500; Harsh Feed Cart, $6,000; ROORDA Feed Cart, $2,000. Phone (204)857-8403.

FARM MACHINERY Machinery Wanted WANTED: DEGELMAN 3000, any condition; Sunflower HD tandem disc. Phone (204)768-0324. Farming is enough of a gamble, advertise in the Manitoba Co-operator classified section. It’s a sure thing. 1-800-782-0794.

1-800-982-1769

FOR SALE: DRILL STEM 2 & 3-inch. Contact Jack at (204)841-4045.

www.bigtractorparts.com

FARM MACHINERY Machinery Miscellaneous

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9 4 7 2 6 1 3 8 5

4 8 9 6 3 7 5 1 2

7 5 1 9 4 2 6 3 8

2 3 6 1 8 5 9 4 7

Puzzle by websudoku.com

Puzzle by websudoku.com Here’s How It Works: Sudoku puzzles are formatted as a 9x9 grid, broken down into nine 3x3 boxes. To solve a sudoku, the numbers 1 through 9 must fill each row, column and box. Each number can appear only once in each row, column and box. You can figure out the order in which the numbers will appear by using the numeric clues already provided in the boxes. The more numbers you name, the easier it gets to solve the puzzle!

The Manitoba Co-operator | December 20, 2012

HEAT & AIR CONDITIONING

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

www.penta.ca

1-800-587-4711

IRON & STEEL FREE STANDING CORRAL PANELS, Feeders & Alley ways, 30ft or order to size. Oil Field Pipe: 1.3, 1.6, 1.9, 1 7/8, 2-in, 2 3/8, 2 7/8, 3 1/2. Sucker Rod: 3/4, 7/8, 1. Casing Pipes: 4-9inch. Sold by the piece or semi load lots. For special pricing call Art (204)685-2628 or cell (204)856-3440. FULL LINE OF COLORED & galvanized roofing, siding & accessories, structural steel, tubing, plate, angles, flats, rounds etc. Phone:1-800-510-3303, Fouillard Steel Supplies Ltd, St Lazare.

LIVESTOCK

Merry Christmas from

LIVESTOCK Cattle – Black Angus

LIVESTOCK Cattle Various

FOR SALE: 170 BRED Black heifers, bred EI Black Angus, bull clean up, start calving Apr 1st, $1,650, approx 1,150-lbs. Willing to feed til end of Feb 2013 at cost price. Call (204)325-5463.

FOR SALE: GROUP OF home raised Black Baldie, Red Baldie & Hereford heifers. Bred to Hereford bulls, to calve March & April. Phone Wally (204)523-8713 or cell (204)534-8204 or web www.roselawnfarms.com

OSSAWA ANGUS AT MARQUETTE, MB has for sale 1-5yr old herd sire & 6-20mo old bulls, ready for fall breeding. Phone:(204)375-6658.

LIVESTOCK Cattle – Red Angus 40 BRED COWS FOR sale Simmental & Red Angus cross, all cows bred to Simmental & Red Angus bulls. Bulls let out May 21, 2012. All calves, bulls may be seen & would like to sell all as one package. Call (204)886-0018. F BAR & ASSOCIATES ANGUS bulls for sale. Choose from 20, two yr old & yearling Red & Black Angus bulls. Great genetics, easy-handling, semen tested, delivery avail. Discount if purchased & delivered before Dec 31st. Call for sales list or other details. Inquiries & visitors are welcome. We are located in Eddystone, MB, about 20-mi East of Ste Rose, or 25-mi West of Lake Manitoba Narrows, just off Hwy 68. Call Allen & Merilyn Staheli (204)448-2124, E-mail amstaheli@inethome.ca

LIVESTOCK Cattle – Charolais FOR SALE: PUREBRED CHAROLAIS bulls, 1-1/2 yr olds & yearlings, polled, some red factor, some good for heifers, semen tested in spring, guaranteed & delivered, R & G McDonald Livestock, Sidney MB. Phone:(204)466-2883, cell (204)724-2811.

LIVESTOCK Cattle – Holstein Bred Holstein Heffers for Sale; Twenty due in January/February, 2013. Please call; (807)227-2897 for further details.

LIVESTOCK Cattle – Limousin TRIPLE R LIMOUSIN, HAS bulls for sale for Fall breeding. Also pick out your 2013 Herdsire now. Take delivery next Spring. Red or Black 40+ to pick from. Plus bred Heifers & 4H projects, steers & heifers. Your source for quality Limousin genetics. Call Art (204)685-2628 or (204)856-3440.

www.mancec.com 204-452-6353 - In Winnipeg 1-866-441-6232 - Toll Free

LIVESTOCK Cattle Auctions

LIVESTOCK Cattle – Maine-Anjou FOR SALE: 50 BRED heifers, 50% solid black, 50% solid red, home raised, full herd health program, preg checked Oct 15th, bred to proven calving ease Black Angus bull, due to start calving Jan 20th. Can also supply hay for these cattle. Phone:(204)476-6447, Plumas.

LIVESTOCK Cattle – Simmental 20 PUREBRED SIMMENTAL BRED heifers, many with AI bloodlines, also red cows & Cumming 2-yr old bulls. Acomb Family Farms, Minnedosa. Phone:(204)867-2203.

Season’s Greetings & Best Wishes For a Safe and Happy Holiday REGULAR SALE

No Sale Friday December 21

FIRST CATTLE SALE OF 2013 January 11 @ 9:00 am

NEXT SHEEP & GOAT SALE

Wednesday, January 9 @ 1:00 pm Gates Open Mon.-Wed. 8AM-4PM Thurs. 8AM-10PM Friday 8AM-6PM Sat. 8AM-4PM We Will Buy Cattle Direct On Farm For more information call: 204-694-8328 or Jim Christie 204-771-0753

www.winnipeglivestocksales.com Licence #1122

GRUNTHAL LIVESTOCK AUCTION MART. LTD.

Season’s Greetings

from the owners and staff

GRUNTHAL, MB.

AGENT FOR T.E.A.M. MARKETING

THE AUCTION MART WILL BE CLOSED OVER THE HOLIDAYS Sales Will Resume:

Tuesday, January 8, 2013 Regular Cattle Sale with Holstein Calves

Sales Agent for

HIQUAL INDUSTRIES

Livestock Handling Equipment for info regarding products or pricing, please call our office. We also have a line of Agri-blend all natural products for your livestock needs. (protein tubs, blocks, minerals, etc) For on farm appraisal of livestock or for marketing information please call Harold Unrau (Manager) Cell 871 0250 Auction Mart (204) 434-6519 MB. Livestock Dealer #1111

WWW.GRUNTHALLIVESTOCK.COM

BRED REGISTERED SIMMENTAL cows. 2 bred heifers & 6 young cows. January calving. Most females are bulls. $1450 each for package. (204)822-3657, Morden MB.

HEIFERS & Most bred for sired by A.I. Larry Dyck

OPEN RED SIMM HEIFERS, born Jan-Mar 2012, will make excellent replacement females. Boynecrest Stock Farm (204)828-3483 or (204)745-7168.

LIVESTOCK Cattle Various 12 BRED COWS START calving mid March asking $1,300. Also 6 bred heifers start calving Apr 1st asking $1,450. All animals are Simm X. Call (204)825-4289. 130 BLACK & 20 Red bred heifers. Composite Cross heifers. Bred to easy calving, AI bulls w/60 day breeding season. Their Brothers sold at Douglas Test Station last Spring. Will fit into any natural program. Price reduced. Guy Johnson (204)448-2101 www.shorelinestockfarm.com 14 BRED CHAROLAIS SIMM X heifers, bred Red Angus, start calving Mar 1, 2013. A Nickel (204)734-3543. 15-20 PAIRS JULY OCT calves, Red cows, Black calves. Jim Donald (204)546-2220, Grandview. 18 SIMMENTAL X BRED heifers, bred Red Angus, calving April 1st, $1650 each. Will sell in smaller groups. Phone:(204)248-2493 cell (204)526-5836, Notre Dame. 250 BRED HEIFERS. Blacks, Tans, Reds bred to Red Angus heifer bulls. Herd health program, plus pelvic measure & preg checked, start calving March 20. Your choice $1300. Volume Discount. Jim Abbott (204)745-3884 or cell (204)750-1157 Carman, MB. 40 ONE IRON RED Angus cross Simmental heifers, bred Red Angus, all vaccinations, begin calving Feb. Inglis, MB (204)564-2699. 40 QUALITY ANGUS HEIFERS, calving Feb-Mar, bred to easy calving Red Angus bull, $1400 pick $1350 takes all. Phone:(204)728-7308. 63 GOOD CHAROLAIS HEIFERS bred Limousin, calving Mar-Apr, pick of $1,385, for all them $1,285. Phone (204)728-7308. BRED HEIFERS FOR SALE, bred Black Angus to start calving about April 1st, mostly black but some good colored also. Dale Smith (204)876-4798, Snowflake MB. Complete Herd Dispersal 170 Simm X Cows, 80 Simm Angus X Heifers, $1800 choice or $1600 for all. Excellent line of bulls available. Benito, MB; (204)539-2662 COMPLETE HERD DISPERSAL 225 Char X Simm cows. 25 Reds & Blacks, exposed to Char bulls June 25th, young herd. Discount prices on larger lots. Phone (204)732-2481, evenings.

LIVESTOCK Cattle – Angus

FOR SALE: 110 700-800-LB yearling steers, Angus, some Galloway crosses, never had grain, antibiotics, or growth hormones. Phone:(204)758-3374.

10 ANGUS HEIFERS, 1000-LBS, bred to Black Anugs bull. To calve spring of 2013. Also 10 black cows bred Black Angus, due March-April. Phone (204)886-2083, Teulon.

FOR SALE: 20 BRED heifers mostly Black, some Red Bred to Black Angus bull. To start calving mid March, asking, $1,650. Phone (204)379-2408, St Claude.

AGASSIZ ANGUS BALMORAL MB, herd reduction of closed herd. 200 Black Angus X Maine-Anjou bred cows, 50 bred heifers. Calving April 1, Pfizer herd health program. Phone:(204)981-6953.

LIVESTOCK Cattle – Black Angus 90 BRED HEIFERS ANGUS, Angus Hereford cross from our own range, calving herd begin calving Feb 20th. Bred to calving ease Black Angus bulls, preg checked, vaccinated. Phone mornings or evenings (204)873-2525, Clearwater.

FOR SALE: 50 BRED heifers, 50% solid black, 50% solid red, home raised, full herd health program, preg checked Oct 15th, bred to proven calving ease Black Angus bull, due to start calving Jan 20th. Can also supply hay for these cattle. Phone:(204)476-6447, Plumas. FOR SALE: 75 GOOD young Simmental X bred cows, April 1st calving, bred Simmental. Will sell in smaller groups. Phone:(204)248-2493, cell (204)526-5836, Notre Dame. FOR SALE: 80 RED Angus cross heifers bred Black Angus to start calving Apr 15th. Phone (204)748-7829 or (204)748-3889.

FOR SALE: HOMEGROWN, RANCH raised bred Black Angus heifers & second calvers. Mark Taylor (204)529-2059 or (204)245-0536. GEILSER CATTLE CO HAS for sale top quality Black & Red Simm X bred heifers, due to start calving early Apr, bred to easy calving Black & Red Angus bulls. For more info (204)739-3011 or (204)768-3633. HERD DISPERSAL 38 BLACK heifers, 70 Black cows, 70 Red cows, all bred to Black Angus bulls, start calving March 10th, 2013. John (204)768-0324 Tim (204)768-0671. HERD DISPERSAL OF 40 young cows, Charolais Angus cross & hereford cross bred Charolais, womb exposed May 18, vac program, & Ivomec, includes 6 bred heifers & 13 second calvers, herd avg. under 5-yrs old. (204)638-8502 or (204)648-5186, Dauphin. LOOKING FOR SOMEONE TO feed, calve & pasture cows for the 2013 season. Mostly Black Angus cows, starting to calve Apr 15th. Call Darrell (204)937-3719, Roblin, MB. MERRY CHRISTMAS & HAPPY New Year from Don & Melanie Morin at Ridge Side Red Angus. 10 Bulls consigned at South West Bull Development Center. Sale date Apr 13th, 2013 in Oaklake, MB. Call Don (204)422-5216 or visit our new web site in the new year ridgesideredangus.com W + RANCH HAS 40 bred heifers, 1 Iron, Red Simmental + M4 Beef Booster crosses, exposed to M3 Beef Booster bulls July 9th, birth weights of 65-67lbs, full herd health program, $1400. Call Stewart (204)646-2338, RM of St Laurent.

LIVESTOCK Cattle Wanted WANTED: ALL CLASSES OF feeder cattle, yearlings & calves. Dealer Licence# 1353. Also wanted, light feed grains: wheat, barley & oats. Phone:(204)325-2416. Manitou, MB.

TIRED OF THE HIGH COST OF MARKETING YOUR CALVES?? 300-700 LBS. Steers & Heifers Rob: 528-3254, 724-3400 Ben: 721-3400 800-1000 LBS. Steers & Heifers Don: 528-3477, 729-7240

Contact: D.J. (Don) MacDonald Livestock Ltd. License #1110 Swine LIVESTOCK Swine For Sale FOR SALE: BERKSHIRE BOARS & gilds, also Tamworth. Delivery available at cost. Call Troy Collingridge (204)750-1493, (204)379-2004, (204)750-2759 or (204)828-3317.

LIVESTOCK Swine Wanted

WANTED: BUTCHER HOGS SOWS AND BOARS FOR EXPORT

P. QUINTAINE & SON LTD. 728-7549 Licence No. 1123

Specialty LIVESTOCK Livestock Equipment APOLLO ROLLER MILLS ELECTRIC & TTO, all sizes. Very cost efficient for both grain & cattle prices. 50 years experience to suit your application. “Certainly Worth A Call!” Farmers Premium Equipment. Phone:(204)724-4529. FOR SALE: DRILL STEM 2 & 3-inch. Contact Jack at (204)841-4045. HEAVY BUILT CATTLE FEEDERS/TROUGHS 3/8-in. steel, 500 or 750-gal capacity, 4-ft.x18-ft. size, good for any type of feed or water, lifetime quality, $495 & up. Phone (204)362-0780, Morden. JD 550 T.A. MANURE spr, $5500; NH 795 manure spr, $7,250. www.waltersequipment.com (204)525-4521, Minitonas, MB. KELLN SOLAR SUMMER/WINTER WATERING System, provides water in remote areas, improves water quality, increases pasture productivity, extends dugout life. St. Claude/Portage, 204-379-2763. NEW IDEA MANURE SPREADER Model 3743 430-bu., used very little, always shedded; Peerless Portable Roller Mill (P500) tank capacity 97-bu., always shedded. Phone (204)825-2309. PORTABLE WINDBREAKS, CALF SHELTERS, free standing rod & pipe panels, fence line & field silage bunks. Also sell Speed-Rite & 7L Livestock fence equipment, drill pipe & sucker rod. Phone (204)827-2104 or (204)827-2551, Glenboro. Hit our readers where it counts… in the classifieds. Place your ad in the Manitoba Co-operator classifed section. 1-800-782-0794.

LIVESTOCK Livestock Equipment

THANK YOU To all our Customers & Happy Holidays!

1-888-848-6196

www.realindustries.com MUSICAL MARSHALL STACK, $650; Deluxe Banjo, $899; Sigma Guitars, $295-$730; Wireless Mics, $50-$259; Electric Auto Harp, $399; German Violin $399; Electric Guitars, $99.95-$650; Amplifiers $50-$1,200; Student Guitars $79.95; Drums, Cymbals $399; Large Variety of Student & Pro Instruments & Accessories. Hildebrand Music Portage La Prairie Mall (204)857-3172.

PERSONAL I AM A SINGLE white male, 5’8” 155-lbs w/good sense of humour, financially secure, honest, trustworthy. Looking for Filipino lady between 50-60 yrs of age to love & be loved by. Reply to Ad# 1019, c/o MB Co-operator, Box 9800, Station Main, Winnipeg, MB R3C 3K7 LIFE IS MEANT TO be shared! Look forward to someone special in 2013. CANDLELIGHT MATCHMAKERS can help. Confidential, Photos & Profiles to selected matches, affordable, local. Serving MB, SK, NW Ontario. Call/Write for info: Box 212, Roland, MB, R0G 1T0, (204)343-2475.

REAL ESTATE Land For Sale THE FOLLOWING PRIVATE LAND is being offered for sale: E1/2 31-29-16W, N1/2 7-30-16W, SW7-30-16W, SW20-30-16W, SE17-30-16W. The following Crown lands have been approved by Manitoba Agriculture, Food & Rural Initiatives for transfer to the purchaser of the private lands listed as these lands are part of the ranch unit held by Blain Johnson of Winnipegosis, MB: NW31-29-16W, NW32-29-16W, SW32-29-16W, SE06-30-16W, NW29-29-16W, NE30-29-16W LS 16, NE12-30-17W FR EX Road Plan No.2377 DLTO subject to MHYD easement, SE12-30-17W, SE29-30-16W, NE29-30-16W FR, NE06-30-16W, SW17-30-16W FR EX Road Plan Nos. 2184 & 2377 & 2999 DLTO, NW17-30-16W EX Road Plan Nos. 2184 & 2999 DLTO subject to MHYD easement, NE17-30-16W EX Road Plan Nos. 2184 & 2999 DLTO, SW21-30-16W EX Road Plan No 2999 DLTO, SE20-30-16W EX LS 2 & Road Plan No. 2999 DLTO, NW03-30-16w, SW03-30-16W, SE04-30-16W, SW04-30-16W. If you wish to purchase the private land & apply for the Unit Transfer, contact the Lessee Blain Johnson at Box 488, Winnipegosis, MB R0L 2G0. If you wish to comment on or object to the eligibility of this Unit Transfer, write the Director, MAFRI, Agricultural Crown Lands, PO Box 1286, Minnedosa, MB R0J 1E0; or Fax:(204)867-6578. If the public objects during the 30 day advertising period to the inclusion of the Crown Lands as part of the unit, they will have the right to appeal my descion to the Agricultural Crown Land Appeals Board.

REAL ESTATE Land For Rent GOOD PRODUCTIVE FARM LAND to rent in the Yorkton, SK area. For more info contact Harry Sheppard, Sutton Group- Results Realty, Regina, SK. (306)530-8035, saskland4rent@gmail.com WANTED: LOOKING FOR CROPLAND in Argyle, Stonewall, Warren, Balmoral, Grosse Isle & surrounding area. Please call Deric (204)513-0332, leave msg.

RECREATIONAL VEHICLES

PETS

RECREATIONAL VEHICLES Snowmobiles

PETS & SUPPLIES

BLOWOUT SNOWMOBILE, HELMETS ETC.! Snow, MC, ATV, scooters & mopeds. Canadian 981 Main St. Phone:(204)582-4130.

FOR SALE: BORDER COLLIE pups 8 wks old, some tri colours, males & females, out of working parents, $150. Call (204)873-2430. REG AUSTRALIAN SHEPHERD PUPPIES For Sale, vet checked, dewormed, 1st vaccination, ready to go Jan 28th, $450. (204)367-8945. REG MAREMMA FEMALE PUPPY For Sale vet checked, dewormed, 1st USED vaccination, micro NOTRE DAME OIL chipped, ready to go Dec 27th, $750. & FILTER DEPOT (204)367-8945

• Buy Used Oil • Buy Batteries REAL • Collect Used Filters ESTATE • Collect Oil Containers

Southern and Western Manitoba

REAL ESTATE Tel: 204-248-2110 Farms & Ranches – Manitoba FARM SPECIALIST: COUNT ON GRANT TWEED, informed, professional assistance for sellers & buyers. www.granttweed.com Call (204)761-6884 anytime. Service with integrity.

WANTED: A TRACK FOR 1977 or 1978 JD Spitfire snowmobile. Phone:(204)483-2274 or (204)523-4877.

RECYCLING

BuyUsed Used Oil Oil ••Buy NOTRE •• Buy Buy Batteries Batteries DAME ••Collect CollectUsed Used Filters Filters • Collect Oil Containers • Collect Oil Containers USED • Antifreeze OIL & Southern,Southern Eastern, and Manitoba Western Western FILTER Manitoba DEPOT Tel: 204-248-2110

REAL ESTATE Farms & Ranches – Wanted

SCALES

GOOD QUALITY GRAIN & Cattle Farms wanted for Canadian & Overseas Clients. For a confidential meeting to discuss the possible sale of your farm or to talk about what is involved, telephone Gordon Gentles (204)761-0511 www.homelifepro.com or Jim McLachlan (204)724-7753, www.homelifepro.com Home Professional Realty Inc.

“NO WEIGH LIKE IT”

WANTED: GRAIN & LIVESTOCK farms for both foreign & domestic buyers. Receiving calls weekly from buyers looking to farm & invest. Considering selling? Now is the time to discuss all options. Professional service & confidentiality guaranteed. Contact Rick Taylor:(204)867-7551, Homelife Home Professional Realty. www.homelifepro.com WANTED TO PURCHASE CULTIVATED farm land zoned agriculture near Winnipeg. Phone: (204)633-2064, Wpg.

ELIAS SCALES

Platform Scales Several sizes to choose from (no electrics)

Crate scales stationary & portable

REAL ESTATE Land For Sale ALLEN M.LAMB of Eriksdale, MB intends to sell private lands: SE32-21-06W NE32-21-06W NW28-21-06W NE20-21-06W to BENJAMIN W.KINKEAD who intends to acquire the following Crown lands: NE29-21-06W NW29-21-06W SE29-21-06W SW29-21-06W. If you wish to comment on or object to the eligibility of this purchaser, please write to: Director, MAFRI, Agricultural Crown Lands, Box 1286, Minnedosa, MB. R0J 1E0 or Fax:(204)867-6578. LARGE, APX. 2,000-AC, HIGH-PRODUCING Newdale clay loam soil farm, North of Brandon. Phone:(204)856-3140 or Office:(204)885-5500. Royal LaPage Alliance. Buying or Selling? Farm Specialist Henry Kuhl. THE FOLLOWING PRIVATE LAND is being offered for sale SW 11-25-12W, NW 11-25-12W, NE 10-25-12W, SE 10-25-12W, NE 02-25-12W, NW 02-25-12W, SE 02-25-12W, SW 02-25-12W, NE 03-25-12W, SE 03-25-12W, NW 05-24-12W, SE 05-24-12 W, NW 17-24-12W, SE 33-23-12W, NW 03-25-12W, NE 34-24-12W. The following Crown lands have been approved by Manitoba Agriculture, Food & Rural Initiatives for transfer to the purchaser of the private lands listed, as these lands are part of the ranch unit held by Guy and Susan Johnson of Eddystone, MB NE 28-23-12W, NW 28-23-12W, NE 29-23-12W, NE 32-23-12W, SE 32-23-12W, NE 33-23-12W, NW 33-23-12W, SW 33-23-12W, NW 03-24-12 W, SW 03-24-12W, NE 04-24-12W, NW 04-24-12W, SE 04-24-12W, SW 04-24-12W, NE 05-24-12W, NE 08-24-12W, NW 08-24-12W E1/2, SE 08-24-12W, SW 08-24-12W E1/2, NE 09-24-12W, NW 09-24-12W, SE 09-24-12W, SW 09-24-12W, SW 10-24-12W, SW 16-24-12W, NE 17-24-12W, SE 17-24-12W, SW 17-24-12W E1/2. If you wish to purchase the private land & apply for the Unit Transfer contact Guy Johnson at Eddystone, MB R0L 0S0, (204)448-2101. If you wish to comment on or object to eligibility of this Unit Transfer, write Director, MAFRI, Agricultural Crown Lands, PO Box 1286, Minnedosa, MB R0J 1E0; Phone (204)867-6550 or Fax (204)867-6578. Advertise your unwanted equipment in the Classifieds. Call our toll-free number and place your ad with our friendly staff, and don’t forget to ask about our prepayment bonus. Prepay for 3 weeks and get 2 weeks free! 1-800-782-0794.

Bale scales

Hopper Feeders w/Scale, 3pt., trk. mt. or trailer, hyd. motor or electric

306-445-2111 NORTH BATTLEFORD, SK. www.eliasscales.com

PEDIGREED SEED PEDIGREED SEED Cereal – Various DURAND SEEDS: CERT AC Carberry, Kane & Harvest wheat; Souris Oats; Conlon Barley; CDC Bethune & Sorrel flax; Mancan & Koma Buckwheat; Canola & Forage seed. (204)248-2268,(204)745-7577, NotreDame, MB. PUGH SEEDS: CERT AC Barrie, Carberry, Kane, Somerset, HRS Wheat. Souris Oats, Conlon Barley, Sorrel Flax. Phone (204)274-2179 or (204)871-1467, Portage.

FARMING

IS ENOUGH OF A GAMBLE...

Advertise in the Manitoba Co-operator Classifieds, it’s a Sure Thing!

1-800-782-0794

The Manitoba Co-operator | December 20, 2012

PEDIGREED SEED Cereal – Various

SEED/FEED MISCELLANEOUS Grain Wanted

TRAILERS Trailers Miscellaneous

BUYING:

1987 6X18 GN STOCK trailer, $2700; S.U. dozer blade, fits 07 Cat, VGC; Round grass hay bales. Phone (204)345-3486.

HEATED & GREEN CANOLA Phone: 204-526-2145 Toll Free: 1-866-526-2145 Email: info@zeghersseed.com

2013 PEDIGREED SEED VARIETIES: Carberry, Glenn, Harvest, Kane & Pasteur wheat, Conlon barley, Lightning flax, Souris oats, Meadow peas

Earn up to 12% SAVINGS! early payment discounts volume discounts

www.zeghersseed.com

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

1-877-250-5252

Vanderveen Commodity Services Ltd. Licensed and Bonded Grain Brokers

37 4th Ave. NE Carman, MB R0G 0J0 Ph. (204) 745-6444 Email: vscltd@mts.net Andy Vanderveen · Brett Vanderveen Jesse Vanderveen

A Season to Grow… Only Days to Pay!

CANOLA WANTED

PEDIGREED SEED Oilseed – Various

NOW BUYING

Heated, Green, Damaged Buying all levels of damaged canola. Excellent Market Prices. Bonded, Insured.

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

INC.

Old & New Crop Confection & Oil Sunflowers Licensed & Bonded 0% Shrink Farm Pick-Up Available Planting Seed Available

CAREERS Oil Field

BRANDON TRAILER SALES “You will like our prices!” “It’s that Simple!” “Let’s compare quality & price!” “Certainly worth the call!” Phone (204)724-4529. Dealer #4383 GOOSENECK GRAIN TRAILER, 11-FT box, extensions, roll tarp, Honda power pack, $4,200. Phone Brandon:(204)721-1542. STOCK TRAILERS 6X16 GN, $3,500; 7x22 GN, $3,300; Real 8.5x24 GN, $5,000; 2 Axle Dolly, $2,000; Single Axle Dolly, $1,900; 48-ft. Loboy, $6,500; New Decks for 1-Ton Trucks 9-ft., $2,350; 11-ft., $2,850. Phone (204)857-8403.

CAREERS CAREERS Farm / Ranch Philgo Farms has employment opportunities for FT, year-round positions on our dairy farm. We are located near St. Claude & offer competitive salary/benefits. Experience with cattle/equipment an asset; willing to train. Contact Roger at (204)239-8152 or email resume to philgo@inetlink.ca SEEKING INDIVIDUAL TO ASSIST in farm operations. Will be required to operate & maintain equipment, maintain buildings, yard, ranch house & garden. Must be mechanically inclined, clean & responsible. Will be required to cook farm meals at times. Welding & some carpentry experience an asset. $11.50, housing available, full-time starting early spring 2013. Inquire to (204)745-8303.

CAREERS Help Wanted

FARMING

DAIRY ASSISTANT REQUIRED AT Halarda Farms. Full-time w/shift work. The successful applicant will be self-motivated & a team player. No experience needed. Competitive wages and an extensive health & benefit package offered. Halarda Farms is a modern, large mixed farm located in the Elm Creek area. Fax resume to (204)436-3034 or call (204)436-2032.

IS ENOUGH OF A GAMBLE...

VEGETABLE FARM 10-KM SOUTH of Wpg, hiring for May-Oct 2013, needs own transportation, must work Mon-Sat to plant, hoe & pick vegetables, physically demanding & must be able to lift 50-lbs, $10.25/hr. Reply to: P.D. Armstrong Co., 1221 Meyer Rd, St Germain, MB R5A 1E8.

Call For Pricing Phone (204)747-2904

Toll Free 1-888-835-6351 Deloraine, Manitoba

Advertise in the Manitoba Co-operator Classifieds, it’s a Sure Thing!

WANTED: FARM LABOUR on cattle operation, working w/cattle & equipment. Fax resume to Yellow Rose Farms (204)535-2072 or e-mail rcg@xplornet.ca

PEDIGREED SEED Specialty – Various

1-800-782-0794

Bioriginal Food & Science Corp., based in Saskatoon, are looking to contract Borage acres for the upcoming 2013 growing season.

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Great proﬁt potential based on high yields, high prices and low input costs. Attractive oil premiums and free on-farm pick-up.

We are buyers of farm grains.

Flexible contracting options available as well. For more information, please contact Shane at:

306-229-9976 (cell) 306-975-9271 (ofﬁce) sfalk@bioriginal.com

SEED / FEED / GRAIN SEED/FEED MISCELLANEOUS Hay & Straw 4X4 SQUARE WHEAT STRAW bales, about 600 for sale, asking $20 per bale. Phone:(204)248-2407 or (204)526-5002, Notre Dame. DAIRY, BEEF & HORSE hay for sale, large squares. Phone: (204)526-7139 (day) or (204)827-2629 (evenings). FOR SALE: 75 ROUND bales of second cut alfalfa, 100% alfalfa, feed analysis available, no rain. Phone:(204)476-6447, Plumas. HAY FOR SALE. Grass hay in 5x5 round bales. Call after 8:00pm (204)646-4226. LARGE QUANTITY OF WHEAT straw bales, 4x4x8. Can deliver. Phone Phil:(204)771-9700. La Salle, MB. MEDIUM SQUARE STRAW BALES of wheat, barley, peas or alfalfa, $15. Also, small square straw bales of wheat & barley, $2.20. Phone Brandon:(204)721-1542. ROUND ALFALFA GRASS BALES, 1st & 2nd cut, feed analysis avail. (204)734-3543 ROUND HARDCORE 2ND CUT Alfalfa Grass bales, dry, no rain, feed test results avail. Phone (204)966-3868 or (204)476-0597. WHEAT & OAT STRAW bales for sale, 3 x 3 x 8. Phone (204)343-2144 or cell (204)745-0085.

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TRAILERS Grain Trailers 1993 40-FT LODE KING hopper trailer, air-ride on 22.5 rubber (50%), new brake drums & shoes, both hoppers have been re-sheeted from the inside, tarp is good, body is rusty, will be sold w/fresh safety. Asking $10,800 OBO. Phone:(204)324-3264, Altona.

There will be no paper published on December 27th. Next issue is January 3rd 2013. Have a Safe Holiday Season & Happy New Year

See you in 2013!

r t

y -

s –

”

The Manitoba Co-operator | December 20, 2012

LIVESTOCK

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h u s b a n d r y — t h e s c i e n c e , S K I L L O R ART O F F AR M IN G

Mad cow doubts plague Brazil exports sao paulo / skolkovo, russia / reuters / Russia and Egypt, the No. 1 and No. 3 importers of Brazilian beef, may ban shipments of the meat from the state of Parana, which registered a case of atypical mad cow disease earlier this month, Russian and newspaper sources said. But both foreign markets are likely to continue to buy large volumes of beef from other states of the world’s largest supplier, highlighting the stilllimited impact of the atypical case of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), commonly called mad cow disease, on Brazil’s grass-fed beef industry. Russia, Hong Kong and Egypt, which account for more than half of the 896,000 tonnes of beef that Brazil has exported this year through September, continue to import its beef. Hong Kong has so far imposed no restriction on imports of Brazilian beef. The head of Russia’s VPSS animal and food safety agency said Dec. 17 it was unlikely to ban all Brazilian beef imports over BSE concerns, but if restrictions were imposed, they would more likely apply to the state where the sample originated. Russia has not imported Brazilian beef, chicken or pork from Parana, Rio Grande do Sul or Mato Grosso states for about a year, after it closed imports from those states over sanitary concerns. Russia still imported more than 212,000 tonnes of beef from other states in Brazil. The elderly cow, which was kept for breeding purposes, never developed BSE and died of other causes. But it tested positive for the causal agent for BSE, a protein called a prion, which can arise spontaneously in elderly cattle. In this condition, which was confirmed by the World Animal Health Organization (OIE), animals are classified as having “atypical BSE,” which may or may not go on to cause the BSE disease, Brazilian agriculture officials said. A similar case of atypical BSE occurred in the United States in April. Like the Brazilian cow, that animal never entered the food chain and the United States managed to avoid any restrictions on its beef exports. Brazil’s 200-million-head cattle herd is almost entirely pasture raised until the final few weeks before slaughter, when they are confined and fattened on feeds. It is a very different system of beef production than that which led to the mad cow disease outbreak in Europe in the 1980s and 1990s, where animals were fed remains of other animals including brain and nervous system tissue which sometimes carried prions or BSE, which spread the disease.

Researchers are evaluating whether excitability traits can be bred out of cattle for improved safety and better meat quality. PHOTO: REUTERS/Rick Wilking

Less cussing, more profit with calm cattle, says feedlot manager

An extensive study conducted by the Tri-County Steer Carcass Futurity Co-op found “calm” cattle add more to a feedlot’s bottom line than their “wild” counterparts By Daniel Winters co-operator staff / brandon

verybody knows wild cattle are hard to handle, tough on handling facilities, and an all-around pain in the fanny. But who knew that they’re also a drain on a feedlot’s profits? “Easily excitable animals are hazardous not only to your safety, but also to workers and staff,” said Darrell Busby, manager of the Tri-County Steer Carcass Futurity Co-op in Lewis, Iowa at the recent Ranchers’ Forum organized by the Manitoba Forage Council. Older ranchers are especially vulnerable because they can’t react as fast as they think they can and end up “taking risks that they shouldn’t,” said Busby, who recently lost a close friend who was trampled by a bull. It’s estimated that disposition in cattle is 40 per cent inheritable, and the rest is due to management. Busby recommends a two-track program — handle cattle better and get rid of the bad actors in the cow herd. To gain a better understanding of the role that disposition plays in the feedlot, Busby and his colleagues ranked feeders entering and exiting the handling chute at their co-op, which handles as many as 10,000 head per year at its multiple locations. A cow which entered the chute slowly and calmly, and then jogged for 20 to 30 feet before slowing to a walk earned a ranking of one.

Darrell Busby, manager of Tri-County Steer Carcass Futurity Co-op in Lewis, Iowa, shares his experience in running a feedlot since 1982 at the recent Ranchers’ Forum. photo: Daniel Winters

“A two comes in a little quicker, swings his tail and throws his head a little bit,” said Busby. “A three comes in much quicker, kicks, and tries to climb the chute a little. When you release him, he sprints back to his friends.” A four hits the chute hard, bucks, thrashes around, and upon release may slip and fall even on a good, dry surface. He may bang into the fence and jump over other cattle to get to the back of the pen where he stands, ears up, alert and watching. “With a five, you usually hear some bad words behind him as he comes in,”

said Busby. “He comes in, he bucks, throws, and may bellow.” A six on the scale is “a killer.” It does all of the bad things and more, but when released he swings back around looking for people to hurt. From 2002 to 2004, they evaluated 13,530 six-weight cattle from 12 states and found that 72 per cent rated one or two. Another 23 per cent were deemed “restless” with a score of three or four, and six per cent were “aggressive.” Then they tied that to average daily gains and found docile is good for the pocketbook. Those animals gained an average of 3.17 pounds compared to 3.11 for the restless group and 2.91 pounds for aggressive cows. Mortality rates for the nastier set were higher, too, at 1.91 per cent compared to 1.09 per cent for the docile cattle. As for meat quality, the docile calves scored highest, with 72.4 per cent grading Choice compared to 58.1 per cent for the aggressive calves. Overall, based on 2004 prices, the docile animals returned $62 more per animal than their aggressive counterparts when considering meat quality and grade, gains, death loss and treatment costs. Although the majority of their members’ cattle are from the Angus breed, the co-op’s data on 11,500 head found that Herefords scored best at an average of 1.297, followed by Simmentals at 1.589, and Angus at 1.618. daniel.winters@fbcpublishing.com

The Manitoba Co-operator | December 20, 2012

Livestock feeders may go nutty in 2013 American cows, pigs and chickens could be snacking on peanuts in the coming year By Gavin Maguire chicago / reuters

nimal feeders have had a rough 2012. Not only did feed-ingredient prices such as corn and soymeal scale all-time highs, but searing drought wiped out pasture supplies to force a greater number of animal herds into feedlots sooner than usual. And with tight inventories, next year isn’t looking much better. But there was one crop that American farmers produced too much of in 2012 — peanuts — which could help lower feed costs and make up for any shortage in protein supplies. U.S. peanut growers faced an unusually tough grow ing environment in 2011 that resulted in overall production dropping by more than 10 per cent. Conditions were far friendlier in 2012, and combined with a more than 40 per cent rise in planted area (brought about by relatively high peanut prices) delivered a total crop that was nearly twice as big as the 2011 harvest. Indeed, the nearly 6.5 billion pounds (2.9 million tonnes) of peanuts produced in 2012 is by far the largest U.S. crop on record, and exceeded projection consumption by the greatest-ever margin. The peanut glut posed something of a conundrum to growers, who face anemic export demand brought about by high production totals in other regions as well. Fortunately, however, peanut growers may not have to look too far to find potential buyers of their protein-rich supplies.

Hungry for protein

Thankfully for growers, there a re f e e d l o t m a nagers and livestock producers across the country that can poten-

tially put the abundant supplies of peanuts to good use. This year’s drought conditions across the U.S. reduced projected corn production by more than four billion bushels (just over 100 million tonnes) from initial projections in May to the latest estimates. Soybean production was reduced by more than 120 million bushels (3.2 million tonnes) over the same period, while soymeal output was reduced by more than two million short tons. Of almost equal importance are significant changes to the physiology of the crops themselves, especially in soybeans which saw protein levels drop off to well-below-normal levels due to the drought stress. Lower soybean protein content means less soybean meal can be produced per batch of “crushed” soybeans, and thus lower overall soymeal supplies over the coming months. This is cause for concern for feedlot managers still reeling from prices for corn and soymeal, and also distillers dried grains (DDGs). But this challenging situation is also liable to promote a more flexible attitude toward those needing to secure feed s u p p l i e s ove r t h e c o m i n g months. In addition to being as storable and transportable as regular feed ingredients, peanuts boast high energy and protein values, and so make an ideal dietary supplement for mature cattle and hogs. And when you throw in the fact that a majority of peanut supplies already reside across the South not far from the majority of U.S. cattle feedlots and a large proportion of the country’s hog- and poultry-processing centres, peanut growers appear to be well placed to turn what is a potentially burdensome oversupply problem to their advantage. The key will be in convincing feed purchasers to go a little extra nutty in 2013.

2013 MFSA Forage Seed Conference and AGM Victoria Inn, Winnipeg · January 6 & 7, 2013 The Manitoba Forage Seed Association invites you to their Annual Forage Seed Conference. A range of topics will be covered dealing with aspects growing and managing forage and turf seed crops.

Date: Evening of January 6th Time: 7:00 PM Full Day of January 7 Time: Registration 8:00 AM th

Location: Victoria Inn, Wpg Full agenda and registration available at www.forageseed.net or contact the Manitoba Forage Seed Association @ 204-376-3309. Thank you to Agri-Food Research & Development Initiatives (ARDI) and Prairies East Sustainable Agricultural Initiative (PESAI) for their research support.

Draft equine code open for public comment Updated code aims to provide practical guidelines for all aspects of horse, mule and donkey care from foaling to euthanasia By Daniel Winters co-operator staff

he stable doors have been thrown open for public comment on the draft code of practice for the care and handling of equines. Work on the document has been underway since early 2011, said Jack de Wit, a director on Equine Canada’s board and chair of the code development committee. “The next step is opening the draft code to input from the public,” de Wit said in a press release. “With the public’s help, we will have a code that is good for owners and the animals in their care. “It is important that this code reflect the best practices available for the welfare of horses, donkeys and mules,” added Bettina Bobsien, a veterinarian and horse owner who represented the Canadian Federation of Humane Societies on the 18-person committee. Members include horse owners, caregivers, animal welfare and enforcement representatives, researchers, veterinarians and representatives from government and the National Farm Animal Care Council. The draft code covers horse, mule and donkey care from foaling to euthanasia, and includes everything from shelter, watering and feeding guidelines up to and including end-of-life decisions. Diagrams in the document provide visual aids for important considerations such as body condition scoring, as well as bullet placement for proper, pain-free euthanasia. The draft code can be viewed and submissions made at nfacc.ca/codes-

file photo

o f - p ra c t i c e / e q u i n e u n t i l Feb. 14, 2013. The goal is to issue the final code in June, 2013. The same site also has a report from a committee of equine scientists summarizing research on priority welfare topics for equines, which was used in drafting the code. (The process used to develop the code can be found at nfacc.ca/codes-ofpractice.) The equine code is one of eight codes of practice currently under revision as part of a multi-year effort by the National Farm Animal Care Council to set countrywide animal-care standards that are scientifically informed, practical and reflect societal

“With the public’s help we will have a code that is good for owners and the animals in their care.” Jack de Wit

expectations for responsible farm animal care. The codes cover housing, feed and water, handling, euthanasia, transport and other important management practices. daniel.winters@fbcpublishing.com

Shippers predict “economic disaster” if Mississippi River not kept open By Karl Plume reuters

Mississippi River barge operators and shipping groups have asked U.S. President Barack Obama to declare a state of emergency on the river and direct the Army Corps of Engineers to keep the drought-lowered waterway open to commercial traffic to avert an economic catastrophe. Water on the Mississippi River along the busy stretch from St. Louis to Cairo, Illinois was expected to recede to record-low levels by mid-December, effectively halting the flow of barges that carry billions of dollars’ worth of grain, coal, steel, fuel and other products. The American Waterways Operators, the Waterways Council, and 16 other groups asked the president to order the Army Corps to immediately remove river-bottom rock at two locations, which posed a risk to boats during low water conditions.

T h e g ro u p s a l s o re q u e s t e d t h a t w a t e r releases from dams on northern sections of the Missouri River, which flows into the Mississippi at St. Louis, not be reduced as planned. The Missouri accounts for about 60 per cent of the water in the Mississippi River between St. Louis and Cairo, but authorities are required by law to maintain reservoirs fed by the Missouri. Any shutdown of the Mississippi would be “an economic disaster” and affect the entire nation, said Mike Toohey, head of Waterways Council. M e a n w h i l e , C a r g i l l ’s b a r g e d i v i s i o n has begun reducing volumes of grain on its vessels. Drafts on northbound barges were limited to eight feet (2.4 metres), down from nine feet or more normally. The change knocks 200 tons, or 13 per cent, off a barge load.

The Manitoba Co-operator | December 20, 2012

BRIEFS

Cattle prices recovering on XL reopening WINNIPEG / REUTERS Western Canadian prices for slaughter-ready cattle have recovered to hit the year’s high, after bottoming out this autumn when the discovery of tainted meat forced the temporary shutdown of the XL Foods beefpacking plant. The XL plant at Brooks, Alta., which slaughters about 40 per cent of the nation’s cattle, reopened in late October after being closed for about a month because of E. coli contamination. Prices of fed cattle reached about $118 per hundredweight at the start of this month, the year’s high price and just off the previous year’s top, said Brian Perillat, senior analyst at CanFax. “Things have improved quite a lot, especially on the fed cattle side,” said Perillat, adding that prices in November are typically among the year’s highest. “It’s very encouraging to see how rapidly prices have recovered.” Weekly exports of slaughter-ready cattle to the U.S. more than quadrupled from early September to over 17,000 steers and heifers shortly before the plant reopened in late October, Perillat said. Overall Canadian cattle exports to the United States totalled nearly 711,000 head year to date as of Nov. 17. U.S. authorities haven’t yet reopened the border to meat from the XL plant.

IT’S A HORSE OF COURSE

Lucic the bull checks out his new neighbour Beau the horse.

PHOTO: GRACE CRAYSTON

Ready to go to line. n o t e mark

FDA asks food safety lawsuit to be quashed REUTERS / Creating new rules for food safety is too complex a task to be completed quickly and a lawsuit seeking to compel government action should be dismissed, according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. The FDA said that although it was behind schedule in modernizing food safety regulations as set out in a law signed in January, 2011, the agency’s broad role in regulating a $450-billion domestic and imported food business requires additional time. “The enormity and scope of the task given to FDA cannot be overstated,” the FDA said in a court filing. The motion comes in response to a lawsuit filed in August by the Center for Food Safety and the Center for Environmental Health, both non-profit public interest advocacy groups. The groups allege the FDA is failing to implement and enforce the Food Safety Modernization Act, which is aimed at preventing foodborne illnesses that cause thousands of deaths each year.

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The Manitoba Co-operator | December 20, 2012

COLUMN

Optimistic Danes hatch ambitious expansion plan Danish pork sector is betting expansion will lead to a more modern, efficient and environmentally friendly hog industry Bernie Peet Peet on Pigs

n the face of it, there is not much to cheer about for European pig producers. Pork production is due to fall by two to five per cent in 2013 in the EU-27 countries, and many producers are closing their doors because of high feed costs and a requirement to eliminate sow stalls by Jan. 1, 2013. But despite a two per cent drop in production between 2011 and 2012, the Danish industry is optimistic about the future and is planning to create 500,000 more pig-finishing places. The goal is to ship another two million market hogs to farmer-owned processing plants, pigs that are currently exported as 30-kilogram feeder pigs to Germany. The ambitious plan was announced in October at the industry’s annual congress at Herning in Jutland. The event provides producers with technical and management information, but it’s also where industry leaders discuss strategy. In typical Danish co-operative tradition, the agreement is backed by all sectors of the pork industry, including the biggest food industry trade union. Dubbed the Herning Declaration, its objective is to fill underutilized slaughter capacity and increase the level of exports to make it more competitive, especially in Asian markets. Due to strict welfare and environmental regulations, production of finishers has been falling in recent years and there has been a lack of interest to invest in new housing or to carry out renovation of old buildings. The new initiative will encourage producers to replace older, less efficient buildings with modern, high-tech, more environmentally friendly barns. Breeding farms exporting feeder pigs to Germany will be urged to build

finisher barns and keep their production at home. The main challenge is a shortage of capital, as Danish banks have become increasingly unwilling to provide finance over the last five years to the struggling pork sector. Industry leaders have been calling for the government to introduce some sort of loan guarantee to facilitate borrowing, or a grant aid scheme. Producer-owned processor Danish Crown announced it will be providing financial support to producers to help them increase the number of pigs they supply to their plants. The company will pay a rate of 0.15 euro per kilogram ($0.19) for five years on top of the normal price paid for market hogs, up to a maximum allowance of 8,000 finishers per producer. Expansion of the pork industry in a country which already has three times as many pigs as people, and which has some of the strictest environmental legislation in the world, will be a challenge. But as the Danes point out, the industry has made enormous strides in reducing the environmental impact of both production and processing. Evidence suggests it is half that recorded in 1985, when initial regulations were put in place to control nitrate pollution and emissions, so there is scope for expansion within the country’s “green” framework. “Modern genotypes are far more efficient — we can produce more meat with less of an environmental impact these days,” says Nicolaj Nørgaard, director of the Danish Pig Research Centre. “The advances in technology, building design, improved emission controls and our increases to productivity have also made us more environmentally efficient.” The Herning Declaration will encourage environmentally sound, responsible production practice and reward those striving for efficiency, he said. The increased output will be aimed firmly at international markets rather than EU coun-

Danish producers and processors have announced a plan to produce two million more pigs per year. PHOTO: COURTESY OF DANISH AGRICULTURE & FOOD COUNCIL

tries, according to Karsten Flemin, a market analyst with the Danish Agriculture & Food Council. Although pigmeat production in developing nations continues to rise significantly each year, the Danes believe there is huge potential for exports and will be for some time to come. “Pigmeat imports are increasing in key regions and places like China and Japan are seeing steady growth,” says Flemin. “Food safety is a major issue for these consumers and our pigmeat fulfils their requirements. There are significant opportunities for our products out there.” Another valuable outlet for

Denmark is Russia. That country is aiming for self-sufficiency, but Flemin says disease problems, lack of investment, and increasing pressures on resources will curb expansion and create opportunities for his country’s producers. Even so, other pig-producing nations, such as the U.S. and Brazil, could threaten this trade. The single-mindedness of the Danish industry in executing change is remarkable. While their plan is ambitious, especially the two-year time frame, I don’t doubt their ability to carry it out. Higher throughput in the plants, coupled with exports to the most lucrative markets, will improve processor profits,

which in turn will increase the bonus that producers get paid. Danish Crown’s latest accounts, published in November, show that it made $299-million profit on a turnover of $9.7 billion. It announced producer bonuses of about $0.15 per kilo for market hogs and $0.14/kg for cull sows. Through their co-operative structure, and more importantly their co-operative philosophy, they will ensure that their new initiative is successful and that it delivers benefits to the industry as a whole, not just one sector. Bernie Peet is president of Pork Chain Consulting of Lacombe, Alberta, and editor of Western Hog Journal.

BRIEFS

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Brazilian farmers spending big on imports SAO PAULO / REUTERS Brazil’s farming sector will import a record $18.5 billion in goods this year as it turns abroad for the technology it needs to meet growing global food demand, analysts say. The buying spree shows the domestic market is not producing enough needed fertilizer, agrichemicals and high-tech equipment to meet growing agricultural production. Purchases of inputs, equipment, and feed have more the doubled in the last five years. The country now imports 71 per cent of its basic fertilizer needs, including potash, nitrogen and phosphate.

The Manitoba Co-operator | December 20, 2012

LIVESTOCK AUCTION RESULTS Weight Category

Ashern

Gladstone

Grunthal

Heartland

Brandon

Virden

Killarney

Ste. Rose

Winnipeg

Feeder Steers

n/a

Dec-11

Dec-12

Dec-10

Dec-13

Dec-14

No. on offer

n/a

837

451

1,312

2,137

385

1072

557

Over 1,000 lbs.

n/a

110.00-121.00

900-1,000

n/a

95.00-115.00

n/a

110.00-126.00

116.00-129.00

n/a

115.00-127.00

800-900

n/a

110.00-131.50

108.00-119.00

120.00-133.00

123.00-137.00

n/a

120.00-137.00

120.00-131.00

700-800

n/a

120.00-142.50

112.00-120.00

130.00-146.00

130.00-140.00

126.00-138.75

127.00-146.00

125.00-137.00

600-700

n/a

125.00-145.25

118.00-130.00

135.00-149.00

132.00-144.00

133.00-142.00

135.00-157.00

130.00-149.00

500-600

n/a

130.00-168.00

124.00-145.00

142.00-163.00

140.00-160.00

140.00-152.50

145.00-165.00

138.00-160.00

400-500

n/a

130.00-171.00

135.00-163.00

162.00-178.00

155.00-173.00

155.00-183.00

145.00-175.00

300-400

n/a

150.00-190.00

140.00-175.00

175.00-192.00

170.00-188.00

160.00-182.00

150.00-172.00

150.00-185.00

Feeder heifers 900-1,000 lbs.

n/a

90.00-110.00

n/a

95.00-112.00

109.00-121.00

n/a

100.00-116.00

800-900

n/a

100.00-122.00

120.00-131.50

110.00-124.50

113.00-123.00

n/a

105.00-120.00

700-800

n/a

109.00-123.00

126.00-135.00

115.00-125.00

118.00-128.00

n/a

118.00-125.00

108.00-123.00

600-700

n/a

105.00-136.50

130.00-139.50

120.00-137.00

120.00-130.00

120.00-141.00

120.00-132.00

110.00-129.00

500-600

n/a

110.00-139.00

135.00-159.00

125.00-144.00

122.00-140.00

125.00-136.00

123.00-144.00

115.00-138.00

400-500

n/a

120.00-146.50

148.00-169.00

135.00-154.00

130.00-148.00

130.00-144.00

130.00-154.00

120.00-148.00

300-400

n/a

126.00-148.00

155.00-185.00

140.00-161.00

n/a

135.00-159.00

130.00-162.00

130.00-160.00

Slaughter Market No. on offer

n/a

147

n/a

450

D1-D2 Cows

n/a

50.00-62.00

n/a

62.00-66.00

57.00-62.00

44.00-55.00

49.00-59.00

60.00-66.00

D3-D5 Cows

n/a

30.00-50.00

45.00-52.00

55.00-61.00

30.00-56.00

n/a

35.00-48.00

52.00-58.00

Age Verified

n/a

58.00-66.00

n/a

61.00-69.00

55.00-62.00

58.00-66.00

n/a

Good Bulls

n/a

72.00-79.00

70.00-75.25

n/a

74.00-81.00

73.00-80.00

75.00-82.00

70.00-78.00

Butcher Steers

n/a

102.00-106.00

102.00-106.50

n/a

Butcher Heifers

n/a

100.00-105.75

101.00-105.00

n/a

Feeder Cows

n/a

60.00-67.00

67.00-80.00

62.00-78.00

n/a

66.00-77.00

Fleshy Export Cows

n/a

57.00-65.00

n/a

Lean Export Cows

n/a

50.00-58.00

n/a

* includes slaughter market

(Note all prices in CDN$ per cwt. These prices also generally represent the top one-third of sales reported by the auction yard.)

EssEntial tools for farmErs The farmer’s Product Guide helps you make informed decisions on everything that’s essential to your farm. From equipment and accessories to buildings, technology, tillage and trucks – the farmer’s Product Guide covers it all.

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rEquirEd. rEfErEncEd. rEsPEctEd.

The Manitoba Co-operator | December 20, 2012

WORLD NEWS

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FA R M I NG N E W S F ROM A BROA D

Farm murders highlight apartheid’s toxic legacy

Many believe attacks on white farmers in South Africa are racially motivated By Olivia Kumwenda ermelo, south africa / reuters

n a country cursed by one of the world’s highest murder rates, being a white farmer makes a violent death an even higher risk. Whether attacks have been motivated by race or robbery, a rising death rate from rural homicides is drawing attention to the lack of change on South Africa’s farms nearly two decades after the end of apartheid — and to the tensions burgeoning over enduring racial inequality. Some of South Africa’s predominantly white commercial farmers go as far as to brand the farm killings a genocide. On the other side of the divide, populists are seizing on the discontent among the black majority to demand a forced redistribution of white-owned farms along the lines of neighbouring Zimbabwe. “The issue is potentially explosive,” said Lechesa Tsenoli, deputy minister for land reform, arguing that South Africa’s future depends on ending inequality on the farms. The economic change promised by Nelson Mandela’s African National Congress (ANC) when white-minority rule ended in 1994 has been even slower in the countryside than in cities and mines, where at least small elites of black South Africans have prospered. Land ownership ratios are little changed from 1913, when the Natives’ Land Act set aside 87 per cent of land for whites. Meanwhile, black farm workers are among South Africa’s poorest. Life is getting more uncomfortable for the white farmers too, however. Their number is down a third, to some 40,000, in the past 15 years. Headlines about the farm killings are another incentive to sell up. For while South Africa’s overall annual murder rate has more than halved since the end of apartheid to around 32 people per 100,000, figures for commercial farmers show a near 50 per cent rise to an average rate of some 290 per 100,000 a year in the five years to 2011.

In the neck

Shot at his home by black attackers two years ago, 34-year-old Johan Scholtz believes he was the victim of a racially motivated attack rather than a robbery. “I was shot through my neck, I was shot through my chest and as I fell to the ground they came and stood over me and they shot again — two times — just missed my brain,” Scholtz said, fighting back tears as he recalled the incident. Despite the ANC’s pledge to build a “rainbow nation,” South Africa’s income disparity has widened further since apartheid ended, according to World Bank figures. Among the very poorest are the black farm workers, suffering not only from the economic hardship, but — all too often — a brand of racial abuse unchanged since the end of white rule. “For farm workers at the bottom like me, we are not allowed to talk to farm owners directly,” complained one 28-year-old fruit farm worker from the northeastern Limpopo province, asking that he be called only by his first name,

A girl holds a picture of the Afrikaner Resistance Movement (AWB) leader Eugene Terre’blanche during his funeral in Ventersdorp on April 9, 2010. Two black farm workers were charged with beating and hacking Terre’blanche to death in what police suspect was a pay dispute, but which his party sees as politically motivated. Photo: REUTERS/Siphiwe Sibeko

Frans. About half those in rural areas live on less than $3 a day.

Robbery not race

The motive for nearly 90 per cent of farm attacks was robbery rather than race, according to the biggest government study on the subject, published nearly a decade ago. “There might be segments within the South African population that would like to use words such as genocide, but farm attacks are a result of criminal activities,” said Andre Botha of Agri SA, the largest farmers’ union, which points out that the small number of black commercial farmers are also victims of crime. “It’s an obvious result of the lifestyle that we chose. Farms are a soft target,” he said. Disentangling motives is no easy task, however, in a society where whites have the vast majority of the wealth on display and the history of discrimination can add another edge to attacks on isolated homesteads. “Sometimes it degenerates into racial conflict,” said Johan Burger of the Institute for Security Studies, who has been studying farm violence for more than a decade. When white supremacist leader Eugene Terre’blanche was hacked to death by two farm workers in 2010, racial motives were suspected, but it turned out to have been caused by a wage dispute. For radicals, Zimbabwe’s experi-

“There might be segments within the South African population that would like to use words such as genocide, but farm attacks are a result of criminal activities.” Andre Botha

of Agri SA, the largest farmers’ union

ence set a good example to follow — even though the forced seizures of land helped push South Africa’s neighbour into nearly a decade of economic decline. According to a plan drawn up under Mandela, 30 per cent of farmland was meant to be handed to black South Africans by 2014. Only eight per cent has been transferred, however, and the government is now reviewing the plan. The direct economic impact of any radical change in land ownership might be less dramatic in South Africa than in Zimbabwe because farming accounts for only about three per cent of gross domestic product rather than 20 per cent. But no matter how it is addressed, the potential for growing confrontation over race and land raises another dangerous prospect for Africa’s biggest economy.

briefs

U.S. challenges Thailand to explain rice subsidies geneva / reuters / The United States will challenge Thailand over its rice subsidies at the World Trade Organization meeting this month, fearful that a government-sponsored crop could land up on the world market and depress prices, hurting U.S. exporters. Thailand’s purchases of rice at high prices are expected to raise output but they have also been blamed for a slump in rice exports, threatening to dethrone Thailand as the top exporter in favour of India or Vietnam. Thailand has said it is determined to remain the top exporter, causing the USA Rice Federation to worry that the stocks bought by the government will be released on to the world market at a loss. The U.S. rice industry group has urged the U.S. Trade Representative to take action against the Thai scheme, alleging that it acts as an export subsidy prohibited by the WTO. The United States has asked Thailand to give answers at the WTO’s agriculture committee on Nov. 14, according to an advance copy of questions seen by Reuters. “The United States remains concerned that with government procurement of rice at rates as much as 40 per cent above world market prices it will be difficult for the Government of Thailand to export any procured rice without incurring a loss,” the U.S. submission to the committee says. “What steps is the Government of Thailand taking to ensure rice procured by the government under the program is not being sold for export at prices below acquisition cost?” it asks.

China turning to super-hybrid rice beijing / reuters /China aims to improve its super-hybrid rice yield by a further 11 per cent by 2015 as part of its efforts to maintain food self-sufficiency. The yield for super-hybrid rice in China is likely to reach 15 tonnes per hectare by 2015, says China’s leading agricultural scientist, Yuan Longping, known as “the father of hybrid rice.” China’s average rice yield stood at 6.68 tonnes per hectare last year, with total output reaching 201 million tonnes. Yuan said large-scale plantings of the super-hybrid rice were likely to take place between 2015 to 2020. Last year, China became a net rice importer for the first time in 15 years and imports in the first 10 months of 2012 rose nearly threefold to 1.98 million tonnes, the majority of which was from Vietnam.

The Manitoba Co-operator | December 20, 2012

Shuck

and awe

California oyster farm loses to environmentalists

While California wrestles with wanting wilderness and homegrown food, a 40-year-old oyster farm has been put out of business By Peter Henderson inverness, calif. / reuters

n the famously liberal and prosperous enclave of Marin County, Calif., environmentalists and local food fans usually line up on the same side of any given cause. The oyster, however, has managed to cleave them far apart. The U.S. government has s i d e d w i t h e n v i ro n m e n t a l groups by deciding to shut down a 40-year-old northern California oyster farm in an attempt to restore wilderness. Secretary of Interior Ken Salazar said he would not renew the lease for the weather-beaten shacks, oyster shell mounds and waterlogged docks that make up Drakes Bay Oyster Company. The decision will see Drakes Estero in Point Reyes National Seashore, an hour north of San Francisco, turned into the West Coast’s only designated marine wilderness outside Alaska. Harbour seals, birds and native grasses are expected to reclaim the property, four decades after a collection of local ranches and oyster farmers agreed to sell their land to the government, rather than developers, in exchange for long-term leases. The Interior Department will renew leases on cattle operations. Workers on a small dock crowded with oyster crates, a power drill to separate mollusks, and a rickety conveyor belt, cried openly after Salazar called owner Kevin Lunny in the morning with the news. A t h i rd - g e n e r a t i o n c a t t l e rancher, Lunny took over the oyster company lease seven years ago and had hoped to renew it. California is wrestling with how to have its wilderness and its freshly grown local food too, issues at the heart of the oyster war. “Sustainable” is the popular catch phrase in the state, adding the notion that food production needs to work long term — and be profitable — to the “organic” manifesto of chemical-free farming. But the lofty goals, which fit the bill of high-end San Francisco restaurants, don’t go down so well with environmentalists who say there are places one cannot compromise.

“SERIOUS, IRREPARABLE HARM? NO”

Oyster joints, from roadside dives to upscale zinc bars, are thr iving in Califor nia, and Drakes has helped meet demand with 450,000 pounds of oyster meat annually. Environmentalists say production from other parts of the state will compensate for the Drakes oysters, but Lunny expects increased supplies from Asia. Lunny lamented that “we could have had a powerful discussion,” about “working landscapes and sustainability” versus “hands-off preservation of wilderness.” But attempts at that conversation were overshadowed by a bitter fight over the science about whether the oyster farm hurt the estuary.

Sierra Club Deputy executive director Bruce Hamilton agreed the fight was unfortunately nasty and the science less clear than either side suggested. “There is harm,” said Hamilton. “Is it serious, irreparable harm? No. But you can’t put that many motor boats and that many exotic oysters and not have some harm.” Plenty of locals sided with the environmentalists, but some were concerned about the loss of tradition, jobs and good food. “Devastating. Devastating,” said Linda Sturdivant, who had been a caretaker for a former owner and said the Lunnys cleaned up “a real dive.” Out on the dock, the Lunny family was stunned but seemed more inclined to fight than leave, if they could only figure out how. “We’re not finished,” Lunny told his workers.

Water from a high tide laps at the Drakes Bay Oyster Company’s shack in Inverness, California. The U.S. government sided with environmental groups with its decision to shut down a northern California oyster farm in an attempt to restore wilderness. Secretary of Interior Ken Salazar said he would not renew the lease for the weather-beaten shacks, oyster shell mounds and waterlogged docks that make up Drakes Bay Oyster Company. photo: REUTERS/Noah Berger

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PUBLICATION: MANITOBA CO-OPERATIVE

12-11-08 9:58 AM CLIENT SERVICE PROOFREADING