With the arrival of autumn officially this week, and the first report cards rolling in on the 2022 growing season (that’s yield x price, by the way), it’s time to talk about first thoughts on winners and losers of acres for ’23. While the big crops — wheat and canola in the west and corn… Read More
Author: Lyndsey Smith
Lyndsey Smith is a field editor for RealAgriculture. A self-proclaimed agnerd, Lyndsey is passionate about all things farming but is especially thrilled by agronomy and livestock production.
It’s farm show week in Ontario, but it’s also the very beginning of soybean harvest in the province. The agronomy questions continue to roll in, especially for those keen producers looking to grow great wheat. In this week’s Wheat Pete’s Word, Peter Johnson has plenty of answers on perfecting wheat planting and much more! Have… Read More
How do you feel about phone surveys? If you answered a resounding, “I love them!” you’d be in the clear minority of farmers. Farmers have increasingly called for a reduction or even an end to Statistics Canada’s planting and production phone surveys. In response, StatsCan has, over time, been phasing in more remote sensing and… Read More
If you’ve had a miscommunication over grams per acre, or bushels instead of tonnes, or just how far 20 paces is, you might want to weigh in on our latest poll. Around the RealAgriculture water cooler, we’ve laughed and grumbled about how confusing certain measurements can be, especially when some are obscure, or there’s inconsistency… Read More
The CEO of Sollio Agriculture says there will be certain fertilizer products unavailable for the 2023 growing season, but that nitrogen fertilizer supply for purchases this fall and winter should meet the need of eastern Canadian farmers. Casper Kaastra, head of the co-operative, says there are three key times of year for sourcing nitrogen. Last… Read More
The On Farm Climate Action Fund (OFCAF) is a federal program being administered by 12 organizations across Canada. In Ontario, the funding for nitrogen management, cover cropping, and rotational grazing is largely being administered by the Ontario Soil and Crop Improvement Association (OSCIA). EcoCert is also administering a portion of funds for organic growers. Margaret… Read More
Winter wheat harvest is nearly complete across Ontario, and Western Canada is nudging ever closer to swath timing and the start of harvest. For many, setting up the harvest crew is a challenge. Finding the right people or sometimes just enough people can be really difficult, so we want to know — where are you… Read More
The evolution of nitrogen emission policy in Canada is, well, a bit of a dog’s breakfast. There’s overarching emissions targets, there are several regulations and standards to follow, plus, there’s funding and support to achieve some of this — all tallied up in a ledger that’s controversial (and confusing) in where numbers are added in,… Read More
Look, life can get a little too serious sometimes. Carving out some much-needed downtime is good for your mental well-being, your relationships, and your work. In the spirit of summer fun, we decided to focus this week’s poll on a summer sport — water sports, to be exact. We want to know, what’s your favourite… Read More
The next Agriculture Policy Framework is set to roll out in April 2023, and ministers meet next week in Saskatoon to hash out what the next version of funding and programming will look like for Canada’s agriculture industry. As the deadline approaches for changes to business risk management programs and choosing funding priorities, we asked… Read More
The Bank of Canada surprised many this week, announcing a 100 basis-point increase in its interest rate. The market expected a 75 basis-point increase, and there was discussion of it being lower, not higher. Increasing interest rates are designed to curb inflation, which is climbing at an incredible rate. We want to know: what impact… Read More
Farmers in Western Canada can be forgiven for feeling just a little hesitant when pricing new crop earlier this year, given how many were on the wrong side of a grain contract after the drought of 2021. But even the most risk averse farmer has had an opportunity to price into a heck-of-a market…until now…. Read More
The federal government has published the Clean Fuel Regulations, part of its plan to “decarbonize” the energy sector. The policy is a double edged sword for agriculture — on one hand, low-carbon-intensity fuel includes ethanol and renewable diesel, which can create marketing opportunities for corn, wheat, canola, and soy. But many fear that the end… Read More
As Canadians, we have a lot of things in excess — fresh air, clean water, ample land, and an embarrassment of trees. But, when it comes to lazy summer days and weekends at the cottage, our season can be rather compact once you take out the time for seeding and planting, scouting, spraying, making hay,… Read More
If your dog is outside, unattended for more than 60 minutes at a time, the province of Ontario considers your dog one that lives outside. That matters because as of July 1 there are new rules regarding the care of dogs that live outside. The new rules, under the PAWS Act, include requirements for housing,… Read More