Ag in Motion 2023 is underway!
The gates have officially opened for Ag in Motion...2023
Western Canada's largest outdoor show attracts about 30 thousand people from across the prairies, the US and around the world.
It's also the site where more and more companies are doing product launches.
Show Manager Rob O'Conner says the three day event features the latest in farm equipment and technology, with the opportunity for producers to not only do side-by-side comparisons but in some cases test drive the equipment.
WADO Field Day coming up with wide variety of trials to tour
WADO Field Day takes place this week Wednesday near Melita, with a complete itinerary of tours starting at 10 am.
Scott Chalmers is the Diversification Specialist for the Westman Agricultural Diversification Organization (WADO) with Manitoba Agriculture. He says the spring and now summer patchy weather systems have certainly affected the crops in the southwest corner of the province, in a variety of different ways.
Clearing the backlog at the ports will take time
It's going to take weeks to clear the backlog of traffic that was stagged as a result of the B.C. port strike.
A lot of cargo is sitting waiting to be loaded onto vessels and moved out of the port.
CN's assistant vice president of grain, David Przednowek says the recent strike caused a number of delays for traffic flow.
Drought situation growing more critical by the day
A number of Rural Municipalities in the province are starting to declare a " local state of emergency " due to the drought.
Last week, the RM's of Gull Lake, Excelsior, Arlington, Old Post, and Dundurn passed resolutions declaring an agricultural drought emergency.
SARM President Ray Orb expects to see other RM's will follow a similar path, especially in west-central and southwest regions.
SCA calling on producers to work together through this drought
The persistent drought in the western region of the province is a growing concern, along with the hot, dry conditions affecting crops and pastures, grasshoppers have added to the problems.
A number of RM's have or are considering declaring a local state of emergency.
Last week's crop report shows cropland topsoil moisture in the province has dropped to 21 percent adequate, 55 percent short and 24 percent very short.
UK's entry into the CPTPP raises concerns
Canada's red meat sector is raising concerns over the potential for the UK's entry into the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership.
On Saturday, Canada's Minister of Trade Mary Ng announced they had agreed to grant the United Kingdom accession.
The Canadian Meat Council, Canadian Cattle Association, and the Canadian Pork Council are deeply disappointed with the move.
Majority of crops at normal stages in West Central
Producers in the west-central region have made substantial progress with haying this past week. The warm and dry conditions persisted and allowed producers an uninterrupted opportunity to nearly complete the first cut of hay. They are hoping for further rain within the region.
Feds announce $12 million in funding for Canada's beef industry
Ottawa announced an investment of $12 million to the Canadian Cattle Association (CCA) to drive the growth of Canada's beef sector through research, innovation, and technology transfer while improving its environmental footprint.
Francis Drouin, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food made the announcement yesterday at the Calgary Stampede.
The funding is being matched by over $9.7 million in industry funding through the producer beef check-off.
Farmers in the Southwest and West Central areas may have another option for poor crops
On Wednesday, the province announced plans to lower the yield appraisal threshold for cereal and pulse crops giving producers an opportunity to use poor crops as livestock feed.
Farmers in some areas of the Southwest and West Central part of the province have been experiencing hot, dry conditions that have taken a toll on crops.
Crops extension specialist Shannon Chant works out of the Ministry of Agriculture office in Swift Current.
She says crops in the region are quite variable with things being a little bit earlier in some areas.
Saskatchewan farmers getting relief thanks to "extraordinary" insurance measures
The federal and provincial governments have announced that the Saskatchewan Crop Insurance Corporation will be implementing extraordinary measures for support during the current dry season.
Additional acres of low-yielding cereal and pulse crops will now be able to be diverted to feed. Crop producers will be able to make timely decisions to make additional feed available to graze, bale, or silage.