Canola blast is starting to show up with the heat

The intense heat we've been dealing with over the last couple of weeks has resulted in signs of heat stress starting to show up in some crops.

There's a real concern about the potential impact on canola crops at the flowering stage.

Curtis Rempel, vice president of crop production and innovation with the Canola Council of Canada says when the temperatures are in the 30's, it's especially hard on flowering canola plants.

Ag in Motion is underway

This year marks the 10th Anniversary for Ag in Motion. 

Western Canada's largest outdoor farm show at Langham, Saskatchewan, features over 600 exhibitors and is expected to attract about 32,000 visitors over the three days.

Show Manager Rob O'Connor says Ag in Motion is also attracting a number of international visitors with over 230 guests coming from Australia, Africa, Europe, Mexico and the United States.

He notes what sets this show apart from others is the crop plot trials, live equipment demonstrations, and the always popular ride n drive area.

JBS Foods Canada is expanding its beef processing facility at Brooks. 

Work is already underway on a new beef processing line and warehouse expansion.

The $90 million investment includes a new patty processing line and a state-of-the-art fulfillment centre, that is expected to be completed for the fall of 2025.

With the expansion, JBS Canada will produce almost seven million more kilograms of beef patties every year for restaurants in Western Canada.

Premier Danielle Smith says JBS is a cornerstone in Brooks, creating jobs and ensuring Alberta’s world-renowned beef makes it to the millions who love to eat it.

The Province announcing some key changes to it's new Animal Production Regulations

Saskatchewan's New legislation around Animal Production Regulations consolidates four existing Acts related to animal production into one.

It also reduces ten sets of regulations into a single set, which reduces the red tape and simplifies the legislation. 

Agriculture Minister David Marit says these changes are a positive step toward modernizing and streamlining regulatory processes for  producers  

The Provincial Government helps to beef up the agriculture industry

The Alberta Beef Industry is world renowned for having high-quality beef,

Beef was Alberta's largest agri-food export last year, and at $3.9 billion, it makes up 22 per cent of the province's total agri-food exports.

Because of the importance of the beef industry, both the Canadian and Alberta governments are going to provide the Alberta Beed Producers (ABP) with almost $1.9 million to go towards it's on-farm food safety program Verified Beef Production Plus (VBP+).

This funding will come through the Sustainable Canadian Agricultural Partnership.

Maple Leaf Foods is creating a new pork business

Maple Leaf Foods is splitting its operations and moving the pork business into a new publicly traded company. 

In a statement on the company website, Curtis Frank, President and CEO of Maple Leaf Foods says as separate companies, Maple Leaf Foods and the new Pork Company will each have exciting prospects, a sharpened execution focus with its own dedicated management team.

Canada Beef is looking at new marketing opportunities

Federal Agriculture Minister Lawrence MacAulay announced over $6 million for the Canadian beef industry yesterday.

Canada Beef will receive over $5.8 million for market development and promotion.

Canada Beef plays a key role in market development worldwide, with offices in Japan, South Korea, Vietnam, Thailand, Mexico, and Hong Kong.

New Sclerotinia tool helps growers assess disease risk and severity

Growers and agronomists looking for help in making sclerotinia spray decisions this summer will have access to a new online tool from the Canola Council of Canada. Available at , the sclerotinia risk assessment tool offers both a recommendation about whether or not to spray a canola crop (at 20-50 per cent flower) based on several inputs from the user, along with an opportunity to assess the spray decision by rating sclerotinia severity at maturity (30-60 per cent seed colour change).

Agriculture Minister Lawrence MacAulay announcing a key investment for Canada's Beef Industry


Federal Agriculture Minister Lawrence MacAulay was in Calgary today to announce more than $6 million for Canada Beef and the Canadian Cattle Association.

The funding through the Sustainable Canadian Agricultural Partnership - AgriMarketing Program is geared towards increasing awareness and demand for Canadian beef in existing and new markets through advertising and promotional activities such as incoming and outgoing trade missions, technical training, and educational seminars.