A new study from the Environmental Working Group has determined that 80 per cent of Americans are regularly exposed to the plant growth regulator chlormequat. It is used to control growth in grain crops such as oats, wheat, and barley in order to make them easier to harvest.

Terry Tyson is the General Manager of Grain Millers Canada in Yorkton, Sask.  He provides his take on the situation and shares how this work aligns with the Yorkton Brick Mill Heritage Society's Interpretive Station.

The main export market for Canada's malting barley is China. Peter Watts, the managing director of the Canadian Malting Barley Technical Centre in Winnipeg, says the industry wants to see the customer list expand to Mexico and various countries in central and South America.

But, this comes with several challenges.

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The Swine Health Information Center has five new research projects approved for funding under the 2.3 million dollar Wean-to-Harvest Biosecurity Research Program. The initiative was launched to enhance biosecurity during the wean-to-harvest of phase of pork production.

Associate Director Dr. Megan Niederwerder says five institutions, including Lowe Consulting, Pipestone Research, Texas Tech University, the University of Missouri and the University of Montreal, were awarded funding.

It is a canola disease that is moving east across the Prairies . . . starting in Manitoba and now gaining a foothold in eastern portions of Saskatchewan. The ideal time to scout for verticillium strip is at harvest when symptoms are most obvious. Courtney Boyachek is an agronomy specialist with the Canola Council of Canada based in western Manitoba.Verticillium stripe is also similar in appearance to two other well-known canola diseases---blackleg and sclerotinia stem rot.

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The value of Canadian farmland rose 11.5% in 2023, according to a new report by agriculture lending firm Farm Credit Canada. While, overall it's a slight slowdown from the growth in 2022, it's still a rapid pace given cooling economic conditions overall.

The lender's latest report on farmland values found that they increased in every province tracked except for British Columbia. The highest increases in average farmland value last year was in Saskatchewan.

Ken Gurney is a senior appraiser with Farm Credit Canada. He'll discuss some of the factors behind an increase in land values on the prairies.

The Farm Credit Canada Young Farmer Summit brings farmers under the age of 40 together to dig into the business side of farming, connect with peers, and pass on knowledge to producers that will help them take their operation to the next level.

Erica Leniczek is a Masters Counselling Psychology Candidate, Keynote Speaker and Crisis Responder from Marwayne, Alberta. She shares ways to reduce stress and explains psychological safety in agriculture.

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Canada ranks number three in the world for herbicide resistant weeds, only behind the United States and Australia. The last extensive survey in Saskatchewan occurred in 2019-2020 and estimated producer losses due to herbicide resistant weeds at $340 million per year.

It found that green foxtail, volunteer canola, wild oat, wild buckwheat and kochia were the biggest concerns. The top instance of herbicide resistance in Saskatchewan five years ago was Group 1 resistance in wild oats. Herbicide Resistance wild oat was found in 77 per cent of 250 fields where wild oat was collected and tested.

Charles Geddes is a research scientist with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada and will be leading the herbicide resistant weed survey.

The federal carbon tax been completely ineffective in reducing fossil fuel use, it has also made it harder for farmers to afford the adoption of new innovations. That from Manitoba Pork General Manager Cam Dahl.

He says farmers face many challenges as they work to adopt environmentally sustainable green practices while operating in the red. Dahl is calling on government to replace its policy of taxing farmers to stimulate decreased fossil fuel use with one where incentives are offered to stimulate the adoption of environmentally sustainable technologies and practices.

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Preliminary results of research show pigs can be stimulated into engaging in play.

The Western College of Veterinary Medicine and the Prairie Swine Centre are exploring the prospects of using play to improve the emotional well being of pigs and improve their resilience and performance. In one experiment the behavior of two groups of pigs provided intermittent play opportunities was compared to a control group. Dr. Yolande Seddon is an Assistant Professor Swine Behaviour and Welfare.

She says the objective is to determine whether play could be stimulated and identify the physiological effects of play on the pigs.

All internationally trained veterinarians hoping to practice in Canada take their final hands-on test in Saskatoon.

Three times a year, the Western College of Veterinary Medicine hosts the clinical proficiency examination process for international veterinarian graduates who want to be license in Canada. It is the only location in Canada that hosts this testing.

Dr. Gillian Muir explains the testing process and how this is easing some of the stress of the veterinarian shortage across Canada.

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Wild pigs have been an issue in Canada over the last 25 years, but a simple looking trap may be part of the solution to the problem. Called the "Pig Brig", it's big net that is 20-feet in diameter, which can be set up by one person in about an hour. To catch them, a pig simply walks underneath the mesh and once they're in, there is no way out. It's also portable so it can fit into a backpack.

Aaron Sumrall is the Director of Outreach, Education, and Research at Pig Brig, the U.S. company that makes the traps of the same name. Aaron will talk about what inspired the creation of Pig Brig and the potential to use it to control other pests.

A researcher with the Western College of Veterinary Medicine says the use of AI to assess animal welfare offers an opportunity to eliminate human error and bias during assessments.

Dr. Martyna Lagoda says measuring welfare of animals is a complex task but there are animal-based indicators of welfare which are visible on the animal's carcass throughout the pig's life and these are used as the scoring targets of an automated system.

She says the indicators tell a story of welfare retrospectively and can be tracked back to different stages of the production chain.

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A successful canola crop needs a lot of nitrogen, which is why nitrogen has A-list status. That same successful crop also depends on a strong supporting cast - phosphorus, potassium, sulphur and micronutrients.

Canola council of Canada agronomy specialist Warren Ward says farmers will benefit from soil tests, yield history and economics to determine how much fertilizer their canola needs.

Protein is an important component in a person's diet---whether it be animal-based or plant-based. Nationally recognized registered dietician Carol Harrison says protein has many benefits, but questions come up on different the types of protein, how much is enough, are plant and animal-based proteins the same. She will also have some tips on how to extend your meat budget a bit more.

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Each year, a survey is conducted in late May through early June to track the movement of pea leaf weevil throughout Saskatchewan. Provincial insect specialist James Tansey says the pest is on the move with northern and eastern Saskatchewan experiencing the worst infestations.

A new pulse processing plant is coming to Saskatchewan.

Louis Dreyfus Company announced a new pea protein isolate production plant at the same site as its existing canola crush facility at Yorkton. Construction is expected to begin in 2024, with completion projected for the end of 2025. The plant will employ around 60 people.

Saskatchewan Pulse Growers executive director Carl Potts talks about the new plant and the importance of having a secure, domestic market for Saskatchewan peas.

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CN Rail signed a deal to purchase Iowa Northern Railway. The Iowa Northern operates 275 miles of track that connects to CN's U.S. rail network. 

David Przednowek, the Assistant Vice President of Grain for CN Rail, says they are very excited about the transaction as Iowa Northern is a great rail property with a very heavy agricultural focus.

The United Kingdom announced the suspension of talks after Canada decided not to extend two temporary trade measures – a special quota on U.K. cheese exports, which expired in December 2023, and country-of-origin rules on products being exported, which is set to expire at the end of March.

Those measures were in place since Britain left the European Union. Canadian Cattle Association President Nathan Phinney said the other major issue revolves around Canadian beef.

The U.K. doesn’t allow hormone-treated beef and pork imports from Canada but is able to export approximately 40,000 tons of beef to Canada annually. Phinney says he wasn't surprised by the UK's move and discusses Canada's next step.

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Researchers are looking at biomarkers as an indicator of animal welfare.
Biological markers are observable characteristics that can be measured to determine whether an animal is in a state of good health and well being.

Darian Pollock is a PhD candidate in the Department of Large Animal Clinical Sciences at the University of Saskatchewan's Western College of Veterinary Medicine.

She says the objective of the study was to identify indicators of welfare, and in the case of her work, measuring chronic stress.

Seed germination and vigour for the 2024 crop in Saskatchewan is looking quite good at this point. Discovery Seed Labs in Saskatoon compiled a report for the Saskatchewan Seed Growers Association in early January.

Molecular Lab Manager Sandy Junek says seed germination rates are very close to what they were last year across all crops followed by strong vigour. He says barley and flax were the only crops that dropped of a bit and cereal and pulse crop disease are present . . . but at manageable levels.

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