Profitability in the cattle business often hinges on understanding the real cost of production, something that can be difficult to pin down when labour, land, and opportunity costs aren’t always clearly accounted for. For many producers, taking a closer look at the numbers behind everyday decisions can reveal insights that influence everything from heifer retention... Read More

In the demanding world of beef production, success during the calving season is often determined by management decisions made long before the first calf hits the ground. Dr. Lacey Fowler, a beef technical services veterinarian with Elanco Animal Health, understands this timeline well. Drawing on her years in mixed animal practice and her work with... Read More

Regenerative agriculture is one of those terms that can spark a debate faster than a coffee-row chat about tillage, but on this episode of Ruminating with RealAg, host Amber Bell sits down with Joel Williams of Integrated Soils to keep things grounded. Williams, an independent plant and soil health educator who works with farmers around... Read More

Winter feeding is one of the largest and most complex management decisions cow-calf producers face each year, touching everything from cost of production to cattle performance and land stewardship. On this episode of Ruminating With RealAg, host Amber Bell is joined by University of Saskatchewan researchers Kathy Larson and Dr. Bart Lardner to dig into... Read More

For cow-calf producers, keeping herds efficient and profitable often comes down to adopting practical management practices that make sense on the ground. Whether it’s testing feed, improving records, or using pain control at branding, small changes can have a big impact. To better understand how these practices are being used, the Beef Cattle Research Council... Read More

Clear, calm communication can make all the difference on a ranch, something Etienne Poulin has learned first-hand from working as a ranch hand across Australia and Canada. In this episode of Ruminating with RealAg, host Amber Bell sits down with Poulin to talk about what communication looks like from the employee’s side, and how it... Read More

Riparian areas, those green, ribbon-like zones along streams and rivers, are some of the most productive and ecologically important parts of the landscape. But when it comes to grazing livestock, they’re also among the most fragile. How do producers balance water, forage, and habitat without sacrificing one for the other? This episode of Ruminating with... Read More

Winter feeding options can be complex, there are many layers that go into decisions on feed source, supplements, fencing, watering and so much more. Now to throw another layer into the mix, what about custom feeding? While custom feeding cattle at a feedlot might seem like a fairly straight-forward process, there are a lot of... Read More

When the nights turn crisp and the drill is parked, is it still worth chasing green? This Ruminating with RealAg episode tackles the late-fall question: what to do when it feels “too late” to seed cover crops, and whether a few leaves before snowfall can still pay back in soil health or livestock feed. Host... Read More

Most farmers and ranchers enjoy walking through an ag trade show. Whether it’s checking out heifers, catching up with a neighbour in the beer gardens, or exploring booths filled with the latest gadgets, there’s usually something new to take home — sometimes a tool, sometimes an idea. In this episode of Ruminating with RealAg, Sean... Read More