Issues & Insights

In June, Alberta Beef Producers (ABP) aligned with cattle producers and organizations across the country calling on Health Canada to exempt ground beef from the proposed front-of-package (FOP) regulations. As part of the Government of Canada’s Healthy Eating Strategy, proposed labelling regulations included a requirement for ground beef sold at retail to carry a “high…

Producers still dealing with drought fallout, but looking ahead to better days By Alexis Kienlen, Alberta Farmer Express Cattle producers are feeling cautiously hopeful, thanks to June and July rains. “It’s a sigh of huge relief, as least what I experienced in this area — it’s just a burden of worry lifted,” said Fred Lozeman,…

More funding, more vet and vet technologist training won’t fix problem overnight, warns the AVMA By James Snell, Alberta Farmer Express There’s a major shortage of veterinary professionals in Alberta causing long wait times for routine livestock medical procedures. Introducing The Bovine — ABP’s inaugural podcast There are more than 840 veterinarian and veterinary technologist vacancies in Alberta…

Ground meat is a nutritious food and saying it is high in saturated fat is misleading and harmful, groups say By James Snell Alberta cattle producers say they are feeling betrayed by the federal government after Health Canada recently announced a plan to add saturated fat warning labels to ground meat. “Labelling ground beef — an affordable, nutritious…

Researchers at the University of Calgary are looking at potential ways to manage the health of wood bison, with a focus on tuberculosis and brucellosis, and they need your help. Drs. David C. Hall and Kyle Plotsky, independent researchers employed by the University of Calgary, are working on a Parks Canada funded project to understand peoples’…

Antimicrobial use in beef cattle production greatly benefits animal health. But, it has come under scrutiny in recent years, due to increasing incidents of antimicrobial resistance. To bring you the full story, we spoke to an animal health scientist and a feedlot veterinarian about the benefits and challenges of antimicrobial use, the developing risk of…

By CBC News After last year’s summer drought prompted many Alberta cattle ranchers to cull their herds, ongoing dry weather this winter and spring, especially in the southern part of the province, could mean more of the same. “If we don’t get some significant rainfall, you know, in my area in the next couple of weeks,…

By Sylvain Charlebois Looks like we will all see different symbols on food packaging soon, telling us whether a food product at the grocery store has too much fat, sugar or sodium. Health Canada is likely going forward shortly with a policy requiring front-of-package nutrition symbols on foods high in saturated fat, sugars and sodium….