Issues & Insights

The cancellation of AFSC’s Satellite Yield Insurance program is among the corporation’s changes to its insurance products for 2023. AFSC announced on January 18 that due to technical challenges it would no longer be offering Satellite Yield Insurance, and that producers who have used this coverage in the past would be able to move easily…

Protecting Canada from the threat of Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD) requires constant vigilance. For the livestock sector, this threat is serious and would have devastating consequences on the Canadian beef industry and our economy. FMD is a highly contagious viral infection of cloven-hoofed animals including cattle, pigs, and sheep. Canada remains FMD free, but…

A new pilot project is underway to better facilitate interprovincial food trade in the city of Lloydminster. The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) is working with the Alberta and Saskatchewan governments to eliminate difficulties relating to moving food from both provinces into and within Lloydminster. “We are excited to see this pilot, not only as…

Tips for wintering replacement heifers One of the most illogical things we do as beef producers is overfeed or pamper our heifers through their first winter in hopes more will become pregnant in the spring. Then we say, “Oh, by the way… don’t expect to be spoiled like that ever again!” and we are genuinely…

By Alberta Farmer Express staff The Canadian Cattle Association is hailing Ottawa’s plan to boost trade with the Indo-Pacific region. About 20 per cent of beef exports already head to the region, with Japan, China, South Korea, Vietnam and Hong Kong being the top markets. The prospects for increasing beef exports are good, it said. “The…

By Alberta Farmer Express staff Cattle producers in foothill country in southwestern Alberta are being asked to look out for — and help protect — the iconic but endangered limber pine. “The rugged, twisted trees usually grow on dry, rocky ridges and are thought to be some of the oldest trees in Canada,” the Whitebark…

Grocery bills have been Canadians’ top concern for five years in a row, according to research conducted by the Canadian Centre for Food Integrity (CCFI). Although this may not come as a surprise in 2022, CCFI’s most recent public trust research indicates that the cost of food is even more worrying to consumers now than…

2022 will be remembered as a year of near record high fall calf prices, but also a time when auction market owners were watching some looming clouds on the horizon. Not enough clouds, at least of the rain-filled type, showed up to save southern regions of the province from a third straight drought year. Ranchers…

By Dylana Twittey, The Gateway – The Official Student Publication at the University of Alberta Research by a University of Alberta professor aims to help combat high levels of stress, depression and suicide in Alberta’s farming and agriculture industry. The research is being done by Rebecca Purc-Stephenson, a professor in the department of social sciences…

By University of Saskatchewan A University of Saskatchewan (USask) beef cattle specialist at the Western College of Veterinary Medicine (WCVM) has launched a new podcast that gives listeners a Canadian perspective on beef cattle health and nutrition. Dr. John Campbell (DVM), whose research interests include beef cattle and health management, posted the first episode of…