Canadian Centre for Food Integrity launches
The Canadian Centre for Food Integrity is a division of Farm & Food Care Canada, a charity with a vision to earn public trust in food and farming MORE
At the heart of DFC
It’s summertime and the weather’s hot and sunny. It also rains—it’s haying season. Between sowing and harvesting is when Dairy Farmers of Canada (DFC) holds its Annual General Meeting (AGM). MORE
PEI farms attract interest from French agricultural colleges
The Coopérative d’intégration francophone de l’Î.-P.-É. (CIF) and Lycée Pommerit in France have been collaborating in hopes of filling some human resource needs in PEI’s agricultural sector. French students at Pommerit school in Brittany will soon be able to apply for an apprenticeship lasting 2 months or more next summer. It is hoped that at least three or four volunteer apprentices will be coming to the Island to work on local farms. MORE
Growers receiving low price for blueberries
While blueberries are priced for $2.99 per pound in the grocery store, Fraser Valley growers are troubled by the fact that their share is as little as 55 cents. Blueberries have flourished for 20 years in the Fraser Valley in British Columbia, but concern is growing among farmers, and some are selling their farms. MORE
Organic Week Media Training
On August 18 at 1 p.m. EST, Organic Week will be host a free media training webinar for all organic stakeholders in Canada. All COTA members are welcome to attend. The training will cover best practices of drawing media attention as well as how to utilize Organic Week to promote your brand, product, or service. MORE
Livestock
Cattle Outlook: Meat Demand Slows in First Half of 2016
The August WASDE predicts this fall will bring our first 15 billion bushel corn harvest and the first 4 billion bushel soybean harvest. This is good news for feeder cattle prices, write Ron Plain and Scott Brown, Ag Economics, MU. MORE
Record US Crop Production Forecast Good News for Feed Prices
The USDA’s August Crop Production report, which provides the first official government estimates of the corn and soybean harvests, suggested record yields are on their way for these important feed ingredients. MORE
U.S. livestock: CME lean hogs up again on cash, pork prices
Live, feeder cattle close weaker MORE
US Pork Exports to China, Canada, Central America Strong
US pork exports ended the first half of 2016 on a positive note and exports were particularly strong to China, Canada and Central America, according to statistics released by USDA and compiled by the US Meat Export Federation (USMEF). MORE
Weekly Overview: McDonald’s Urged to Phase Out Medically Important Antibiotics
This week, fast food company McDonald’s has been targeted by an online campaign aiming to halt, what it describes as, the ‘excessive use’ of antibiotics in its global supply chain. MORE
PED Being Dealt with as Endemic Infection
The Executive Director of the Swine Health Information Center, says while there is discussion about ultimately eradicating Porcine Epidemic Diarrhea from the United States, at this point, the virus is being treated as an endemic infection, writes Bruce Cochrane. MORE
Quality will guarantee Wagyu future
WITH 120,000 Angus breeders currently being joined to Wagyu bulls at the moment, and that figure expected to rise to 833,000 by 2020 there are plenty of concerned eyes looking at the future of that premium beef. MORE
If livestock eat genetically modified grain, will there be GMOs in my meat?
In the United States, livestock have been consuming feed made from GM crops for almost twenty years. More than two-thirds of GM corn and half of GM soybeans are used for livestock feed. In that time, GMOs have never been detected in the milk, meat or eggs derived from animals fed GM feed. MORE
Ontario Cattlemen’s Association Market Report – Monday, August 15 HERE
Potatoes
RPE Expands Organic Production
To meet increasing demand, RPE Inc. is expanding its organic potato production and adding more growers. The Bancroft, Wis.-based grower-shipper is also growing sweet potatoes. MORE
“Cool summer does wonders for potato consumption”
Netherlands – The extreme weather conditions have led to the usual drop in potatoes. “Between gross and net yield is quite a difference. Especially the early strains suffer from greens and growth cracks. MORE
Croatian potato farmers struggle to compete with imports
Croatian consumers believe that local potatoes should be no more expensive than German or French potatoes. However, Croatian farmers must set aside 40 percent more money for seed, fertilizers and other costs involved in potato growing, meaning they cannot compete with prices abroad, says Damir Mesarić, a potato producer from Belica, a village in Međimurje with the biggest production of potatoes in Croatia. MORE
AAFC / InfoHort Potato Reports HERE
USDA – Daily National Potato and Onion Report HERE
Crops
North American grain/oilseed review: Canola ends higher
ICE Futures Canada canola ended higher on Monday, underpinned by gains in Chicago Board of Trade soybeans and soy oil. MORE
ICE Futures Canada Monday: Canola futures prices higher, barley unchanged HERE
PM markets: corn, soybeans, extend rally on export demand HERE
U.S. grains: Soybeans gain as soyoil rallies
Corn recovers from low after USDA forecast MORE
New in winter cereal varieties
The long-term outlook for cereal yields is up. Here’s why MORE
PEI Grain Elevators Prices – August 11 HERE
Grain Farmers of Ontario – Daily Commodity Report HERE
More Futures Prices HERE and HERE
General Interest
Farmer wins innovation award for “potpourri” cover crop practice
Cover crops like red clover play an important role in many farmers’ rotation plans. What, though, would you say to someone who plants 18 different cover crops, simultaneously, every single year? What’s the cost, return, and motivation behind such a practice? For Blake Vince, a Merlin-area farmer who uses the aforementioned technique, the motivation behind such a cosmopolitan cover crop system is rooted in environmental stewardship. MORE
Riparian buffers can remove nitrates from runoff
Excess nitrogen from agricultural runoff can be kept out of nearby waterways through the use of riparian buffer zones – areas of grasses, perennials, or trees – between farmlands and streams or rivers, says a North Carolina State University researcher. MORE
Research leads to better understanding of bee health
Bacteria in the gut of young honey bees may provide clues about the impact parasites have on bee health. That and other experimental findings were published by U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Agricultural Research Service (ARS) researchers in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. MORE
The Rise of Food Politics: A Conversation with Michel Nischan
Michel Nischan, founder of Wholesome Wave, a national food system advocacy group based in Connecticut, sees a future where food is as much a part of the political conversation as healthcare and the economy. He suggests that food could become the lens through which these hot button issues are the viewed, a missing link that politicians should, he argues, begin to leverage. MORE
Here’s Something for Organic Farmers to Obliterate Weeds With: Grit
The idea began with Minnesota’s bumper crop of backyard apricots in 2007. Along with the fruit came a glut of pits; the parts traditionally considered as “agricultural residue.” To Frank Forcella, however—a weed scientist and hobby grower stuck with his own pile of pits—there are no leftovers. MORE
Regular Updates
StatsCan – Total income of farm operators, 2014 HERE and HERE
PEIDAF Agriculture Marketing Report – August 12 HERE
COPC Update – August 15 HERE
FCC Express – Friday,August 12 HERE
Ontario Farm Market Summary – Monday, August 15 HERE
AgWeather Atlantic HERE
Today’s Local Weather – HERE
Meetings and Events
2 Day Standard First Aid and CPR Courses
(Membership discounted rate of $70)
August 17th-18th– Stratford August 27th-28th– Stratford
September 8th-9th– Stratford September 24th-25th– Stratford
September 27th-28th– Stratford
*First aid and CPR course are also available at your farm for a minimum of 8 participants. Please contact Charlotte at 902-368-7289 for more details.
OPEN HOUSE AT AAFC HARRINGTON RESEARCH FARM
EVERY THURSDAY IN AUGUST 2:00 – 4:00 PM – August 18, August 25
Early September with an organic potato variety day with David Main
View all details HERE
Tractor Safety Course
Saturday, September 10th – 8am-4pm – JVI Charlottetown/Reddin Equipment Ltd – Cost: $85
Theory and practical included. Topics include: Occupational Health & Safety, mobile equipment regulations, farm tractors on public roads, tractor stability, instruments and controls, hitching and connecting implements, PTO safety and safe tractor operation.
You must pre-register by contacting Charlotte at 902-368-7289 / charlottec@peifa.ca. Course is limited to 12 participants.
National Organic Week – Sept 17 – 25, 2016
Canada’s National Organic Week is the largest annual celebration of organic food, farming and products across the country. MORE
Namaste Lamb Event
Featuring Celebrity Chef Vikram Vij
A newly branded signature event this year on the Fall Flavours calendar and it will be held on September 24th at 6:00 pm. The event will be held at Rodd Crowbush Resort. Tickets are $90 per person and can be purchased online or by phone at 1-866-960-9912 MORE
