Please Note – Due to a Holiday break, there will be no PEIFA Today morning email for the week of February 13 – 17. It will return on Tuesday, February 21.
Membership Survey
The recent 76th Annual General Meeting was a great success on a number of fronts, but as always we would like to improve for next year. Please take a moment to complete this SURVEY to give us feedback, even if you did not attend, we’d like to know why and what might bring you out to the AGM in the future. Thanks! SURVEY
‘Member Benefit Special’
Tuner Drake Associates would like to provide two PEIFA members with a valuation of their farms for succession planning purposes, at a discounted cost of $1,000 (plus HST) each. This offer will be implemented on a first come, first served basis. For further information please call 902-368-1811 Ext. 312
Local, Regional, Canadian News
Hazelbrook wants to remain a rural farming community
The municipality of Hazelbrook recently made some minor changes to its official community plan but has no plans to change its current status or amalgamate, said council chair Brian Gallant. MORE
Province wants feedback on next agricultural policy framework
The P.E.I. government is asking Islanders for their feedback for the next agricultural policy framework. MORE
Islander produces trap to prevent potato-eating wireworm
An Islander has heeded the call to mass manufacture a trap to fight P.E.I.’s wireworm pest. MORE
Improving soil testing accuracy and speed with laser technology
Brenda Shanahan, Member of Parliament for Châteauguay—Lacolle, on behalf of Minister of Agriculture and Agri Food Lawrence MacAulay, has announced a repayable contribution of $470,000 to help a Quebec company, Logiag Inc., commercialize a laser-based soil analysis system that replaces the more traditional chemical analyses. MORE
Health Canada to randomly test medical pot after unauthorized pesticides found
Health Canada says it will be conducting random testing of medical cannabis goods made by licensed producers. MORE
Supply management sectors also face labour shortages
Despite the relative stability supply management provides the dairy and poultry sectors, they suffer from labour shortages like the rest of agriculture. MORE
Farm building code streamlined
The Manitoba government has begun a new anti-red tape initiative by streamlining the provincial building code for farm structures. MORE
The Prince Edward Island Institute of Agrologists offer two awards annually to individuals whose achievements and service to Agriculture in Prince Edward Island have been outstanding.
To nominate an individual for the Recognition Award or Outstanding Agrologist Award please click HERE
Nominations to be submitted to lmurphy@pei.sympatico.ca by March 20, 2017
Federation of Agriculture ‘Path of Profit’ Learning & Development Series
The Federation of Agriculture is excited to announce an exclusive offer to our members.
The ‘Path of Profit’ Series is a Learning Program of various Professional Development courses available to employees of any of our members. The courses are designed to improve overall business competitiveness and profitability while also upgrading staff skills. The courses are classroom based for 1-3 days depending on the course and will be delivered at our boardroom
In March /April. Dates will be confirmed ASAP.
- Succession Planning
- Tax & Financial Planning
- Professional Leadership for Managers / Supervisors / Lead Hands
- Computer Skills Upgrade – Office / Word / Excel
- Stress Management / Time Management
Seats will be on a first come first serve basis.
For further information and to sign up, please contact the office at 902-368-7289 or email Jennifer Murphy at jmurphy@peifa.ca or Robert Godfrey at rgodfrey@peifa.ca.
PEI Holstein Branch On-Farm Cow Showcase!
Farms will be Open February 18th 10-3pm for their entries to be judged.
Two classes to judge. Participation prize drawn. Participants get one prize ballot for every farm they visit.
Winners will be announced at All-Atlantic Night held at the Rodd Royalty. For more information please contact Amber Craswell at (902) 393-0888.
Participating farms:
- Bayside c/o Adam MacKinnon 4867 Birch Hill Road, Richmond (902) 854-2454
- Bernadale c/o Gilles Bernard 2473 MacIsaac Road, Richmond (902) 439-0549
- Birkentree c/o David Dickieson 52 Birkentree Land, North Rustico (902) 393-4584
- Craggan c/o John Wood 333 Settlement Rd, Marshfield (902) 394-3173
- Crasdale c/o Brian Craswell 5576 Route 6, South Rustico (902) 628-7537
- East River c/o Bruce Wood 14557 St. Peters Rd, Marshfield (902) 393-1294
- Eastside c/o Bloyce Thompson 330 Frenchfort Rd, Frenchfort (902) 629-5176
- Goldenflo c/o Chris MacBeath 48 Beau View lane, Marshfield (902) 394-4380
- Idee c/o James Craswell 5511 Route 6, South Rustico (902) 393-4127
- Jeweldale c/o c/o Logan Jewell 298 Rte 19, Meadowbank (902) 628-5049
- Mactalla c/o Allan & Coleen MacQuarrie 66 Macquarrie Road, Bonshaw (902) 675-2102
- Mallettdale c/o Ben Mallett York, PE (902) 393-4655
- Sandy Rae c/o Alex MacKinnon 2535 Brooklyn Rd, Montague (902) 838-3206
- Weeksdale c/o Blair Weeks 22155 Hwy 2, Braedalbane (902) 432-0132
- Winterbay c/o Jeff Bysterveldt 346 Bedford Rd, Mt Stewart (902) 314-4584
Holistic Farm Life Planning
A two-day intensive for small business owners who are ready to create a vision of the future they want for their life and business.
Rodd Royalty in Charlottetown, PEI, on February 23rd and 24th MORE
See Canada’s top speakers
FCC Forum is your chance to re-energize, get inspired and network with business owners and operators like you. Bring family, friends, business partners – it’s free for anyone in agriculture. Over 7,000 people attended last year, so get your seat early and register today!
Saturday, March 11 – 10:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m. Moncton , New Brunswick (lunch included) MORE
PEI ALUS Program Reviewing Payment Rates
The Alternative Land Use Services (ALUS) program is undertaking a review of payment rates paid to Island farmers/landowners. Surveys have been mailed to all ALUS program clients for feedback. In addition, a digital version of the survey has been created. If you are a client of the ALUS program and haven’t completed your survey yet, you can do so by following the link below. The survey will be available online until February 23.
The link can be found here: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/ALUSclientsurvey3
Livestock
Ontario backs feed processing at Cargill beef plant
Ontario’s provincial government plans to put up over half a million dollars for Cargill to process byproducts from its Guelph beef plant for feed. MORE
Initial cash prices drop CME live cattle
Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle futures finished lower on Wednesday, pressured by softer wholesale beef values and some preliminary cash prices that fell short of expectations, traders said. MORE
NBA Welcomes New Generation of Beef Farmers
The National Beef Association has announced its new campaign to embrace a new generation of beef farmers. MORE
Cattle Council Welcomes Defence Land Acquisition Announcement
Cattle Council has welcomed the announcement from the Federal Government that there will be no compulsory acquisition of land in the regions of Charters Towers and Shoalwater Bay for defence purposes. MORE
Livestock Diseases Feared to Hamper Korea’s Meat Exports
A series of animal and poultry disease outbreaks in South Korea is feared to be a huge drag on the country’s exports of meat and other livestock products, industry sources said Wednesday. MORE
Kenyan Farmers Urged to Shield Livestock from Drought Via Feed Conservation
A Kenyan scientist on Wednesday called for a need for livestock farmers to practice feed conservation to cushion their animals from famine during prolonged periods of drought. MORE
US President Urged to Start Pork, Beef Trade Talks with Japan
Ahead of Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s state visit to the US, the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association and the National Pork Producers Council urged President Trump to begin negotiations on a free and fair trade agreement with Japan. MORE
GIPSA Rule Comment Period Extended
The Trump administration has extended the deadline for submitting comments on a regulation related to the buying and selling of livestock, a move hailed by the National Pork Producers Council, which opposes the Obama-era rule. MORE
Pork Checkoff, Heart Association Work to Highlight Benefits of Pork Sirloin
Eating healthier just got easier with the addition of one more pork cut to the list of Heart-Check Certified products by the American Heart Association. MORE
EU Pig Prices: Quotations Developing Unsteadily
This week, the development of the quotations is unsteady altogether on the European slaughter pig market. MORE
Growth in Other Asian Markets Lags Behind China
With the exception of China, other key Asian pork importers experienced relatively modest growth during 2016. MORE
Russia Hog Market
The pig price this week in Russia is averaging 98 Roubles ($1.66) per live kg., writes Simon Grey, General Manager of Genesus Russia. MORE
Stratford hatchery opens
Trillium Hatchery Inc. (Trillium) has opened in Stratford to supply the chicken industry.
It’s owned by Ontario farmers and is, they say, “a leading-edge” hatchery using modern technology. MORE
Chicken farmers say processors treat them like servants
Former chicken farmers in five states have filed a federal lawsuit accusing a handful of giant poultry processing companies that dominate the industry of treating farmers who raise the chickens like indentured servants and colluding to fix prices paid to them. MORE
Chicken production, 2016 HERE
Atlantic Stockyards Market Report – February 2 – HERE
*Scroll down to find current report
Ontario Cattlemen’s Association Market Report – Friday, February 3 HERE
Potatoes
Canadian potato yields have increased 4.5% since 2014
After suffering through some troubling years, the Canadian processing potato industry is seeing a rebirth as a weaker Canadian dollar has helped caused a rise in exports of french fries and fresh potatoes to the United states and other markets around the world. Along with this, potato processing plants are expanding production lines in the country. MORE
Potato growers in Maine apply soil fumigation in a trial of McCain Foods
French Fry manufacturer McCain Foods has started trials examining soil fumigation with several of its potato growers in Maine (United States) and New Brunswick (Canada). MORE
IDAHO POTATO INDUSTRY MAKES PROGRESS AGAINST DISEASES
The head of Idaho’s potato seed certification program says growers appear to have made progress in controlling bacterial ring rot challenges, and their potato virus Y infection rates seem to have flattened. MORE
Greg Campbell in Line to Succeed Lonnie Spokely as New NPPGA Chairman
The Northern Plains Potato Growers Association (NPPGA) will be holding its winter meetings at the Alerus Center in Grand Forks February 21st through the 23rd. MORE
Mixed year for red potato growers in North Dakota
“For the growers that had potatoes, it will be a decent year,” says Paul Dolan, the manager of Associated Potato Growers, Inc., a potato-packing co-op in the Red River Valley of eastern North Dakota and western Minnesota MORE
Va. Growers Hope for Better Prices
The bulk of potato shipments from Virginia’s Eastern Shore are chip-stock potatoes, and the 2017 market is looking up for growers of those varieties. MORE
Potato Prices Rises in the UK
UK potato prices are currently up 30% year-over-year (y-o-y), due to a decline in production, as potato output in the UK for 2016/17 fell 5% y-o-y to 5.2m tonnes, 2% below the five-year average, despite an increase in planted area, according to the Mintec analysts. MORE
Pepsico sees opportunities for potato cultivation in Myanmar
PepsiCo is contributing to the economy in Myanmar with an agriculture program that is helping meet the company’s need for potato supplies in Southeast Asia, as well as providing economic opportunities for local farmers. MORE
Vietnamese scientists create better quality potato in aeroponic environment
A Vietnamese group of scientists headed by Prof Nguyen Quang Thach have created a potato variety with better quality that can be grown in an aeroponic environment to make the production more sustainable. MORE
AAFC / InfoHort Potato Reports HERE
USDA – Daily National Potato and Onion Report HERE
Crops
North American Grains/Oilseed Review: Canola follows vegetable oil higher
THE ICE Futures Canada canola market settled mostly higher on Wednesday, taking strength from advances in US soy and vegetable oil. MORE
ICE Futures Canada Wednesday: Canola futures prices mostly lower, barley unchanged
Season too short for cover crops? Maybe not
Open just about any U.S. farming publication and you won’t read for long before seeing the words “cover crop.” There’s been an explosion of interest in the practice of sowing a cheap mixture of seed to cover the soil after harvest, and then seeding directly into it the following year. MORE
Lack of buyer interest leaves lentil market without pulse
Lentil buyers are keeping to the sidelines as mixed weather reports from India bring an element of turbulence into the market. MORE
Soybeans hit two-week high on fund buying
U.S. soybean futures jumped to a two-week high on Wednesday while corn and wheat prices also rose on support from investment fund buying and position squaring ahead of a government crop report due on Thursday. MORE
Canola holds firm before USDA report
ICE Futures Canada canola contracts made steady gains during the week ended Wednesday, as traders positioned themselves ahead of Thursday’s release of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s next supply and demand report. MORE
South American weather still key for soy, corn
South American weather uncertainty is lending underlying support to soybean and corn futures at the Chicago Board of Trade, with speculators likely to remain on the long side until production issues are more clearly sorted out, according to an analyst. MORE
Minnesota probes Palmer amaranth’s sudden appearance
Minnesota has launched an investigation to find the source of seed mixes contaminated with weed seeds after the aggressive, herbicide-resistant Palmer amaranth weed was found on 30 areas planted in a federal conservation program. MORE
Understanding how plant genes fight disease
A University of Queensland-led study has highlighted the minute details of how a plant’s immune system leads to its ability to resist disease. MORE
Company Turns Dairy Waste into Fertilizer
Last week, Midwestern BioAg unveiled a new manufacturing process that transforms dairy manure into a uniform, dry fertilizer granule that the company says can be efficiently stored, transported and spread. MORE
AM markets: corn recoils from 6-month top ahead of data slew HERE
PEI Grain Elevator Prices – HERE
Grain Farmers of Ontario – Daily Commodity Report HERE
More Futures Prices HERE and HERE
General Interest
Diversification the name of the game for Lewis Farms
“Sometimes, progress simply isn’t possible without change,” says Ken Lewis, general manager of Lewis Farms in Spruce Grove, just west of Edmonton, Alta. MORE
The halal market
In a more diverse Canada, many farmers are learning what halal actually means, and some are already finding ways to profit from its booming demand MORE
Living together, farming together
Common-law is the choice for more and more young farming couples MORE
Syngenta sees ChemChina deal closing in second quarter
Swiss pesticides and seeds group Syngenta pushed back the expected closure of its agreed US$43 billion takeover by ChemChina to the second quarter of 2017, but said it was making progress in winning regulatory approval for the deal. MORE
Octogenarian Italian feeds the poor with food waste
For 10 years this Italian pensioner has aimed to feed those less fortunate than himself as an expression of his faith MORE
Regular Updates
Rayglen Market Comments – February 8 HERE
PEI Weekly Agriculture Market Report – February 3 HERE
Ontario Farm Market Summary – Wednesday, February 8 HERE
AgWeather Atlantic HERE
Today’s Local Weather – HERE
Meetings and Events
2ND ANNUAL ATLANTIC YOUNG FARMER TRAINING EVENT
Those who register for both events will receive a 15% discount.
Bridging the Gap: Succession & Transition Planning Workshop for Farm Families!
February 9th and 10th
Glengarry Hotel – Truro, Nova Scotia
Register HERE
Innovate for Value Chain Management
February 10th and 11th
Dalhousie Agricultural Campus – Bible Hill, Nova Scotia
Register HERE
Atlantic 4R Nutrient Stewardship Training
Fertilizer Canada’s Nutrient Stewardship training courses help you understand the economic, social, and environmental advantages of 4R practices and how these can be implemented on Canadian farms.
-Free Training
-Participants will receive certification after course completion
-Lunch Provided
**Note: Only the first 30 participants to RSVP will be accepted
-Please send your RSVP to: nfrost@fertilizercanada.ca or call (613)-786-3032
February 22, 2017 – 10:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.
Westmorland Room, Crowne Plaza 1005 Main St, Moncton, NB
Atlantic Farm Women Conference
April 28 & 29 at the Delta Halifax, N.S.
Register before March 31 registration fee is $90 plus you will be entered to win your conference registration free. After March 31, registration will be $115.
To register: http://atlanticfarmwomen.weebly.com/-registration.html
Agenda on line: http://atlanticfarmwomen.weebly.com/agenda.html
Attention: Class A Pesticide Applicator Certificate Holders
To renew your pesticide applicator certificate there are three options available for you:
First Option: Renewal of your certificate by receiving Continuing Education Credits.
Second Option: Take a one day training course & write the two hour exam.
Third Option: Make an appointment to come in and write the two hour exam.
First Option:
The Department of Agriculture and Fisheries will be offering two different training days
Day A and Day B. You are required to attend one Day A and one Day B over the five year re-certification period. Only one day per calendar year can be credited.
Day A – Topics covered: General Information, Regulations, Environmental Safety, and Application Technology.
Day B – Topics covered: Emergency Response, Labeling, Professionalism, Traceability, Integrated Pest Management, and Human Health and Safety.
Your current Pesticide Applicator Certificate will remain valid until the expiry date printed on your certificate. New Class A certificates will now all have an expiry date of March 31. The fee payable for a new 5-year certificate is $75.
When you have met the requirements to renew your license, you will be mailed an application form for renewal of your Pesticide Applicator Certificate. Should you fail to attend both of these training sessions prior to the expiry date on your current Certificate, you will need to successfully complete the written examination to obtain a new certificate.
The 2017 training schedule is as follows:
Day A:
February 21, 2017 Lane’s Riverhouse Inn, Montague
March 14, 2017 Rodd Royalty, TCH Charlottetown
Day B:
February 22,2017 Lanes Riverhouse Inn, Montague
March 16, 2017 Rodd Royalty, TCH, Charlottetown
Registration begins at 8:15 a.m. All information sessions begin at 9:00 a.m. and will be completed by 4:00 p.m. Lunch and refreshments will be provided, and there is a
$ 25. fee to offset this cost.
To register for one of these training days please call (902) 368-4154.
Should you have questions or require additional detail, please do not hesitate to contact Shelley Ployer at (902) 368-4154 or via e-mail at seployer@gov.pe.ca
Second Option:
You can also renew your license by attending a one day training course and writing the exam at the end of the day (there is no cost to attend this course). This training course is designed to refresh your memory and prepare you for writing the exam. It DOES NOT provide you with any certification days. There is no cost to write the exam. The cost for a 5 year Pesticide Applicator Certificate is $75.
The 2017 training schedule for the one day course followed by writing the exam is as follows:
February 22, 2017 Loyalist Inn, Summerside March 15, 2017 Rodd Royalty, TCH, Charlottetown
Registration begins at 8:15 a.m. Training sessions begin at 8:45 a.m. and are completed by 3:30 p.m. The exam will be from 3:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m.
To register for one of these training days please call (902) 368-4154.
Third Option:
You can make an appointment to write the two hour exam by calling Debbie MacRae at
(902) 368-5024 or Thane Clarke at (902) 368-5599 at the Department of Communities, Land and Environment in Charlottetown. The cost is the same, $75.
