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FEBRUARY 2023
Vol. 108 Issue 2

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6 days ago

Farmland Advantage is receiving a $445,000 grant from the federal government. The program, the “brainchild” of Invermere cattle rancher Dave Zehnder, provides compensation to farmers for their conservation efforts to protect BC’s grasslands, riparian areas and wildlife habitat. The funding from Environment and Climate Change Canada under the Species at Risk Partnerships on Agricultural Lands (SARPAL) and Priority Places programs, will be administered by the Investment Agriculture Foundation of BC. Rewarding farmers for enhancing riparian areas appeared in our March 2022 edition and you can view it at ... See MoreSee Less

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Rewarding farmers for enhancing riparian areas

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INVERMERE – Farmers and ranchers in the Columbia Valley will continue to see rewards for taking action to conserve and enhance important riparian areas on their farms. The Windermere District Farmer...
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2 weeks ago

A standing-room only crowd of more than 250 people attended a public hearing the Agricultural Land Commission hosted in Langley Monday night regarding a proposal to include 305 acres controlled by the federal government in the Agricultural Land Reserve. More than 76,000 people have signed an online petition asking municipal and provincial governments to protect the land from development, and for the federal government to grant a long-term lease to the Heppells. Read more in this morning's Farm News Update from Country Life in BC. conta.cc/3XYXw6k ... See MoreSee Less

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Your weekly farm news update

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The agricultural news source in British Columbia since 1915 January 25 2023 Surrey ALR inclusion cheered A standing-room only crowd of more than 250 people attended a public hearing the Agricultural L
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Mike Manion Pitt Meadows City Councillor

2 months ago

Christmas tree growers in BC are seeing strong demand this season and prices remain comparable to last year. But the number of tree farms has decreased dramatically over the past five years and the province will increasingly need to look elsewhere if it wants to meet local demand. More in this week's Farm News Update from Country Life in BC. ... See MoreSee Less

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Christmas trees in demand

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Christmas tree growers in BC are seeing strong demand, with high quality trees making it to market. “The market is good. We’ll probably outdo last year and last year was one of our best years…
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2 months ago

Another four poultry flocks in the Fraser Valley have tested positive for avian influenza over the weekend -- 15 in the last week alone. There are 60 farms currently under quarantine in BC, more than any other province in Canada and three times that of Alberta, which ranks second. Officials maintain the virus is being spread by dust and groundwater and not farm-to-farm transmission. No farms in the Interior have tested positive this fall. ... See MoreSee Less

Another four poultry flocks in the Fraser Valley have tested positive for avian influenza over the weekend -- 15 in the last week alone. There are 60 farms currently under quarantine in BC, more than any other province in Canada and three times that of Alberta, which ranks second. Officials maintain the virus is being spread by dust and groundwater and not farm-to-farm transmission. No farms in the Interior have tested positive this fall.
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Avian influenza virus can be killed by chlorine at no higher a concentration than is present in drinking water, so unless farms are using untreated groundwater in their barns I don't see how it could be a source of transmission. www.researchgate.net/publication/5594208_Chlorine_Inactivation_of_Highly_Pathogenic_Avian_Influen...

2 months ago

In a surprise move, Lana Popham -- hailed at the recent BC Dairy Industry Conference as a key ally of the agriculture sector -- has been replaced by Abbotsford-Mission MLA Pam Alexis as part of a cabinet overhaul today by new BC premier David Eby. Popham will now oversee Tourism, Arts, Culture and Sport. The two ministers worked closely together following the atmospheric river events last fall. ... See MoreSee Less

In a surprise move, Lana Popham -- hailed at the recent BC Dairy Industry Conference as a key ally of the agriculture sector -- has been replaced by Abbotsford-Mission MLA Pam Alexis as part of a cabinet overhaul today by new BC premier David Eby. Popham will now oversee Tourism, Arts, Culture and Sport. The two ministers worked closely together following the atmospheric river events last fall.Image attachment
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Goes to show how far-removed our current government is from the agricultural sector. To put someone in this position who has no farming background is a slap in the face to all of our hard-working producers.

Going to be a heck of a learning curve. Helping the agricultural community recover from the biggest natural disasters in history, handling the avian influenza outbreak that is threatening our poultry industry, dealing with a crisis in meat processing, managing ongoing threats from climate change, supporting producers who are facing unprecedented inflation in an industry with very slim margins to begin with..... to name a few of the challenges our new Minister will have to face all with one of the lowest budgets of any ministry. I wish her the best of luck but I hope she's got a lot of support around her.

Best of wishes in your new position

Congrats to Pam, cool to see a Fraser Valley based ag minister but also so sad to see Lana reassigned . I have no doubt she will do an amazing job in her new role.

Will be missed by #meiernation

Bryce Rashleigh

Nooooooo!

Lana did a shit job and now we have a minister with no farming background at all. Aren’t we lucky..

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Drought puts focus on livestock nutrition

August 11, 2021 byKate Ayers

Cattle producers asked their drought-related nutrition questions to a panel of experts during a Beef Cattle Research Council webinar on July 29.

The panel stressed the importance of feed testing during drought conditions. Tests shows if a crop is safe to feed on its own or whether it needs to be mixed with other feedstuffs. While the number of samples is dependent on the size of the field, 20 to 25 samples usually provides a good representation of a field’s nutritional or risk levels.

Feed samples can help producers monitor nitrate levels in forages and other crops. Nitrates present an issue in annual forages such as oats and barley.

Drought stress can cause nitrate accumulation in plants, especially if high rates of nitrogen are applied pre-plant or in-season. Without moisture, plant metabolism slows, and nitrates may linger in the stem.

A nitrate level above 0.5% should be monitored and managed. Diluting high-nitrate feeds can reduce the risk of nitrate poisoning. To avoid the shock to their system, a seven to 10-day transition period helps cattle safely transition to feed with higher nitrate levels.

Poor canola stands in Manitoba, Saskatchewan and parts of Alberta have producers looking to this crop as a potential green feed. However, farmers should exercise caution because canola can cause white muscle disease in calves because of vitamin deficiencies. Canola is high in sulfates, which can tie up selenium, vitamin E and copper. Producers can mix these vitamins into the ration or use ruminal boluses or injections. Specialists recommend that canola hay or silage should make up no more than 50% of a ration. BCRC released a salvage crop calculator so producers can determine the value of alternative feeds for their livestock.

Farmers should also be aware of the amount of straw they feed to cattle. Straw is high in fibre but poorly digestible. It is also low in minerals, vitamins, energy and protein. As a rule of thumb, producers can feed between 1.25% and 1.5% of a cow’s body weight in straw. For example, a 1,400 lb cow can consume between 18 and 22 lbs of straw in its ration. Producers should use caution when resorting to feeding straw as the cows will also require feeds that provide greater energy and nutritional value. However, grain may cause acidosis if the cattle aren’t used to a feedlot-like ration.

Panelists included Dr. Cheryl Waldner, the NSERC/Beef Cattle Research Council senior research chair in beef cattle health in large animal clinical sciences at the Western College of Veterinary Medicine; Dr. Bart Lardner, a professor in the department of animal and poultry science at the University of Saskatchewan; Dr. Andrew Acton, a cattle rancher and veterinarian at Deep South Animal Clinic in Ogema, Saskatchewan; and Dr. John McKinnon, professor emeritus in the animal and poultry science department at the University of Saskatchewan and owner of a nutrition consulting company.

More information and resources are available at [beefresearch.ca/droughtmanagement].

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