The intent of the Nuffield Canada Scholarship program is to connect agricultural scholars with farmers and ag professionals across the globe. Established in 1950, the program is geared towards mid-career individuals, it empowers recipients with $15,000 and a two-year mandate to travel and research a topic of their choosing.

Perspective is everything and the high-flying bird’s-eye view provided by drones delivers plenty of it. Outfitted with state-of-the-art software augmented with artificial intelligence (AI) technology, drones are increasingly used for an impressive array of agricultural applications.

For decades, soil management decisions have been made based on chemical composition. The field of soil health has refreshingly expanded to include aspects such as organic matter and compaction, said Burton. “Soil health embraces the physical, chemical and biological, which is a much more meaningful representation of the state of soil.”

CEO Kurt Kinnear credits the problem-solving spirit of 4-H for the success of the Alberta organization. “Innovation is the root of 4-H, and we need to bring that back to continue the growth of this program to give more Alberta youth the 4-H experience. The future will hold a lot more pilot projects and new ideas.”

Nieuwenhuis describes the by-product feeds market as opaque. FeedXchange gives farmers, the ability to see what others are paying and to view historical price trends that can significantly influence purchase decisions and allows them to manage expenses.

From a peak of 1,755 in 1933, it’s estimated close to 100 of Alberta’s historic grain elevators remain standing, and Nanton came very close to losing three of its own when they were decommissioned in March 2001. “The demolition permit was signed, and they were hours away from being bulldozed,” said Leo Wieser, president of the town’s Canadian Grain Elevator Discovery Centre Society. “These are very important cultural icons; Prairie cathedrals that are so important to western Canadians.”

Despite the encouragement of crop groups and conservation outfits, winter wheat acreage in Western Canada has decreased sharply to 2.7 million tonnes in 2022 from the record high of 4.8 million in 2008. A sign this trend may reverse, acreage has increased slightly in Manitoba where farmers have struggled to seed spring wheat in wet fields.

While there’s no Tinder for business, Bunge and Viterra hope they’ve found the perfect match. The two companies announced their intent to merge in June 2023. Viterra brings more than 80 Canadian grain-handling centres to the blossoming relationship, along with sales to more than 70 nations. For its part, Bunge is the world’s largest processor of oilseeds, with 300 operations in 40 countries. Of course, with a celebrity wedding comes major scrutiny.

Starting in 2025, farmers with allowable net sales greater than $1 million must complete an agri-environmental risk assessment to receive funds from AgriInvest. A business risk management savings program of the Sustainable Canadian Agriculture Partnership (SCAP), government will match farmer contributions up to one per cent of their net sales. Though details are yet to be fully developed, according to Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, an Environmental Farm Plan (EFP) can be used to meet the requirement.

Largely unfamiliar to North Americans, barley tea is a staple in much of Asia, where it is consumed by people of all ages. Sisters Janice Ishizaka and Cilla Watkins launched The Canadian Barley Tea Company to introduce Canadians to the beverage.