Welcome to the Farmfair International Round-Up.
We hope you enjoy this monthly round-up. It will include news from exhibitors, industry partners, agriculture shows, sales and other items of interest.
Northlands is working with partners to identify agriculture industry workforce development needs and solutions – if you are an Alberta business and staffing has been an issue for your operation – please fill out this survey
Farmfair International dates for 2021 are November 10 – 14 in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.
Until then, stay healthy and safe
– The team @ Farmfair International
Exhibitor News
- Canadian Cattlemen published highlights from November’s Lloydminster Stockade Roundup, including Grand Champion – Supreme ribbons for Springside Farms‘s Charolais female SOS Hot Mess 50B and Charolais bull SOS Hodor PLD 51H, as well as for Colgan’s Cattle Company‘s Speckle Park bull Greenwood Headliner 71H. Goldenview Shorthornsposted about its success at the show.
- It’s calving season! Here are some recent snaps from Carpathian Land and Livestock, Charworth Charolais, Diamond Nine Shorthorns, Lilac Lane Farms, MT Bar Ranch, Robertson West Livestock, and Shepalta Farms.
- The bulls at Chittick Family Farms had a “spa day” earlier this month to get ready for a photo shoot in advance of their March 5 sale.
- Goad Family Angus is selling a 50% interest in Red Goad Statement 104’20, “one of the best bull calves that we have raised.”
- Greenwood Limousin & Angus shared pictures of Greenwood High Class JJP 87H, who will be up for sale with some of his pen mates on Feb. 25.
- McAleer Ranching is selling a limited number of straws of semen from D.A.M. Dots 94A Electric 31E.
- Nolara Farms has been showcasing “Sunday Studs” headed for the Next Step Bull Sale on March 11. Here are sons of SAJ Spark and Moose Creek Image, and here are two sons of SKV Defiance 47D, who was Champion Simmental Bull at Farmfair in 2018.
- Par Ranch is selling bulls, yearlings, and two-year-olds by private treaty.
- Rainbow Red Angus is getting ready to sell Red Rainbow Concorde 28H on March 20.
- Wallgren Farms is getting ready to sell WF Class Act 40H, WF Maverick 24H and WF Playmaker 28H on Feb. 23.
- Willow Creek Simmentals brought its cows into a new barn addition at the end of December.
Beef News
- Alberta Beef board member Assar Grinde of Blindman Beef shared his hopes for public opinion of the cattle sector to improve. “Canada has been a leader in the Canadian Roundtable for Sustainable Beef,” he told Alberta Farmer Express. “I hope we just keep going down that path — that we’re the leaders in being able to market beef with specific attributes and have that traceability system ahead of everybody else.”
- Alberta Beef has announced it delegate election results under the new five-zone system. A few vacancies remain in the Central and Northwest zones. My Grande Prairie Now has more info.
- Alberta Cattle Feeders Association shared how it has making its voice heard in Ottawa despite the pandemic.
- A two-year large-scale trial supported by the Alberta Cattle Feeders Association found that a novel feed ingredient called Bovaer from Royal DSM reduced methane emissions by up to 80% in commercial feedlots without negative effects on animal health or performance. The study was picked up by DTN’s Progressive Farmer, Angus Beef Bulletin, and AgInfo. Livestock Gentec touched on the research in November.
- The Western Producer wrote about Saskatchewan breeder Randy James, who sold his farm to work in oil and gas in 2006, but started dabbling again in purebred Simmental and Angus in 2015, and has since seen big success at Farmfair International, Agribition, and Lloydminster Agricultural Exhibition Association‘s Stockade Roundup.
- Farm Credit Canada‘s examined the export risks and opportunities for red meat in 2021. And FCC’s Talking Farm and Food podcast talked about ranching by the numbers with Ben Campbell of Grazed Right Ranch in Black Diamond.
- Livestock Gentec shared the results of a study showing positive economic and environmental results from consistent genetic selection for residual feed intake.
Agriculture News
- The AFSC Podcast from Agriculture Financial Services Corporationtalked about farming and mental health with Lesley Kelly of High Heels & Canola Fields and Do More Agriculture. Here’s Part 1 and Part 2.
- Business has been good for direct market growers during the pandemic, Gary Vander Waal of the Alberta Farm Fresh Producers Association told the Western Producer, as home cooking became a pastime and demand grew for locally grown food.
- Alberta Milk elected Stuart Boeve as its chair in November, succeeding Tom Kootstra, who had served since 2016.
- Alberta hog farmers lost more than $5 per hog in 2019, according to Alberta Pork‘s most recent cost of production study. It also noted a surge in feed costs at the end of 2020.
- Video is now available of the Chops and Crops Virtual Roundtablebetween Agriculture Minister Devin Dreeshen and nine commodity commissions, including Alberta Pork and Alberta Pulse Growers.
- A U.S. program to purchase $17-million worth of American ground bison should have knock-on effects for Canada, Dave Carter of the Canadian Bison Association said at the association’s annual conference.
- Stan Blade, dean of the Faculty of Agricultural, Life and Environmental Sciences at the University of Alberta, wrote about “increasing the two-way interaction between scientists and the farmers who put their research to use” in a piece for GrainsWest.
- Farm Credit Canada shared how agriculture organizations can put on high-quality virtual events.
- The Lloydminster Agricultural Exhibition Association has been approved for a $1 million grant which will allow it to complete a deal to expand its grounds.
- Lakeland College in Vermilion received a $1.9-million grant to take over the beef production systems and pulse agronomy programs. Lakeland will also be working more closely with Grande Prairie Regional College.
Selected Sales
- Feb. 23: W2 Land & Cattle Bull Sale at Vermilion
- Feb. 25: The Robb Hoegl Greenwood 2021 Bull Sale in Lloydminster — here’s the catalogue
- March 5: Future Farms and Charworth Select Charolais Bull Sale from Innisfail
- March 11: Next Step Bull Sale from Thorsby
- March 19: Red White and Roan Production Sale at the Stettler Auction Mart
- March 20: Joint Venture 42nd Annual Bull Sale at Sangudo
- March 27: K-Cow Ranch Annual Bull Sale at Elk Point
Other Events
- Mondays through to March 1: Nutrient Management Seminar Series
- Jan. 25 and 26: Talk Ask Listen – Mountain View County with Do More Agriculture
- Jan. 26 and 29: Roots to Success: Agricultural Risk Management Workshops from Farm Management Canada
- Jan. 27: The Future of Industry: Agriculture with the Calgary Chamber of Commerce
- Jan. 27: CanExport Innovation for Agriculture Companies, a webinar from the Canadian Trade Commissioner Service
- Jan. 27: Alberta Pulse Growers Virtual Annual General Meeting
- Feb. 2 and 4: The Red-Bow Ranching Conference
- Feb. 3: Feed Your Future, an Agriculture for Life event to empower, connect and inspire young women
- Feb. 9: Alan D. Quilley: Safety is Everyone’s Responsibility, an AgSafe Alberta webinar
- Feb. 17: Breeding Goals: Practical Genetics for Beef Production, a webinar from the Beef Cattle Research Council
- May 2 – 8: Beef Australia 2021
Opportunities
- The deadline to apply for the Foothills Forage and Grazing Association Bursary is Jan. 22.
- Alberta Milk‘s New Entrant Assistance Program (NEAP) is open for applications until March 31.
- Aspiring farmers are invited to apply for the Young Agrarians Apprenticeship Program
- If your business employee summer students, and have fewer than 50 employees, you may be eligible for a Canada Summer Jobs grant – deadline to apply is January 29th
- Small and Medium Enterprise Relaunch Grant – To better support Alberta’s small business community, the Alberta government is expanding the Small and Medium Enterprise Relaunch Grant Applications are open now.
