Farming in Canada EH!

So today is Canada day eh!  The old girl turned 144 today eh! I even rode my polar bear into town to take in some of the festivities.  I might say it’s been quite a day up here in Canada eh!  Yes this is the typical stereotype that Canadian’s are given, but hey it’s all in good fun and has become a part of our Canadian identity.  Other then oil and gas as well as our abundance of other natural resources agriculture is known to be part of Canada’s identity.  But agriculture has been in Canada for far longer then 144 years.  Canada is known as a young country at only 144 years old.  This is because that is how long it’s been since confederation making it an official country.  But agriculture has been in Canada for longer then that.  During colonization in all the years before confederation there was agriculture, before that the natives were here harvesting what the land provided for them and caring to the land so they would still have these resources in the future.  But even in my short lifetime agriculture has made huge advancements in how we do jobs. 

When the natives were farming the land here they would use every part of an animal that they killed, never take more then they needed and not destroy any of the land.  They lived in peace with Mother Nature.  They would hand make tools that they would use to prepare food, gather food, build things, and everything else we use tools for today.  They would more graze on the berries that grew wild and used buffalo, deer and other animals as part of their diet as well.  This isn’t exactly what most people today would call agriculture but the way that they were able to manage the land and use what they needed without disrupting the rest of the animals/plants I think is pretty cool. 

In the late 1400’s is when Canada started to see the European settlers start to arrive.  When they arrived they all had high hopes of conquering this new land and taming the unknown.  Well lucky for them the natives (Indians at the time) were here to keep them all from dieing in the first winter.  Although once the expansion to Canada started to boom most people were involved in the fur trade some people were farming.  The Europeans were able to farm more efficiently as they had metal tools and used horses to pull tools for cultivating the land.  They also started to plant crops, something that had never been done in Canada before.  The Europeans and their metal were the first big advancement in agriculture in Canada. 

The next big advancement in Canadian agriculture wouldn’t come until the tractor was brought here in the early 19^th century.  The first tractors were steam powered, eventually leading to a gasoline model to today where the amount of emissions is becoming a regulation.  The invention of the tractor allowed for more to be done faster and production to increase.

Recently the advancements in agriculture are more global but affect’s Canadian agriculture as much as it does anywhere.  The advancements that have been and are being made are also to increase efficiency and profitability.  This includes zero till seeding, GPS, and auto steer.  I guess as farmers we are just trying to keep up with the technological advancements the rest of society is making. 

Farming has changed a lot over the years and always will as everything continues to get bigger and bigger.

Until next time,

Luke

Federal Government Invests $1.7 million

Yesterday it was announced that the Canadian Government will be making an investment of $1.7 million in the Canadian Simmental Association (CSA).  Rob Merrifield, MP for Yellowhead who made the announcement on behalf of Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz stated, “This investment will enhance the quality, value and ultimately the overall competitiveness of Canada’s beef and cattle industry.  We are committed to investing in opportunities which will help farmers remain competitive and ultimately increase their profitability.”  This money is being invested into a 3 year project that will use DNA and other genetic data that will help breeders select and breed cattle with more desirable traits such as higher fertility and mothering ability, growth and feed efficiency, and produce a more desirable beef product.  CSA president Rick McIntyre said, “This project will assist Canadian producers in our ongoing efforts to supply premium quality genetics, cattle and beef to both domestic and international marketplaces.”  This investment comes from part of Canadian Agricultural Adaptation Program’s (CAAP) five year (2009-2014) $163 million program established to facilitate agriculture’s ability to seize opportunities, respond to new and emerging issues, and test solutions to new and ongoing issues.  This is part of Canada’s Economic Action Plan with the next phase using other government programs and initiatives are to continue to help farmers by creating jobs and strengthening the economy.  They plan to help build a stronger agriculture industry by making investments in new and emerging market opportunities. 

As much as this is huge news to the Canadian Simmental Association it is also good news for all of agriculture.  This will allow for huge advancements in the way that farmers breed their livestock in the future and the choices that they will make in their seed stock in the future.  The Simmental’s just get the first kick at the can to either reap the reward or be the crash test dummy.  Either way this is a big step into the technological world that we live in today benefiting the Simmental breed and ultimately all of the breeds.

Until next time,

Luke

What is Agriculture?

Well this weekend we just got the first member of the Marshall family married off and now I find out the next one is getting hitched next summer.  Congratulations to both of them. 

Have you ever asked yourself what is agriculture?  I haven’t, but now that I wonder I can’t seem to put a finger on it exactly.  My first thought is beef, dairy, and crop production.  But then where does the production of everything else like sheep, goats, horses, and other animals fit into that?  If you look up agriculture on wikipedia it states, “Agriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life.”  Plants and fungi?  What?  I never even thought of that.  Well how about dictonary.com, it states, “the science, art, or occupation concerned with cultivating land, raising crops, and feeding, breeding, and raising livestock; farming.”  Well that sounds more like agriculture to me.  But then what do they mean by livestock?  They state, “the horses, cattle, sheep, and other useful animals kept or raised on a farm or ranch.”  Well that’s where I started but either way I’m not going to start narrowing it down.  I’m still young and just starting to explore the world of agriculture no matter what part or if I think it may be a part of it at all.  I encourage you all to do the same as well.  Get out there and explore as many different types of farms and aspects of agriculture as possible.  Who knows we might meet up meeting somewhere along the way. 

Until next time,

Luke

Green Certificate

Do you remember way back to grade 9 and the first time you got to sign up for high school classes?  So many decisions that ultimately could shape the career you end up with and shaping the rest of your life.  At the age of 15 for most people you don’t realize at the time how truly overwhelming it is.  Well I remember mine.  Not being educated on what some of the classes were I just simply didn’t choose them.  The one that I had my mind dead set against was green certificate.  There was no way I was making signs to protect the environment and become a hippy.  Not that I’m against helping the environment but I would never join a club.  But it wasn’t until the school guidance councilor, knowing my family, asked me why I wasn’t taking it that I actually came to the understanding of what it actually is.

Green Certificate is an industry driven program available to students and adults through the Alberta government.  This apprenticeship style program offers hands on experience under a supervisor (for level I) in the field of studies in cow-calf beef production, dairy production, feedlot beef production, field crop production, irrigated field crop production, sheep production, swine production, beekeeping production, and equine production. 

What makes this program so appealing for many high school students is that it provides trainees with opportunities to enter a variety of agriculture-related, structured learning pathways as a part of their high school program and to earn a credential leading to a career in agribusiness.  Along with that this program can be done outside of school hours and over the summer so that it doesn’t interrupt with actual class time.  Plus you earn 16 high school credits for completing the 3 oral tests and 400 hours of work.  That may seem like a lot of hours but you can be getting paid for them and I completed two in less then 3 semesters. 

Level I of the program provides trainees with more then the basic skills of working on or running a farm but does not overwhelm the trainee.  This level involves a lot of the work to be done with the trainer but the program allows for a lot of hands on work to be done by the trainee.  The benefits of this are that it looks great on a resume and can certainly help if you are interested in pursuing a career in agriculture.  I have completed both the cow-calf and feedlot modules at this level and have enjoyed both of them, growing up and working on the farm anyways has earned me a relatively easy 32 credits already. 

Level II of the program is referred to as the supervisor level as the trainee takes on the role of a supervisor making more decisions regarding the daily happenings on the farm.  The trainee must be able to sufficiently work independently and be able to step into any position on the farm comfortably.  This level calls for more responsibility as it includes directing daily routines, Assesses problems and judges the need for significant and potentially costly actions, ensures the business operational plans and protocols are carried out, this includes breeding, cropping or marketing for example,  maintains operations and production of the physical plant, and supervises the maintenance and repair of equipment and facilities.  This level essentially puts the trainee in charge as if they own the place.  I am starting this level of the cow-calf module over the summer and am greatly looking forward to the challenges that it will present me.

This program has so much to offer that if you have the chance I highly recommend you take it.  You will not regret it, even if you don’t like it as much as you thought you would its better to know now then to find out after you graduate from post secondary looking to get into agriculture.  And the 16 credits certainly doesn’t hurt either.  I guess it also goes to show that you can’t judge a course by its name or I wouldn’t have 32 of the credits that I do.  So be sure and check it out. 

Until next time,

Luke

Cattle's Digestive System

For those who don't know cattle have 4 stomachs, the rumen, reticulum, omasum, and the abomasums.  But what is the purpose of cattle having 4 stomachs?  The reason is because of the amount of roughage that cattle consume.  On average cattle will eat 2-2.5% of their body weight in dry matter everyday!  But how about we start our journey through the stomachs, after cattle have ingested their feed it first enters the rumen. 

Our first stop on our journey is the rumen.  The rumen is the largest of the 4 stomachs and contains millions of microorganisms.  These microorganisms live in a symbiotic relationship with the cow getting a warm safe place to live while they are the reason that the cows are able to consume and digest such a large amount of roughage.  In fact 60-80% of the energy required by the cow is absorbed out of the rumen after the microorganisms have broken the matter down into fatty acids. The reason that this much energy can be acquired so quickly is that there are 25 to 50 billion bacteria and 200 to 500 thousand protozoa in every milliliter of rumen fluid.  But have you even seen a cow just standing there chewing? This is because they are regurgitating, or chewing their cud.  This makes it easier to be broken down as when it is first ingested the feed is hardly chewed.  The cud is then again swallowed and goes through the process in the rumen again. 

As we keep rolling along the next stop is the reticulum.  This honeycomb like structure acts as a filter that stops any indigestible materials from passing on into the other stomachs.  The contents of this stomach can include rocks, nails, or other metals that have been ingested.  This stomach is essential in protecting the remaining two stomachs but if wire or other metal punctures the reticulum it becomes the site of hardware disease, which is an infection or irritation to the heart, diaphragm, or lungs.  This why it is important to keep your pastures, pens, and feed free of metal and other debris.  However they do make special magnets that you can give to an animal that consumes metal to help prevent from the animal getting hardware disease.  

Our third stop along the way is the omasum.  This stomach can be described as looking like a book as it has so many layers that they look like pages.  The omasum serves to create a greater amount of surface area for better water extraction. 

The final stop for us on our journey is the abomasums, this is the “true stomach” o a cow.  It is the most similar to the human stomach, it secretes protein and starch digesting enzymes to further digest the feed that wasn't digested in the rumen.

The contents then make their way through the small intestine where nutrients are further absorbed from, until it makes its way into the large intestine and then of course back on the ground again.  But that is the interesting insides of a cow, at least as far as I’m going to get into.

Until next time,

Luke

The Future of the CWB

The Canadian Wheat Board has been in operation for nearly 76 years.  It is controlled by western Canadian farmers and is the largest wheat and barley marketer in the world.  This Winnipeg based organization sells grain to over 70 countries around the world returning all the revenue, less the marketing costs, back to the farmer.  So then why is it that the federal government has stated plans to get rid of the CWB by August 1^st, 2012.  This is because of the thought that the CWB has outlived its usefulness.  A large reason for this is because ever since 1943 Canadian wheat farmers by law have had to sell their wheat to the board at a fixed price that is established by the board.  This law also came and went for oats between 1949 and 1989.  But barley destined for human consumption in Canada or for export has been legally forced to sell strictly to the board as well again at a fixed rate.  Also a concern for the government in trying to erase the deficit is that since 1943 the federal government has spent $1.3 billion cover the board’s deficits.  So why has all of this turmoil been caused by the government wanting to abolish it? 

Defenders of the CWB say that without the board grain prices would fluctuate day to day and farmers would have to negotiate their own price.  However this is exactly what opponents of the board want.  They argue that through the use of the internet farmers could monitor the price and negotiate accordingly, this would allow the farmers the opportunity to make more then they would be able to with the fixed rate used by the board.  There are also those that are in the middle and believe that pooling and negotiating a common price may be a good idea for some farmers, they should not be forced to sell their grain strictly to the CWB.  These farmers believe in a dual market system where they can sell their crops to the open market or to the board.  However this idea was already disposed of in 1997 when critics of the referendum said it wasn’t possible. 

I personally see more economic benefits to having a free market however I’m not the one selling my grain.  There is currently on online “vote” going on for farmers can determine the end result of the CWB.  What this will be interesting to see what is decided as most young farmers are determined to seek possible economic benefits of the board being gone, while the old die hards just want to have a secure market to sell their product to.  I guess time will tell.

Until next time,

Luke

The Winningest Cowboy Ever!

With 20 NFR appearances, 14 World Titles, numbers that most rodeo cowboys will only ever dream about.  But ontop of that in 2010 Trevor Brazile became the first ever cowboy to win 8 World Champion All Around Titles.  Early in 2011 he also set a first in rodeo history becoming the PRCA's first $4-million cowboy.  The way this man is able to handle a rope in the events of Tie-down Roping, Steer Roping, and Team Roping is absolutely phenominal! Here is some of his fine work.

Last night I got to see trevor rope at the Innisfail Pro Rodeo.  There is an afternoon and evening performance today and everything wraps up tommorow afternoon.  If you want to see World and Canadian Champions and high calibre rodeo get out to the Innisfail Rodeo this weekend.

Until next time,

Luke