Dig Deep Archive | Page 8 | Better Farming

Supporting rural Ontario’s health care

Poultry farmers raise funds for rural health research

by Jim Algie

A group of Huron and Perth County poultry farmers has gathered in the month of September for a few years now at the Seaforth Golf Club for what they call “The Chicken Classic.”

The event is a round of golf for fun that also raises funds for charity. In recent years, the Chicken Classic organizers have donated the proceeds to the Goderich-based Gateway Centre of Excellence in Rural Health, a unique, nine-year-old organization created to support and research rural health issues.

Less waste, more resources

Biofertilizers offer range of nutrients for land application

By Kaitlynn Anderson

With the Waste-Free Ontario Act underway, farmers could see more biofertilizers, such as LysteGro, being used across the province.

LysteGro, manufactured by Lystek, “is registered as a fertilizer with the Canadian Food Inspection Agency and is currently utilized by farmers throughout Ontario as a commercial fertilizer replacement,” said Mike Dougherty, director of product management for Lystek International Inc.

A shock to agriculture’s bottom line

Lessons to learn from California: Minimum wage increase should be gradual

By Kaitlynn Anderson

In California, the minimum wage is scheduled to increase to $15 per hour, similar to Ontario. However, there is one major difference: the time frame for the implementation of this increase.

While the Ontario government plans to enact the change over a period of 18 months, California has set a date of 2023 – about eight years after the change began in the state in 2016.

Much ado about hemp

Highlighting the crop’s uses and abuses

By Nicholas Van Allen

Hemp has different uses and it’s incorporated into some products you might not have considered.

Nutritionists and health experts prominently note hemp’s benefits to Canadian diets: hemp seed is a rich source of both protein and healthy fats. “Two tablespoons of shelled hemp seeds can contain between seven and 11 grams of protein,” and are a source of dietary fibre, EatRight Ontario says.

Finding new life in an old combine

A restored combine is the result of a partnership between a regional Case IH dealership and a local 4-H group

By Jennifer Jackson

When Craig Smith, co-owner of O’Niel’s Farm Equipment Ltd. in Binbrook, told Robert Meier, Territory Sales Manager for central and eastern Ontario for Case IH, about a 1930s A-6 Case combine that was up for sale at auction, it wasn’t long before the pair set a plan in place for the piece of equipment.

The combine needed to be restored and Meier knew the right team for the job: the local 4-H machinery club.

Growing a future in the north

Provincial government increases support for livestock production in northern Ontario

by JIM ALGIE

The Northern Livestock Pilot project announced in May by Jeff Leal, Ontario Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, followed both a provincial strategy and a growth plan for agricultural opportunities in northern Ontario.

Milking the most out of a good situation

The processors: Innovations at Gay Lea Foods

By Nicholas Van Allen

Only one year ago, commentators were making noise about the state of Canadian skim milk dryers. Ten of 12 were out-of-date and all of them were at capacity.

Now, we’re seeing efforts from companies like Gay Lea Foods to address these shortages.

The value of woodlots under cap & trade

Professional forester hopes his experiences will help smaller woodlot owners

by Jim Algie

At 100,000 acres of bush and lake land, Haliburton Forest & Wildlife Reserve Ltd. doesn’t really fit the description of a farm woodlot. Rather, it is the largest, privately-owned forest in southern Ontario.

Navigating Ontario’s cap-and-trade program

Program participant examines impacts on business

By Jennifer Jackson

Companies and consumers alike are working to determine what the cap-and-trade program means for them, as the government continues to develop its regulations.

Producers break into ‘superfoods’ market

New North American quinoa growing network announced

By Jim Algie

In March, Denver-based Ardent Mills announced the creation of what it described as “the largest quinoa growing network in North America.” The company is working in close cooperation with Saskatchewan grower and Canadian quinoa pioneer Joe Dutcheshen.