Grow-ops cause Pacific power blowouts Tuesday, February 9, 2016 Legal marijuana grow operations are putting such a strain on the power grid in Oregon and Washington states that they're blowing out transformers.In a November Statesman Journal article, Portland General Electric spokesman Steve Corson estimated that the grow-ops account for 10 per cent of the roughly 400 transformer blowouts the Oregon utility experiences in a year.The article also quotes Roger Blank, director of safety for Pacific Power, as saying a grow-op with four plants under standard lights "is like hooking up 29 refrigerators that run 24/7."Corson told Portland Business Journal in November that the popularization of LED lighting, more expensive to install than traditional lighting, is easing the situation. One grower quoted in the story estimated that 200 lights per 10,000 square feet of an indoor operation would take US$10,000 a month to light by LED and double that amount by traditional light. BF Irrigating precious crops equals jobs Behind the Lines - February 2016
Bushel Plus rebrands to BranValt for global harvest-tech growth Tuesday, January 20, 2026 Bushel Plus Ltd., a well‑known name in harvest optimization tools and training, is preparing for a major brand transformation as it shifts to a new global identity: BranValt. The company recently announced that the transition will officially take effect in July 2026, marking a... Read this article online
Canada Negotiates Tariff Reductions on Canola Seed by China Tuesday, January 20, 2026 Mark Carney has concluded his visit to Beijing for high-level meetings with Chinese leaders, including Xi Jinping. The visit marked the first trip to China by a Canadian prime minister since 2017 and resulted in a joint statement outlining a new strategic partnership between the two countries.... Read this article online
Ontario Pig Producer Disease Advisory -- PED and PDCoV Risks Rising This Winter Tuesday, January 20, 2026 Porcine Epidemic Diarrhea (PED) and Porcine Deltacoronavirus (PDCoV) continue to pose significant risks to swine operations across the industry. Both viruses are highly infectious, spread easily through manure, contaminated equipment, transport vehicles, and human movement, and can have... Read this article online
Ag Minister Launches National Consultations to Shape the Next Agricultural Policy Framework Tuesday, January 20, 2026 As Canada begins charting its next decade of agricultural policy, the Honourable Heath MacDonald, Minister of Agriculture and Agri Food, officially launched national consultations on the development of the Next Policy Framework (NPF)—the federal, provincial, and territorial agreement that... Read this article online
Syngenta introduces new soybean seed treatment Tuesday, January 20, 2026 Soybean farmers have a new crop protection product available to them for the 2026 growing season. Syngenta recently introduced Victrato Complete, its new fungicide and nematicide seed treatment. “It’s the only fungicide and nematicide seed treatment with five active ingredients that’ll... Read this article online