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Better Pork Featured Articles

Better Pork magazine is published bimonthly. After each edition is published, we share featured articles online.


Sidebar: Some quick fatty acids facts

Wednesday, December 2, 2009

  • Fatty acids range in length from two to 22 carbon chains. Some fatty acids are saturated, which means that they lack double bonds in their carbon chain, while others are unsaturated, meaning that they have anywhere from one to six double bonds in their carbon chain. The final carbon atom at one particular end of the carbon chain is called the "omega" carbon.
     
  • Polyunsaturated fatty acids have more than one double bond and are classified according to the location and number of double bonds in their chemical structure. Omega-3 fatty acids have their first double bond at the third carbon atom, while omega-6 fatty acids have theirs at the sixth carbon atom in the chain. The omega-3 fatty acids are linolenic, eicosapentaenoic (EPA), and docosahexaenoic (DHA).
     
  • Flax is the most abundant source of linolenic acid, with canola oil coming in second, while insignificant levels are found in other sources of fats and oils. Fish oils are the only sources of the other two omega-3 fatty acids (EPA and DHA).
     
  • Canada has been the world's leader in the production and export of flax since 1994. According to Statistics Canada, Canadian flax production reached 1.035 million tonnes in 2005-2006. As one of the five major Canadian crops (including wheat, barley, oats and canola), flax is exported mainly to Europe (60 per cent), the United States (30 per cent), Japan (four per cent) and South Korea. BP

Current Issue

August 2026

Better Pork Magazine

Farms.com Swine News

Pilot project supports Ontario and Quebec ag

Friday, July 24, 2026

A new two-year pilot project is designed to help livestock farmers in Quebec by giving them access to an Ontario abattoir. The project, a collaboration between the Quebec and Ontario governments, with additional support from the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA), would see a limited... Read this article online

Canada Opens Interprovincial Alcohol Sales

Thursday, July 23, 2026

A major change to Canada's internal marketplace is set to create new opportunities for wineries, breweries and distilleries after nine provinces signed a landmark agreement allowing direct-to-consumer sales of alcoholic beverages across participating jurisdictions. The deal is being hailed... Read this article online

Bertha Armyworm Hotspots Emerging Across Saskatchewan

Thursday, July 23, 2026

Canola growers across Western Canada are once again being encouraged to keep a close watch for bertha armyworm, one of the most damaging insect pests affecting the crop. While outbreaks do not occur every year, specialists say the pest can quickly move from a minor concern to a major... Read this article online

How One Simple Tool Can Help Protect Crop Quality

Thursday, July 23, 2026

Planning crop harvests requires more than monitoring field conditions—it also means ensuring crop protection products have sufficient time to break down before harvest. Using the correct pre-harvest interval (PHI) helps growers meet residue requirements, protect market access and... Read this article online

B.C. sod farmer looks back on World Cup experience

Thursday, July 23, 2026

A B.C. farmer will hold onto the fact he, and Canadian agriculture, got to play a role during the World Cup. “It was quite exciting to be a part of that, to be a part of Canadian history,” Bert Bos, owner of Bos Sod Farms in Abbotsford, told Farms.com. In February 2025, Bos’s farm... Read this article online

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