John Greig
Farmtario
Ailsa Craig, ON, Canada
Contact John
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Past articles by John:
Isolate from animals if you contract COVID-19
Reading Time: 2 minutes Farmers with livestock should take some of the same precautions that they are taking with people in order to make sure they don’t transmit the coronavirus COVID-19 to their animals. Prof. Scott Weese, who works in infectious diseases at the Ontario Veterinary College at the University of Guelph, says it’s not yet known which animals … Read more → Read More
Business is booming for farmers selling direct
Reading Time: 2 minutes Social distancing has meant closer connections for farmers selling direct to consumers. Farmers selling direct or through online networks are scrambling to keep up to surging demand from new customers, all the while adhering to safety protocols to protect their families and workers. Why it matters: COVID-19 has changed consumer attitudes towards food in unexpected … Read… → Read More
Editorial: Food system resilience should be priority
Reading Time: 3 minutes We only had a small amount of COVID-19 coverage in our last issue of Farmtario. What a difference in a couple of weeks, as our world has been turned upside down. Who knows what the news will be by the time you get our latest newspaper. The situation is changing so quickly, but it looks … Read more → Read More
Olymel reducing Ontario hog numbers
Reading Time: 2 minutes Quebec pork processor Olymel is taking about half of the pigs it usually does from Ontario and is working to get out of contracts with producers, due to processing shortages related to COVID-19. Olymel informed Ontario producers on April 2 that it would be invoking Force Majeure – the clause in contracts that covers unforeseen … Read more → Read More
A colour change and more capacity for new Lexion
Reading Time: 2 minutes Claas’s new Lexion combine is now being sold in Ontario, but with a bit of a different look. The Lexions, redesigned for 2020, are now in the traditional Claas green colour, after years of a nod to their Caterpillar past in North America. Jeremy Noble, who sells the combines for HJV, the dealer for Lexion … Read more → Read More
Some Ontario milk not being picked up as market shifts
Reading Time: < 1 minute Hundreds of Ontario dairy farmers won’t have their milk picked up and potentially into the future because of gluts of milk at processors due to market changes from COVID-19. Dairy Farmers of Ontario let its farmers know on March 31 that some will have to dump their milk due to huge changes in the milk … Read more → Read More
Steiger tractors get a digital update
Reading Time: 2 minutes Ontario farmers were some of the first to get a look at the new Case IH AFS Connect Steiger tractor when it was displayed at the London Farm Show. The tractor was launched at the Commodity Classic in the U.S. a week earlier. The tractor brings the AFS Connect technology, engineered throughout the whole tractor … Read more → Read More
Fairlife plant opening delayed due to border restrictions
Reading Time: < 1 minute A limit on the movement of people around the world due to COVID-19 means a delay in the start up of the new Fairlife Canada milk plant in Peterborough. Company officials announced today that start up will be delayed until later in 2020. The plant was weeks from receiving its first shipment of Canadian milk. … Read more → Read More
Farmer ready to cut woodlots to pay carbon tax
Reading Time: 2 minutes A Lambton County farmer, a winner of environmental awards, says he is ready to rip out his woodlots to help pay for carbon taxes on his farm. Joe Kerr, his wife and their company own about 1,800 acres, about 365 of which is woodlot. He doesn’t expect to clear it all, because it wouldn’t make … Read more → Read More
Tips for safe bull sales
Reading Time: 2 minutes Brent Saunders and his family have moved their 15th annual Charolais bull sale online. They are one of many farms with bull sales scheduled across the country challenged by group gathering restrictions because of COVID-19. Bull sales are a main source of income for many producers, and still the way many buyers procure the bulls … Read more → Read More
Connecting with consumers: Food trends for 2020
Reading Time: 2 minutes Consumer preferences are changing rapidly and the trends that are showing up illustrate those changes. Nourish Network has identified nine food trends for 2020 that will also affect farmers, in everything from packaging to science and entertainment. Why it matters: Consumer trends eventually filter down to farmers and the products they sell. Jo-Ann McArthur, president …… → Read More
5G and the future of farming
Reading Time: 6 minutes Users of the Samsung Galaxy S20 phone will be the first to have access to 5G technology in Canada. Rural residents and farmers will have to wait much longer – if the technology ever arrives. Rogers announced in early March that it is rolling out 5G networks in Toronto, Vancouver, Ottawa and Montreal, with 20 … Read more → Read More
Agriculture waits to see if it's an essential service
Reading Time: < 1 minute Ontario’s non-essential businesses will be shut down as of midnight Tuesday night, but it’s not clear yet what that will mean for agriculture businesses. Ontario Premier Doug Ford made the announcement on Monday, March 23 due to the continued spread of COVID-19. The list of essential businesses and services will be released on Tuesday. Businesses … Read more → Read More
Editorial: Feed the markets that want to be fed
Reading Time: 3 minutes A&W has been the whipping boy for many in the agriculture community who see any marketing that might lead someone to question what they do on their farm as an enemy. It was back in 2013 (already) that A&W created a backlash by moving to beef that was free of added hormones and antibiotics. We … Read more → Read More
Business school no-till case shows complexity of tillage decisions
Reading Time: 2 minutes Ivy Business School at Western University is aiming to include more agriculture cases for study by its business students. But first, it recently hosted an evening for farmers and the sector to discuss one of the cases set for students to analyze, and professors there found it’s challenging to the level of us versus them. … Read more → Read More
Seasonal workers caught up in COVID-19 border closure
Reading Time: < 1 minute Fruit and vegetable growers will be short of workers this growing season with the news that labourers from the Caribbean and Mexico will not be allowed into Canada due to the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic. The federal government closed the border to anyone but Canadians and Americans in an announcement on March 16. Why it matters: … Read more → Read More
Ottawa farm show, March Classic cancelled due to coronavirus pandemic
Reading Time: < 1 minute The need to limit large gatherings of people due to COVID-19 has meant the cancellation of two of Ontario’s largest agriculture events. The Ottawa Valley Farm Show and the Grain Farmers of Ontario March Classic were both cancelled March 13 after provincial government guidance limiting events with large numbers of visitors in order to reduce … Read more → Read More
Sick with COVID-19? Stay away from animals if possible
Reading Time: 2 minutes Farmers with livestock should take some of the same precautions that they are taking with people in order to make sure they don’t transmit the coronavirus COVID-19 to their animals. Prof. Scott Weese, who works in infectious diseases at the Ontario Veterinary College at the University of Guelph, says it’s not yet known which animals … Read more → Read More
Branded beef becoming the market standard
Reading Time: 3 minutes Exports, taking advantage of Ontario’s strong market and building long-term brands will be key to the future of beef market growth for Ontario producers. Work is underway on a major new marketing investment in the province. Beef farmers approved an increase in checkoff at the 2019 Why it matters: Ontario beef farmers approved a higher … Read more → Read More
Editorial: Burdensome beef supply needs an Ontario outlet
Reading Time: 3 minutes An overabundance of beef processing capacity has never been an asset of Ontario farmers. It might be time for them to take that problem into their own hands. The loss of the Ryding-Regency processor in Toronto in the late fall was another blow. Ryding-Regency was only about 15 per cent of the provincial beef processing … Read more → Read More