"We did it! We did it," exclaimed Francesca Debiase, chief supply chain and sustainability officer for McDonald's, pumping her hands through the air, at yesterday's celebration of the conclusion of McDonald's Verified Sustainable Beef (VSB) Pilot in Calgary. “Several years ago, McDonald’s supply chain made a really interesting discovery," Debiase explained, "and that discovery was... Read More
Category: Livestock
The World Organization for Animal Health (OIE) is strongly encouraging countries to partake in an assessment of veterinary services, developed in collaboration with the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA), The assessment, called the Performance of Veterinary Services (PVS) tool, is designed to assist countries in assessing current levels of veterinary service performance to... Read More
If there’s any question about the University of Guelph’s commitment to the country’s $6-billion dairy sector, just check the inscription on the institution’s new, specialized logo unveiled last week. It leaves little doubt: Guelph has branded itself “Canada’s dairy university.” The university decisively, ceremoniously and logically planted its flag on Canadian dairy at a teaching... Read More
Update: Another case of PEDv was confirmed in Manitoba on June 2nd, just a week after finding the disease for the first time since January of 2015 in a sow barn in the province. The June 2nd case is a finisher barn in the southeast part of the province. Manitoba's chief veterinarian confirmed the province's... Read More
Earlier this week, Brian Perillat, senior analyst with Canfax, joined Shaun Haney to talk about the May 1 cattle report. The report, published Sunday, showed on-feed numbers in Alberta and Saskatchewan up 8%. What caused the bump? "As Brian alluded in that last interview, the cattle that didn't go south — the feeder cattle last... Read More
A genetically modified salmon has passed the final scientific assessments needed to be sold in Canada. The salmon, named AquAdvantage, was developed by introducing a growth hormone gene from chinook salmon into atlantic salmon to promote rapid, early-life growth. Today, Health Canada and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency announced that the salmon was found to... Read More
The number of cattle on feed in Canada is continuing to grow, according to the May report from CanFax. Part of the reason numbers are climbing, senior analyst Brian Perillat explains, is more heifers are going into feedlots. "We always gauge that as an appetite for expansion and unfortunately it still looks like quite a... Read More
You can measure the pork industry’s development in Ontario in some obvious ways, such as sales and the size of the herd across the province. But Prof. Bob Friendship at the Ontario Veterinary College, University of Guelph, says another strong indicator of the sector’s vitality is the number of veterinary students who are choosing it... Read More
Last week, Eric Micheels, assistant professor in the Agricultural and Resource Economics department at the University of Saskatchewan, tweeted a link to his newly-minted dissertation, entitled Market Orientation in Production Agriculture: Measurement, Relationships and Implications. Now, normally, the word "dissertation" would do little to pique my interest, but Micheels has been vocal through the Earls... Read More
News of the growth and success of the Canadian Dairy XPO helped attract a number of international companies to the Stratford, Ontario industry showcase. CDX, which for 2016 moved from its traditional February dates to April 6 and 7, attracted 14,900 visitors over two days. Farmers visiting the new WeCover Cow Coliseum discovered a hub... Read More