Farming

A moth-killing drone hovers over crops in a green house in Monster, Netherlands, Thursday, Feb. 25, 2021. A Dutch startup is using drones to kill moths in midair as a way of protecting valuable crops in greenhouses that are damaged by caterpillars. PATS Indoor Drone Solutions emerged from the work of a group of students looking for ways to kill mosquitos in their dorm rooms. The drones themselves are very basic, but they are steered by smart technology and special cameras that scan the airspace in greenhouses. When the cameras detect a moth, a drone is set on a collision course with the bug, destroying the bug with its rotors. (AP Photo/Mike Corder)

Drones vs hungry moths: Dutch use hi-tech to protect crops

Drones instantly kill the moths by flying into them

  • Mar 8, 2021

 

(File photo by Advocate staff)

Alberta farmers saw increase in crop revenue in 2020

Cattle revenue decreased

 

Protesting farmers and their families gather around a bonfire to mark the harvest festival, which is called Lohri, on a blocked highway in protest against new farm laws on the outskirts of New Delhi, India, Wednesday, Jan. 13, 2021. Changes in India’s farm laws could potentially open up one of the world’s most populous markets and are being closely watched by Canada’s agricultural and economic sectors, say experts. THE CANADIAN PRESS/AP-Altaf Qadri

Changes in Indian farm laws could benefit Canada, experts say

Independent committee of experts to negotiate with opponents of legislation

 

A fall stretch of long, warm weather has meant a much better harvest than last year, when this kind of snow arrived a month earlier.Photo by PAUL COWLEY/Advocate staff

Good harvest ahead of schedule before snow hit

No repeat of last year’s harvest from hell caused by snowy September

  • Oct 16, 2020
A fall stretch of long, warm weather has meant a much better harvest than last year, when this kind of snow arrived a month earlier.Photo by PAUL COWLEY/Advocate staff
Surging demand for wheat, canola boost struggling Ontario shippers

Surging demand for wheat, canola boost struggling Ontario shippers

From April to August 5.2 million tonnes of grain passed through Great Lakes-St. Lawrence Seaway

Surging demand for wheat, canola boost struggling Ontario shippers
Farmers hoping no ‘harvest from hell’ repeat this year

Farmers hoping no ‘harvest from hell’ repeat this year

September snow and plummeting temperatures hampered harvest in 2019

Farmers hoping no ‘harvest from hell’ repeat this year
FILE - In this April 16, 2020, file photo, people wait in line at The Campaign Against Hunger food pantry in the Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood of the Brooklyn borough of New York. The coronavirus pandemic has brought hard times for many farmers and has imperiled food security for many millions both in the cities and the countryside. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer, File)

Pandemic brings hard times for farmers, worsening hunger

United Nations looking for solutions

  • Sep 1, 2020
FILE - In this April 16, 2020, file photo, people wait in line at The Campaign Against Hunger food pantry in the Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood of the Brooklyn borough of New York. The coronavirus pandemic has brought hard times for many farmers and has imperiled food security for many millions both in the cities and the countryside. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer, File)
Opening day at the Lacombe Corn Maze at the Kraay Family Farm is July 17. (Photo contributed)

Central Alberta farmers hope for heat

80 per cent good to excellent crops

Opening day at the Lacombe Corn Maze at the Kraay Family Farm is July 17. (Photo contributed)
Rain taking toll on farmers’ crops

Rain taking toll on farmers’ crops

Dry, warm weather needed

Rain taking toll on farmers’ crops
Ranchers expect the impact of the pandemic to appear in the fall when the calves are sold, in a June 1, 2020 story. (Photo by THE CANADIAN PRESS)

‘It’s unsettling:’ Ranchers and feedlots worried about future impact of COVID-19

CREMONA, Alta. — A cacophony of bellowing cattle makes it hard to…

  • Jun 1, 2020
Ranchers expect the impact of the pandemic to appear in the fall when the calves are sold, in a June 1, 2020 story. (Photo by THE CANADIAN PRESS)
The U.S. Agriculture Department said loan delinquency may increase because of the coronavirus pandemic, in a May 21, 2020 story. (Photo by THE ASSOCIATED PRESS)

US farmers leaning more heavily on government loan programs

BELLE PLAINE, Kan. — Farmers across the nation leaned more heavily upon…

  • May 22, 2020
The U.S. Agriculture Department said loan delinquency may increase because of the coronavirus pandemic, in a May 21, 2020 story. (Photo by THE ASSOCIATED PRESS)
Innisfail Growers operates a drive-thru mini market at 179 Leva Ave., in the parking lot of the strip mall just north of Turple Bros. in Gasoline Alley. (Photo from Facebook)

Curbside farmers market a hit in Gasoline Alley

Innisfail Growers run Saturday market

Innisfail Growers operates a drive-thru mini market at 179 Leva Ave., in the parking lot of the strip mall just north of Turple Bros. in Gasoline Alley. (Photo from Facebook)
In December 2019, the National Farmers Union released its report — Tackling the Farm Crisis and the Climate Crisis: A Transformative Strategy for Canadian Farms and Food Systems. (File photo)

Farming organization recognizes climate crisis

National Farmers Union speaks to central Albertans

In December 2019, the National Farmers Union released its report — Tackling the Farm Crisis and the Climate Crisis: A Transformative Strategy for Canadian Farms and Food Systems. (File photo)
Shelley Bradshaw and Austin Lind, with Innisfail Growers, help a customer at The Market at Red Deer. Bradshaw, along with other investors, wants to build an indoor farmers market in Gasoline Alley that would boast a microbrewery, a kitchen and seating area. (Advocate file art)

Indoor farmers market coming to Gasoline Alley

Indoor market to be housed in new building that could be open by Thanksgiving

Shelley Bradshaw and Austin Lind, with Innisfail Growers, help a customer at The Market at Red Deer. Bradshaw, along with other investors, wants to build an indoor farmers market in Gasoline Alley that would boast a microbrewery, a kitchen and seating area. (Advocate file art)
Kevin Van Bussel, with CIBC, presented Alberta/N.W.T’s 2020 Outstanding Young Farmers award to Roelof and Mary van Benthem on Feb 7, 2020. (Photo contributed)

Central Alberta young farmers recognized

Canada’s Outstanding Young Farmer Program celebrates 40 years

Kevin Van Bussel, with CIBC, presented Alberta/N.W.T’s 2020 Outstanding Young Farmers award to Roelof and Mary van Benthem on Feb 7, 2020. (Photo contributed)
The Action Surface Rights Association wants farmers to shut down power to delinquent energy company sites, in a Jan. 24, 2020 story. (File photo by Advocate staff)

Alberta landowners urge farmers to cut power to wells with unpaid debts

A group of Alberta landowners is asking farmers and ranchers to fight…

The Action Surface Rights Association wants farmers to shut down power to delinquent energy company sites, in a Jan. 24, 2020 story. (File photo by Advocate staff)
Alberta farmers would like to be exempt from stricter semi-trailer training requirements put in place after the 2018 Humboldt Broncos bus crash. (File photo by Advocate staff)

Province to re-examine semi-trailer training for farmers

Government in favour of consultations

Alberta farmers would like to be exempt from stricter semi-trailer training requirements put in place after the 2018 Humboldt Broncos bus crash. (File photo by Advocate staff)
Contributed photo Strawberry picking at The Jungle Farm was pushed back a few weeks this year due to cooler temperatures.

Cool weather and hail impact central Alberta farms

Hoping for a warmer fall

Contributed photo Strawberry picking at The Jungle Farm was pushed back a few weeks this year due to cooler temperatures.
Photo by SUSAN ZIELINSKI/Advocate staff Charlie Christie, chair of Alberta Beef Producers, and his daughter Samantha, were checking on their herds near their farm north of Torrington on Wednesday.

WATCH: Central Alberta ranchers reeling from China’s beef ban

Disappointed beef is caught up in latest trade dispute

Photo by SUSAN ZIELINSKI/Advocate staff Charlie Christie, chair of Alberta Beef Producers, and his daughter Samantha, were checking on their herds near their farm north of Torrington on Wednesday.
Central Alberta Foodgrains Project is now in its 24th year helping to feed hungry people around the world. (Photo contributed)

Foodgrains project is in the ground

Lacombe County farmers continue to help feed the hungry

Central Alberta Foodgrains Project is now in its 24th year helping to feed hungry people around the world. (Photo contributed)