Rural Roots Canada

Streamlining feed procurement is the goal of FeedXChange, an innovative platform that connects farmers and feed brokers. It enables them to find the best deals, negotiate favourable prices, and save money. FeedXChange is the brainchild of Styn Nieuwenhuis and Josh Hawley. Nieuwenhuis says the idea came about simply because there was little data available about the by-product side of the feed ingre...

It's an exciting time of the year in the 4-H world..  as 4-Hers show off the projects they have worked on all year. We stopped into the Newell District 4-H Show and Sale in Brooks and 4-H on Parade in Calgary in the last week to chat with 4-Hers about their projects and how the program will shape their futures. For more on this story go to Rural Roots Canada.com.

An innovator is working to build up a plant commonly known as a weed and as a great oilseed and cover crop. Dr. Jason Thomas talks about the work he and his company are doing with Pennycress here on Rural Roots Canada, brought to you by Radiate, an exclusive product from Nutrien Ag Solutions. For the full story, go to ruralrootscanada.com.

A series of tornado warnings in east-central Alberta last week reminds us that it's that time of year again. RRC Meteorologist David Spence has more on how long they last and what to watch for in the sky. For more details, go to ruralrootscanada.com.

An agricultural academy in Altario, Alberta, is spearheading an initiative to determine if an indoor hydroponic system could provide consistent, year-round, affordable, and nutrient-rich feed for cattle amid the ongoing drought. This is Rural Roots Canada, and I'm Craig Lester, Amplifying Canadian Agriculture Altario School, a K-12 school located in Altario, Alberta near the Alberta-Saskatchewan b...

Dr. Brenna Brown has been working with and running laboratories for a decade. While working as a business development rep for an environmental lab, she would often get asked the same question repeatedly. "They'd ask, can you test my animal samples? And I couldn't because I was environmental. So, that was me learning about this animal health diagnostic laboratory shortage."  Seeing how farmers were...

New promising ag-tech from Advanced Agri-Science aims to mitigate and in some cases prevent frost from happening in plants. Collin Juurakko is the Founder and CEO of the company. In this feature, he explains how this ag-tech works and how this research started him on a journey to forming his own company. For more on this story go to Rural Roots Canada.com.

Farm schools are on the rise. The latest kindergarten to Grade 9 school to adopt an agricultural-based curriculum and environment is in southeast Alberta. We'll talk to the principal and a student from the Rolling Hills Agricultural Academy soon.  Rolling Hills, Alberta, located about two and half hours southeast of Calgary, is the latest school to adopt a hands-on learning agriculture-based curri...

There was a time not long ago when agriculture technology wasn’t a big thing, but that’s since changed. "A decade ago, farming and ag tech wasn't a cool thing," observes John Hartnett, Founder and CEO of SVG Ventures. "Today, it's the cool thing because it matters—it's meaningful for people, families, and the future." It’s why SVG launched its flagship agri-food initiative called Thrive. The progr...

Alberta is in for a difficult growing season as the risk of severe drought increases with each passing day. The province relies on melting snow and precipitation for much of its water. With a lacklustre winter in the rearview mirror and a dry spring ahead, water management areas have already been impacted by a shortage of water.  "It will be a rough situation this year," says Dr. Guillaume Lhermie...

Dealing with conflict on the farm. Disagreements and conflict on the farm are unavoidable; it's going to happen eventually. The difference between whether people move forward or the issue festers lies in how it is dealt with. Beverly Beuermann-King is a workplace culture and resiliency expert and has seen first-hand the importance of having healthy relationships. In this feature, she shares from h...

The 2024 Women in Ag Awards shone a light on outstanding female leaders in the agriculture sector during a ceremony held alongside the AWC West 2024 conference. Among this year's winners was Charlotte Wasylik of Chatsworth Farm in Vermilion, Alberta. Wasylik was awarded the Rising Star award, given to a young leader under 40 who demonstrates a passion for the agriculture industry, shows exceptiona...

Confrontational to collaborative. The conversation around clubroot between farmers and rural municipalities in Alberta has evolved since it was declared a pest under the province's Agricultural Pests Act (APA) in April of 2007.  Aaron Van Beers is the President of the Association of Alberta Agricultural Fieldmen and Manager of Ag Services for Leduc County.  He says originally it was strictly a zer...

With the drought expected to persist into planting this year, an agronomist is encouraging farmers to get their crops in the ground early. Agronomist Scott Gillespie is the owner of Plants Dig Soil Consulting, an advice-based company in southern Alberta. He says with the drought the top of concern during the growing season this year growers should be thinking about seeding sooner rather than later...

A new initiative out of Farming Smarter hopes to help southern Alberta farmers implement or change practices related to nitrogen management, cover cropping and grazing. Farming Smarter is participating in a new pilot project funded by Farmers for Climate Solutions. Ashley Wagenaar is the new Conservation Agronomist at Farming Smarter in Lethbridge. Her role is to help farmers implement or change -...

Stavely, Alberta's Cudlobe Angus is the first Canadian farm to join Certified Angus Beef's Ranch to Table program. Certified Angus Beef's new initiative will allow Angus farmers and ranchers the option to market their beef directly to consumers as a CAB product. With the Ranch to Table program, licensed producers are responsible for working with a processor and CBGA grader to verify that brand spe...

Southern Alberta farmer John Kolk has been honoured with the Orville Yanke award for Soil Conservation.  The Orville Yanke Memorial Award honours an early promoter of soil conservation in Alberta. John Kolk, who is the 2024 recipient, was presented with the award at the recent Farming Smarter conference last week. For more on Kolk and his sustainable cropping practices go to ruralrootscanada.com....

The latest brewing creation out of Origin Malting and Brewing in Strathmore has a distinct hockey flavour to it. The Sutter Six Shooters lager, named after the famous six Sutter brothers who played in the NHL, is brewed with Alberta-grown barley from Hilton Ventures. Four-time Stanley Cup winner Duane Sutter says work on the lager started last July after the Sutter family decided they needed to fi...

From I-T military work in Afghanistan to brewing beer with Alberta-grown barley. How the quality of barley in Alberta helped brewing entrepreneur Graham Sherman get brewing regulations changed in the province, opening the door for so many. More on Sherman's unique journey from Afghanistan to being the founder of the highly successful Calgary-based Toolshed Brewery in this feature and at ruralroots...

The Canadian Seed Growers' Association is future-proofing its Blue-certified seed tag. Caroline Lafontaine is the CSGA's Chief Operating Officer.  She says they are currently piloting a program to allow producers to use digitally-enabled tags, moving away from a hand-written and printed patchwork.  More on the pilot project can be found at Rural Roots Canada.com.

Farmers from across the province will come together for the annual CrossRoads Crop Conference in Calgary. The 2nd annual event is set to take place Westin Airport Hotel in Calgary, January 29th to 31st. Farmers, ag-business reps and stakeholders will gather to network, knowledge share and gain insight to many ag-issues. FarmTech Foundation Chair Todd Hames says they are really trying to get into t...

Real Garant was caught by surprise when a promotional video of his unique hitching system, called the Spider Hitch, went viral. “We were expecting hundreds of views,” says Garant, who posted the video on farming pages on social media. “Within 24 hours, we hit 1.2 million views. By the fifth day, we hit 13.5 million. That was a huge surprise.” In the rapidly evolving world of ag tech, Spider Hitch...

Jeremy Boychyn, the Director of Agronomy and Extension at Alberta Grains, advocates for data-driven decision-making to remove any biases in farming. He stresses the value of its ability to mitigate biases and empower farmers with invaluable insights. To read more about the advantages of data-driven decision-making, go to ruralrootscanada.com.

The Canadian Beef Industry is looking for a current picture of the realities on farms and ranches to prioritize research and resources to benefit cow-calf producers. The Beef Cattle Research Council has put together a cow-calf survey to help them achieve this goal. For more on how to participate coming up on Rural Roots Canada. This feature brought to you by Proven Seed.

A family cattle operation in southern Alberta is named Avenue Calgary's 2023 Top 40 under 40. Daniel, Lorin and Barry Doerksen, who operate Gemstone Cattle Company in Gem, Alberta, have set up a successful farm-to-table operation. It includes a booth and kitchen at the Calgary Farmers' Market.