But what does that mean for consumers and suppliers?
Regenerative agriculture is making some noise of late – so much so that some companies are making it a priority. Foods, the world’s largest producer of french fries, just committed to limiting its climate footprint, saying all its french fries will come from farms using regenerative agriculture by 2030. For consumers, this is supposed to…
Recognizes that manufacturing - including farmers - are the anchor to the entire food supply chain
A new coalition led by the Retail Council of Canada (RCC) has presented a roadmap to peace within the food industry. It’s a positive step forward for the food production industry and consumers. For years, grocers have unilaterally imposed fees on their suppliers, with questionable excuses. While grocers maintained a hard line to protect margins,…
If the fertilizer, tractor and other equipment used to produce by-local carrots were made elsewhere, do the carrots still count as local?
In his 1776 seminal work The Wealth of Nations, Adam Smith wrote: “It always is and must be the interest of the great body of the people to buy whatever they want of those who sell it cheapest. The proposition is so very manifest that it seems ridiculous to take any pains to prove it.”…
Edmonton-base G2V Optics working on LED technology that has the potential to improve food security around the world
Sunlight, water and nutrients – in varying degrees depending on the plant – are the foundation of all plant life. But if you want to see them really grow, one University of Alberta graduate says threaten them with a little shade. Michael Taschuk, founder of G2V Optics, explained that plants growing in a field are always competing…
Tackling problems ranging from marketing eco-friendly practices to reducing plastic packaging
Camrose-area farmer Carolyn Herbert wanted to connect with her customers about the food she was selling them but wasn’t sure how best to do it – until some University of Alberta students gave her a hand. Thanks to the efforts of Augustana Campus students enrolled in an Applications in Sustainability course, her family farm now has a quarterly newsletter that highlights its…
First BCRC-Hays Chair in Beef Production Systems at the U of A to play a key role in building a more sustainable and competitive industry
Gleise M. Silva grew up in Recife, Brazil, a city perched on the turquoise edge of the Atlantic, home to lush forests, stunning beaches and 17th-century architecture. And yet, while living and studying in the “Brazilian Venice,” Silva found herself overwhelmingly drawn towards a subject she would never encounter in her hometown. “I was 100…
To introduce new varieties of earlier-maturing, higher-yielding wheat for Western Canadian growers
University of Alberta research to develop earlier-maturing, more disease-resistant wheat for Western Canadian growers is being boosted, thanks to $2 million in support from the Canadian Wheat Research Coalition. A five-year agreement between CWRC and the Faculty of Agricultural, Life & Environmental Sciences (ALES) supports the development of up to five new wheat varieties for use by farmers…
Spend, spend, spend – that’s the strategy. And green is the colour of choice. The environment is front, left and centre in the latest federal budget. Everybody is getting something to get more environmentally focused – well, almost everybody. While taxpayers won’t get a break any time soon, the federal government’s footprint in our economy…
With help from Alberta farmers, an online animal science course is giving U of A students an inside look at the agricultural industry
Online classes during COVID-19 can feel a bit distant. But add in 48 farmers and a real-time calf birth, and things perk up considerably. That vivid minute-by-minute experience of watching a Black Angus cow give birth was a matter of lucky timing as Jesse Emery gave University of Alberta animal science students a virtual walking…
Innovative research could provide a supply of renewable fuel
A potentially huge industrial project to create jet fuel from biowaste has received a $2.89-million funding boost from Natural Resources Canada. The investment, which includes $1.99 million in direct funding and $900,000 in in-kind contributions, will go toward setting up an advanced fuel-testing suite in lead researcher David Bressler’s lab and will also support the work of several…