Thursday, March 28, 2024

May the forage be with you & your herd

DUC/CPS forage program offers financial break for grassland conversions

(Jan. 25, 2017—Camrose, Alta.) On land not so far away, farmers across the Canadian prairies will see their herds going to the green side thanks to a forage program available now from Ducks Unlimited Canada (DUC) and Crop Production Services (CPS).


Available to agricultural producers in Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba, the DUC/CPS forage program provides cash-back incentives on all Proven® Seed forage seed purchases paid at full-retail price when producers convert cultivated land to hay or pastureland. In Alberta and Saskatchewan, producers receive a rebate of $100 per 50 lb. bag of forage seed; in Manitoba, producers receive a rebate of up to $125 for every new forage acre seeded as part of the program.

To learn more, visit the Ducks Unlimited website.

Posted February 3, 2017


 

 

Grass for Generations

By Kristine Tapley, Beef Specialist, Ducks Unlimited Canada

With cattle markets falling, optimism in the industry can be trying. The beef industry has been struggling to retain and attract new producers while the average age of farmers, at 54, keeps creeping up. The next generation of cattle producers might be looking for something different from their career and potentially for good reason.

The Canadian Roundtable for Sustainable Beef (CRSB) released the National Beef Sustainability Assessment and Strategy this fall. This assessment gathered great detail from the Canadian beef industry from the three sustainability pillars: environment, social and economic. The Canadian beef industry garnered top marks in most categories; however, producer viability was a weak link in the system. According to long-term average margins, a cow herd of 200 head provides a total annual income of $17,559. Statistics Canada states this will not support a family and is below the low income cut-off. This causes 75 per cent to 84 per cent of people in the cow-calf sector to rely on off-farm employment.

How do we ask young people to invest themselves in the cattle industry when they will likely be overworked and underpaid? We need to find ways to bring profitability back into our industry if we want to keep cattle production sustainable.

To read the full article, click here.


 

Stock Growers Receive Grant from US Conservation Organization

The Saskatchewan Stock Growers Association (SSGA) has received a $200,000 grant from the Washington, DC-based National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) for grasslands conservation projects.

The SSGA is collaborating with the South of the Divide Conservation Action Program Inc. (SODCAP) on the projects.

“We’re enlisting the help of producers in the southwest,” said SSGA President Shane Jahnke. “We want to preserve the grasslands we have, and expand habitat onto some land that is no longer in its original state.”

Participating producers will implement grazing management strategies, control invasive species, prepare seeding beds, control weeds, and seed and establish native feedstock plants.

The SSGA will develop and implement four Habitat Management Areas and four Habitat Restoration Areas on 4,000 acres of native grasslands; reduce invasive species on 100 acres of native grasslands; and restore habitat on 500 acres of previously disturbed grasslands.

To read more, click here.

Posted January 18, 2017


SFC Presents Fall Forage Market Price Survey Results on their Redesigned Website

Saskatchewan Forage Council Media Release

December 15, 2016

The Saskatchewan Forage Council (SFC) has released information gathered from their Fall Forage Market Price Survey. This comprehensive price survey is unique in the province and compiles forage price information from producers across Saskatchewan and nearby areas. Agricultural extension personnel, forage consultants, processors and other professionals are also interviewed and data is compiled on values, types, and volumes of forage crops trading during the fall period. Prices are tracked throughout the fall and winter and a follow-up report will be completed in the winter to reflect any seasonal price changes.

The full report, as well as a two-page infographic, can be accessed online on the SFC’s newly developed website. The website was recently relaunched and features information on resources, updated projects, upcoming events, and also incorporates information on the Saskatchewan Forage Network. The website project was supported by the Government of Saskatchewan Industry Organization Development Fund (IODF) initiative under the Canada-Saskatchewan Growing Forward 2 bi-lateral agreement.

      Government of Saskatchewan logo            Growing Forward 2 logo            Government of Canada logo 

 

To view the full press release, click here

Posted December 16, 2016


A Special Thank You to Saskatchewan Forage Council Sponsors

 

Gold

NH Agr 3D

 

Silver

Boehringer logo

 

BrettYoung logo NEW
  

Union Forage

 

 NutrienAgSolutions ProvenSeed Lock

 

 

Bronze

Ducks Unlimited FCC smaller
Northstar Pickseed
Ponderosa Ag Sales  SFSDC temp
   

 

The SFC also gratefully acknowledges funding for…
Facilitating Forage Initiatives in Saskatchewan’ project through the Saskatchewan Cattlemen’s Association Industry Development Fund (SCAIDF)

SCA