Getting people to care about soil shouldn’t be hard. After all, if our soil is in trouble, then we’re all in trouble, for what should be obvious reasons.
But that hasn’t been the case, at last outside of the farming community.
Photo credit: Catherine Ulitsky, USDA/Flickr
I’m hoping the United Nations special rapporteur on modern slavery, who singled out Canada a few weeks ago for what he believes is a faulty temporary farm worker program, is paying attention to a new report that offers another perspective.
Photo credit: Getty Images
Climate, good and bad, has always affected farming. There’s no way around it, and farmers have come to live with the ups and downs that accompany an occupation so influenced by the whims of nature.
Photo credit: Bob Nicols USDA
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It seems that when it comes to farmland, Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan knows something that Ontario Premier Doug Ford doesn’t – that is, farmland must be protected, not given to developers and squandered.
Photo credit: Marvin Shaouni
U.S. apple production is expected to increase at least 10 per cent this year, thanks mainly to a bounce-back year in Washington. That’s making up for Michigan’s ho-hum production and declines in parts of the Midwest.
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If any political party wants to swoop in and try capturing Ontario’s farm and rural vote, I’d say now’s the time.
It’s hard to imagine anyone having faith in the government after the current Greenbelt debacle. But it’s a particular blow to rural Ontario, which has traditionally put its faith and hope in the Conservatives.
Photo credit: CBC
What’s Your Story: Livestock conservation is a winning tale for farmers. It’s said a rising tide lifts all boats. And in farming, it’s no different.
Photo credit: The Livestock Conservancy
The fight between the US and Mexico over genetically modified (GM) corn isn’t even at the dispute settlement panel stage yet. But that hasn’t stopped Canada from piling on.
Photo credit: Global Affairs Canada
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A new survey shows Generation Z, people born between 1997 and 2012, are caught in what’s called a say-eat gap.
Even though they’re believed to be a generation of foodies, highly tuned in to their food choices, research shows they say one thing about food, but they do another when it comes to buying and eating it.
Photo credit: Rachel Ray Show
I was privileged to join pro podcaster Johann Tasker on his Farmers Weekly Podcast from the UK, covering topics that arose when the International Federation of Agricultural Journalists met in Alberta: beef production, wildfires, labour and Olds College’s commitment to agricultural technology. Click “read more” below to hear the podcast.
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Summertime’s easygoing vibe has a way of alleviating tension, or at least postponing it.
Because why else aren’t people wringing their hands about Russia’s game-changing exit from the Black Sea grain movement deal?
Photo credit: Mashed.com
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The drive towards greater food security has raised a huge question: who has the right to own farmland?
North America has some of the best farmland anywhere. Its productivity is one of the big factors that determines the price. Buyers clamour for it.
Photo credit: dreamdirt.com
I guess you would expect the agriculture secretary of the world’s most powerful country to be optimistic about the odds of feeding the world during such challenging times.
But it must be hard to keep your chin up when your country, which has a huge role in global food security, is so politically divided.
Photo credit: Alex Hudson on Unsplash, and World Economic Forum
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The first officially recognized Food Day Canada is finally here.
After 20 years of momentum, Saturday marks the first time Food Day Canada is being recognized by Ottawa. Bill-S227, An Act to Establish a Food Day in Canada, was passed in the spring.
Photo credit: Food Day Canada
Owen Roberts is a faculty member in the Agricultural Leadership, Education and Communications program at the University of Illinois. As an agricultural journalist, he is the past president of the International Federation of Agricultural Journalists and a lifetime achievement award recipient from the Canadian Farm Writers' Federation. His programs and research papers have been recognized nationally and internationally through awards from the Journal of Applied Communications, the National Agri-Marketing Association, the Association for Communications Excellence, and others.