Reading Time: 3 minutes The federal government is willing to let Canadian dairy producers lose out on millions of dollars as a result of the new trade deal with the United States and Mexico. When MPs in Ottawa listened to testimony from agricultural leaders on the passage of the Canada-U.S.-Mexico Agreement (CUSMA) in February, the bulk of concerns were […] Read more
Tag Archives Dairy farming
Opinion: Federal government knew impact of CUSMA timing on dairy
Comparing farms highlights vulnerabilities
Benchmarking report identifies significant profitability differences among dairy and grain farms
Reading Time: 3 minutes Variations in debt load and per-acre profitability highlight vulnerabilities in Ontario’s dairy and crop sectors, according to the latest benchmarking report from BDO Canada. However, representatives from the financial firm say the data also gives farmers an opportunity to improve risk management, as well as their cost-to-profit ratio. Why it matters: Understanding your farm’s profitability […] Read more
OPINION: Thoughts on dumping milk during COVID-19
Unprecedented shocks to the market are to blame, not supply management
Reading Time: 3 minutes I received a sad text from a friend of mine who is a dairy farmer. They are being asked to dump milk as the processors to whom it is assigned can’t use it right now This is difficult to understand in a time where we are seeing empty grocery stores shelves. Supply chains are complex […] Read more
Some Ontario milk not being picked up as market shifts
Closure of restaurants and food service due to COVID-19 has challenged processors
Reading Time: < 1 minute Hundreds of Ontario dairy farmers won’t have their milk picked up and potentially into the future because of gluts of milk at processors due to market changes from COVID-19. Dairy Farmers of Ontario let its farmers know on March 31 that some will have to dump their milk due to huge changes in the milk […] Read more
Separating stature from major Holstein traits
A new composite index should help maintain desirable traits, while de-emphasizing stature
Reading Time: 3 minutes Canada’s dairy breeding sector is attempting to slow a gradual increase in the average size of the nation’s Holstein. At Lactanet Canada’s recent Open Industry Session held in Guelph, geneticist Dr. Allison Fleming provided information about the development of a composite index of four well-established dairy genetic traits. Why it matters: As the average height […] Read more
Study looks at once-per-day milking of ketotic cows
Economic analysis remains to be done on the idea that shows promise in treating ketotic cows
Reading Time: 2 minutes Two weeks of once-per-day milking can clear up a high proportion of ketosis cases —although researchers are holding off on recommending the strategy pending further analysis of the financial drawbacks. Dr. Stephen LeBlanc of the University of Guelph’s Dairy at Guelph research cluster provided an update about ongoing research at the recent South Western Ontario […] Read more
Dairy farmers look forward to CUSMA compensation
Federal agriculture minister says the funds will come, but no timeline has been set
Reading Time: 3 minutes Federal Agriculture Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau again committed to offering compensation to dairy farmers as a result of the CUSMA (Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement) deal. She told an audience at the Dairy Farmers of Canada (DFC) annual policy conference in Ottawa Feb. 4-6, that supply management is a “social contract” that needs protecting. Why it matters: Dairy […] Read more
Tapping into the power of methane
Producing power on a dairy farm increases the complexity of the farm’s facilities and management
Reading Time: 5 minutes Glacier FarmMedia – The owners of Greenholm farms near Embro have created a “circle of agriculture” by adding a biogas digester. The circle helps cycle nutrients throughout the system, tied together by barn systems, machinery and expertise. The owners, Gord and Laura Green, along with their son and business partner, Dave, have discovered that producing […] Read more
New hybrid barn combines natural and mechanical ventilation
The concept improves air quality and cow comfort
Reading Time: 3 minutes One of the most difficult decisions dairy farmers face when building a new free-stall barn is determining the best ventilation system. Naturally ventilated freestalls have been popular for decades, with lower-profile fan-ventilated free-stall barns growing in popularity in Ontario over the past couple years. A concept from Wisconsin combines some of the advantages of both. […] Read more
Reproduction testing added to robotic milking
The option is available on the VMS V310 from DeLaval
Reading Time: 2 minutes DeLaval has created a simpler version of its on-farm milk-testing system, integrating pregnancy and heat monitoring in its new V310 robotic milking system. The DeLaval VMS V310 alerts farmers when cows are coming into heat and when cows are testing as pregnant due to their progesterone levels. An algorithm determines when a cow needs to […] Read more
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