Mimicking nature has been key to a financial turnaround for Greg Judy and his family. The Missouri-based livestock farmer told a crowd gathered at an Ecological Farmers Association of Ontario (EFAO) meeting about his farm’s transformation. “We’re going to see another dustbowl,” Judy warned during a workshop for EFAO’s recent four-day annual convention in London, […] Read more
Tag Archives Environmental Issues
Eye on Mother Nature pulls farm from brink
Diverse rotations, water management and attention to erosion restore environment, farm profitability
Sorting through science and food messaging
The challenges agriculture has in the acceptance of new technology by the public is a function of resistance to change
In many ways this is the best time in history for the production and safety of food. There are fewer greenhouse gases produced per bushel of corn, with significantly less erosion and half the water of 30 years ago, says Jack Bobo, vice-president of global policy and government affairs for Intrexon, the company that owns […] Read more
Carbon pricing system to include relief for farmers
Farm fuel for vehicles looks to be exempt, but barn heating and cooling may still require full payment
Farmers and rural residents will get breaks on what they’ll have to pay under a carbon pricing scheme announced by the federal government. But as of yet, those promises of relief are vague. The federal government announced the measures in late October for provinces unwilling to implement their own carbon pricing scheme. The government also […] Read more
Weather extremes to become more severe as global temperatures rise
Many more people will face heatwaves, extreme rainfall and shrinking harvests without unprecedented action, scientists say
Thomson Reuters Foundation – Many more people — besides the world’s poorest — will face sweltering heatwaves, more extreme rainfall, shrinking harvests and worsening water shortages unless unprecedented efforts to slow climate change start now, scientists warned Oct. 8. Why it matters: Without stepped-up action, efforts to adapt to the coming changes are likely to […] Read more
Glyphosate drives long-term herbicide changes
Ontario keeps track of detailed herbicide use every five years, which shows how the use of active ingredient has declined
A study of glyphosate use in Ontario shows the herbicide has created significant change in crop management. It shows that while corn and soybean acreage and yield have increased in the province since 1983, the impact of herbicide use per acre has declined, in large part because glyphosate has displaced other herbicide chemistries. Why it […] Read more
Mapping moisture from space
Data collected by orbiting satellites can potentially inform field and farm policy decisions
Canadian research is measuring soil moisture content from space. Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada and the Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change are involved in two projects designed to measure soil moisture levels with orbiting satellites. Why it matters: Orbit-level analysis of soil moisture can affect farmers’ field level decisions and government policy decisions. One […] Read more
Wild genetic adaptations can have many uses
Science Notes: A gene that helps rice grow taller in floods is a variant of rice genes used to rapidly increase yield
When floodwaters rise, some rice varieties rapidly grow taller to keep from drowning. A new study identifies the key gene responsible for the deep-water rice adaptation — SD1 (semidwarf 1). It’s a variant of the gene responsible for the increased grain yield that launched the rice Green Revolution. The ability of this gene to function […] Read more
China develops its own version of Enviro-pig
A researcher who worked on the University of Guelph Enviro-pig now works with Chinese universities
Chinese researchers are moving forward with a transgenic pig similar to the Enviro-pig developed at the University of Guelph. In a paper published May 22, in a biochemistry and chemical biology journal, scientists from South China Agricultural University and China Agricultural University, wrote about transgenic hogs that grow faster and have less impact on the […] Read more
Cyber-Savvy Farmer
