By Ralph Pearce OrganicBiz staff Agriculture is always in search of the next innovation, but as most growers learn — some, the hard way — there is no silver-bullet solution. If you’re going to change things for the better, it’s going to take time, effort and likely a departure from the norm. Yet with lower […]
By Alexis Kienlen OrganicBiz staff It’s no secret that there’s a need for new farmers to join the aging agricultural industry, but new entrants have their own unique challenges. That’s where Young Agrarians, a group designed to meet the needs of the new farmer, comes in. Young Agrarians, formed in B.C. in 2012, launched an […]
By Jennifer Paige OrganicBiz staff Puppies from the stock dogs and flower arrangements from cover crops — those are just a couple of the unconventional revenue sources Gabe Brown has found on his operation. You might think there’s no way that could add up to real dollars, but when he told attendees at a recent […]
By Robin Booker OrganicBiz staff The peas had cooled down enough from the baking process the previous day and were now being packaged by University of Saskatchewan Food Centre by staff. They wear hairnets and white coats with red collars that allow access to the facility’s organic areas. Allen Zak, chief executive officer of Zak […]
Ron Lyseng OrganicBiz staff When the cows leave the farm, so do jobs, businesses, abattoirs and kids, says Iowa farmer Tom Frantzen. Whole families pack up and eventually the communities themselves leave. Frantzen, a pioneer in organic farming since the 1990s and a leading spokesperson for biodiversity in agriculture, said when an area loses its […]
By Lorraine Stevenson OrganicBiz staff It was a bad bout of fusarium in 2000 that laid the foundation for a Manitoba organic sector success story. Back then the DeRuyck family was farming conventionally and they’d made their usual inputs in the spring — seed, fertilizer, spray — only to be left with a disappointing harvest […]
By Jennifer Blair OrganicBiz staff It takes guts to be a farmer these days. “Farming is an extremely complex business to run, and it takes remarkable courage,” said author Rebecca Thistlethwaite, who farms in Oregon. “It demands an incredible well of passion, a willingness to learn, and ‘stick-to-it-tiveness’ to make it work.” But more and […]
By Alan Wiebe OrganicBiz contributor Larry and Murielle Bugera, along with their son, Ivan, believe in farming for the next generation. The Bugera’s are third and fourth generation farmers who operate the organic acres of Ferme Larielle Farm. The farm is located east of the Village of St-Pierre-Jolys along the historic Joubert Creek. The Bugera’s […]
Profitability makes the effort to produce organic potatoes worthwhile.
By Lorraine Stevenson OrganicBiz staff Owners of a Pipestone-area farm that has more than tripled its cropped acres in less than a decade say its all due to switching from conventional to organic. Bryce Lobreau, who farms with his parents Danny and Robin, said they decided to transition their farm in 2009 to add more […]
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