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AALP's Blog – February 2015 Archive (11)

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Day 10: Back to school

Day 10 started with boarding the bus for an hour trip to an Ag School in Venado Tuerto (One Eyed Deer).  The name of the school was Escuela Agricola and it was a private school with students from Kindergarten to Grade 12 established in 1968. The school sits on…

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Added by AALP on February 28, 2015 at 12:30pm — No Comments

Day 9: Farm tours and good eats!

Today we headed northwest out of Buenos Aires to the Area of Pergamino... and it wasn’t long before the land opened up into soybean, corn, cattle and horses. It’s safe to say this was a welcome sight for all of us!

Our first stop was at a machinery shed in Cabana El Desafio. This mid-sized farm consists of 1000 ha of soybean, corn, wheat and specialty green peas and…

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Added by AALP on February 26, 2015 at 3:08am — No Comments

Day 8: Arriving in Argentina

On Sunday we ended our time in Chile and Argentina welcomed us. It was also the time to say goodbye to our new Atlantic friends and our wonderful guide Andres and driver Horatio. 

On our way to the airport Kenny Graham, one of our new Atlantic friends, gave a wonderful farewell by commenting about what he learned about each AALPer. It was an extremely thoughtful send…

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Added by AALP on February 24, 2015 at 8:42am — No Comments

Day 7: Making memories (and wine!) at Montgras Estate

We started the day with the anticipation of our last stop of the day - wine tasting at Montgras Estates! Alas we had a few stops before getting to the winery. 

Our first stop was with a visit with a small vegetable and fruit producer. Luis Carrasco Saldana is a forward-thinking farmer who took the initiative three years ago to…

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Added by AALP on February 22, 2015 at 7:06am — No Comments

Day 6: Agricultural tours and a rare rain

Our class started the day with a goal - to make it through six stops and return at the end of the day with all the windows on the bus!

After a short drive…

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Added by AALP on February 21, 2015 at 10:50am — No Comments

Day 5: Getting a taste of the Chilean fruit & vegetable basket

Today's International Study Tour got off to an early start with a visit to Lo Valledor Wholesale Market in Santiago.  Similar to the Ontario Food Terminal, Lo Valledor trades about 90% of the fruits and vegetables in Chile, with daily transactions totalling over $5 million US dollars. The most unique product that is sold is dried seaweed.

We then travelled to the…

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Added by AALP on February 21, 2015 at 10:22am — No Comments

Day 4: A Chilean Education

We started off day four of our International Study Tour learning about the Chilean economy at Scotiabank.  Chile has the fifth largest economy in Latin America and has seen significant growth in their economy over the last 30 years.  The Canadian Dollar and the Chilean Peso react to the world economy in a similar fashion; when one appreciates the other tends to appreciate as…

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Added by AALP on February 18, 2015 at 11:35am — No Comments

Day 3: Visit to the Canadian Embassy and more

Our morning began with a great breakfast at the hotel followed by a speaker from ASOEX which is the Chilean Association of Fruit Exports. As a not for profit organization, they facilitate the export process, stimulate research and innovation and encourage industry training by defending the sectors interests, managing agreements, administration of inspection…

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Added by AALP on February 18, 2015 at 11:21am — No Comments

Day 2: Casablanca Valley in Chile



Today we began our adventure with a visit to a Chilean dairy farm in the Casa Blanca Valley. The farm is home to a 1200 head milking cow herd and the farmer is working to grow the herd to 1800. The farm owner is a retired professor of plant physiology and now manages about 200 employees. 40 of these employees work full-time at the dairy, milking 23 hours…

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Added by AALP on February 17, 2015 at 4:33am — No Comments

Day 1: We made it!

AALP Class 15 and our friends from the Atlantic Agricultural Leadership Program secured the farms at home, wrapped up last minute projects, said goodbye to loved ones and battled vicious winter weather to descend on Terminal 1, excited - and maybe a little nervous - to kick off our grand adventure.

While some caught fitful sleep and others binge…

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Added by AALP on February 17, 2015 at 4:33am — No Comments

And they're off! Class 15's International Study Tour is February 14 to March 1, 2015

Class 15 departs on February 15, 2015 for their International Study Tour themed “Political, Economic and Cultural Comparisons”. The class will be touring Chile and Argentina and will return on March 1, 2015.

Here are some of their destinations:

  • Chile
    • Excursion to vegetable and dairy farms Valparaiso and Pacific Coast
    • Tour of the city of Santiago and visit to the Canadian Embassy
    • Presentations from agricultural organizations including Fundacion…
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Added by AALP on February 12, 2015 at 6:05am — No Comments

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Agriculture Headlines from Farms.com Canada East News - click on title for full story

Soybean Fungicide Decisions

As soybean crops move into flowering, questions are sure to be raised about whether fungicide applications are needed. In anticipation, let’s take a closer look at the potential disease threats and what Manitoba On-Farm Network research has told us. What Should We Be Concerned About? Foliar diseases infecting soybeans in Manitoba typically occur at low severity levels and are not expected to impact yield most years. These usually include bacterial blight, downy mildew and Septoria brown spot. Stem diseases generally have a greater impact on yield. White mould: infections begin at nodes along the main stem. Wilted plants may be spotted from afar, within a humid canopy may find white mycelial growth and black sclerotia bodies later in the season. This disease is the main target of fungicide applications. Cool, wet conditions throughout July and August favour white mould. For every 10% increase in the percent of plants infected with white mould, 2-5 bu/ac of yield are lost in soybeans.

Fungicide Decision Tool for Managing Mycosphaerella Blight in Field Peas

When your peas have reached V10 (10th node stage), it is an ideal time to start scouting each field to evaluate if a fungicide application to manage Mycosphaerella blight is warranted. Continue scouting for symptoms from V10 (10th true node) to R2 (beginning bloom), during mid-June to late July. Mycosphaerella (Ascochyta) blight is the most widespread and economically damaging foliar disease of Manitoba field peas. Peas are the single host crop of Mycosphaerella but it can be managed by foliar fungicide. This pathogen can be stubble-, air-, soil- and seed-borne. Spores can travel long distances by air, meaning there is a disease risk even in fields where peas have not been grown previously. The impact of disease severity on yield will depend on how early the disease sets in and how quickly it progresses into the upper crop canopy. Early infections during the bloom to early/mid-pod stages cause the most damage if left untreated. Use this fungicide decision worksheet when scouting to

Manitoba pork, canola producers hold steady amid heavy tariffs

A slab of back bacon from Natural Raised Pork comes with a waitlist. Ian Smith points to tariffs. Since the United States placed levies on imports from Canada, Manitobans have increasingly been calling Smith about his farm near Argyle, some 40 kilometres northwest of Winnipeg. “There’s more people wanting to support local and I’m one of few people that do what I’m doing,” said Smith, 62. He estimates 90 per cent of his pork products are bought by Manitoba households; the latter goes to a packing plant. Last year, it was a 50-50 split. Smith works alone, hustling to meet the four-to-six week waitlist that’s accumulated. He keeps hundreds of feeder pigs and a couple dozen sows; it’s a relatively small operation, he noted. “If there’s any mistakes to be made, there’s only one person to blame and that’s me,” he said with a laugh. Smith doesn’t export to China — so he’s shielded from that nation’s levies still hanging over the Canadian industry.

KAP Welcomes Appointment of New U.S. Trade Representative

Keystone Agricultural Producers (KAP) welcomes the appointment of Richard Madan as Manitoba’s new trade representative to the United States. “We commend Premier Kinew and Minister Moses for making Manitoba’s voice a priority in Washington, D.C.,” said KAP President Jill Verwey. “We look forward to working with Mr. Madan to advance the interests of Manitoba farmers and the agricultural industry, ensuring these interests are at the forefront of his work as he forges stronger relationships with American policymakers and trade officials.” Agriculture is an important part of Manitoba’s economy, with $4.29 billion in agri-food exports to the U.S. alone in 2024, and KAP sees the new presence in Washington as instrumental in fostering strategic relationships with key states that are important to our trade interests. “The U.S. is Manitoba’s largest agri-food export destination and is one of Manitoba’s key trading partners on the international stage,” added KAP General Manager Colin Hornby. “

2025 Annual General Meeting

On Wednesday, June 18th, the Ontario Farmland Trust hosted its Annual General Meeting. The meeting was held hybrid again this year, with members and friends joining both virtually and in person.

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