Andrew Campbell's Blog (11)

Dairy farmers can sometimes get a bad reputation. Because of supply management, I'd agree that some farms can hang on longer than they would if they were open to the free market. The free market can be very good and eliminating the least efficient very quickly. Unfortunately - it can also eliminate some good farmers who just get mixed up in a market they can't control (just ask a hog farmer).



However - I think those least efficient dairy farmers are going to have to make…

Continue

When I think of farming, I think of a few things. Feeding cows, planting and harvesting corn, baling hay. They, and most of the jobs I do around the farm, all relate to production. Most of you will agree that is one of the big reasons we farm -- we like being around animals, we like being on the land, we don't like numbers.



But I was lucky enough to get the chance to realize that even if we don't like the numbers, we all like making more money.



The Ontario Dairy Youth…

Continue

Researchers have created a new and cheaper test that producers can use to see how much nitrogen they should… Continue

Found this very interesting post on the Canadian Agri-Food blog, managed by the Agri-Food Unit at the Ivey School of Business.



Written by Brandon Schaufele - with the article available at - http://www.canadianagrifood.ca/?p=374

" Today’s edition of the London Free…

Continue

I'm a young farmer. I can say that now - especially since just a couple of weeks ago we moved out to one of our family farms. This is a house my great-grandfather built in the early 1900's, and is the farm where the dry cows and heifers are kept. My mom and dad are a few kilometres away at the farm I grew up in - where the milking cows are.



As I get settled on the farm, I thought I'd share some of my experiences. Along the way I'd invite any and all pieces of advice I can get - as I… Continue

We all know about the struggles facing the pork industry -- the big question though is how do we fix it.



Here are a couple of videos with some involved in the sector discussing how to move forward. Take a look a add your thoughts below.…



Continue

This was written by Matt Hardecke from the Young Producers' Council, which is part of the US based National Cattlemen's Beef Association. It's an interesting perspective...



As the future leaders of American agriculture and the beef industry, we need to not only know the facts but understand the thought process of our consumers. I am looking to buy a new flat screen TV. Over the weekend I went to Best Buy to gaze at the selections of options for my view pleasure. For an hour I stood… Continue

Over the last several years I've been fortunate to be part of the Western Fair - the big fall fair in London. Each year I'm in the barns doing some livestock show announcing and new this year kids pedal tractor pulls. In between events barn staff tend to find each other for a visit and some people watching. You really do get people from all walks of life coming to the fair in the city and the one thing I've learned from all of them, is that people really don't know anything about agriculture.… Continue

Covering agriculture has meant I've been to a pile of meetings. Meetings on getting more profit on your farm, meetings on government regulations, meetings on just about anything you can think of in order to help you be a better farmer. One of the topics that comes up a lot for livestock producers is developing a consistent product. While this usually is directed towards beef producers today, at one time it applied to everyone. Processors and retailers say if you want a better price - they need… Continue

So I think its official – I’m a real farmer. Now there was no certificate or degree from Guelph. No big ceremony or letter stating I was now accepted to the farming profession. I’ve decided I’m a real farmer because of one innocent thought. People told me I would have these thoughts, they warned me to expect them. I always shrugged those naysayers off saying I would not be like other farmers. But then it happened, just like it was suppose to. We were baling hay late yesterday afternoon. The… Continue

If you are going to have livestock, you are going to have deadstock.



I don’t know who coined that term, but every farmer knows it’s the truth. But that doesn’t mean you leave anything sick to die.



That would appear to be what some folks rather we do. As noted in an article in TIME Magazine and the New York Times, the world seems to have something against antibiotics.



I’m going to use our small dairy farm as an example. It’s been a tough couple of weeks. After… Continue