Ontario Agriculture

The network for agriculture in Ontario, Canada

AALP Class 17 arrived at the George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston, and were greeted by Dr. Jim Mazurkiewicz, the leadership program director and professor of Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service. Jim is also the director of Texas Agricultural Lifetime Leadership (TALL). Jim gave the group at brief history of Texas, and outlined the importance of agriculture to the Texas economy. Jim noted that Texas is the second largest agricultural state, with cattle being the largest commodity -- 90% of farmers have 100 cows or less. Texas is home to over 11 million head of cattle. Jim spoke of dairy farmers moving from California to Texas due to ever-increasing regulations and costs, “Texas is wide open for business," says Jim. Another memorable quote from Jim was, “leadership is about building bridges and making contacts and leaving the world a better place than we found it."

Following lunch we got back on the bus for a tour of Houston. The tour was given by Keith, who was very funny. It was an interesting view of Houston that we would not have seen on our own. The highlight of the ride was the water wall in downtown Houston. It is actually a water cooling system that was architecturally beautiful. Houston is the 4th largest city in America. Houston does not have any zoning rules. Keith showed us how that makes for some very interesting neighbourhoods. One of the homes we saw was made out of beer cans!

The day ended with dinner at the Aquarium Restaurant where we were able to dine under the sea surrounded by magnificent marine life. We all over ate and left feeling very satisfied. This was a great start to our Texas Adventure, y’all.

Views: 162

Comment

You need to be a member of Ontario Agriculture to add comments!

Join Ontario Agriculture

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

Minister MacDonald’s record in the House

He spoke 54 times in the House and cast 173 votes

U.S. Winter Wheat Harvest Jumps; Spring Wheat Condition Eases

The U.S. winter wheat harvest advanced rapidly over the past week, while the condition of both the winter and spring wheat crops slipped slightly, according to Monday’s USDA crop progress report. The winter wheat harvest reached 40% complete as of Sunday, up sharply from 25% the previous week. Progress was well ahead of 18% a year earlier and the five-year average of 24%. In Kansas, the largest winter wheat-producing state, the harvest more than doubled to 58% complete from 28% a week earlier. That was also well ahead of 18% last year and the 26% average. Oklahoma was 95% harvested, compared with 73% the previous week and 61% on average. Texas advanced more modestly to 77% from 75%, while Illinois jumped to 41% from 20%. No winter wheat harvest progress was reported in either Michigan or Ohio as of Monday. Michigan was 1% harvested at the same point last year, compared with 0% on average, while Ohio was 2% complete last year versus a five-year average of 3%. National winter

Manitoba Seeding Advances Just Slightly

Manitoba seeding inched forward this past week, moving slightly closer to completion. Tuesday’s weekly crop report showed overall seeding in the province at 97% complete, up only a single point from a week earlier and behind last year and the five-year average at 100%. Precipitation was highly variable across agricultural Manitoba during the seven days ended June 21, with some areas receiving substantial rainfall while nearby locations remained almost completely dry, the report said. Somerset recorded the province’s highest weekly accumulation at 34.3 mm, while the driest locations in the Central Region, Brunkild and Bagot, received only 1 mm. In the Eastern Region, Sprague reported 26.6 mm, compared with no measurable rain at Stead. Rainfall was generally lighter in the Interlake, where Gimli received 11.8 mm and Fisher Branch just 0.3 mm. The Northwest remained the wettest part of the province overall, with Swan River recording 22.1 mm and Ste. Rose receiving 0.6 mm. In the

Agribition reports excellent 2025 show, but questions linger about capacity for 2026 event

Based on a number of statistics, the most recent Canadian Western Agribition was the best on in recent memory. During Agribition's Annual General Meeting, CEO Shaun Kindopp shared a number of highlights from the 2025 edition of the show. Among them was the international representation, as over 700 guests from 76 countries visited Agribition, including 56 Mexican cattle producers. The international delegations contributed to $280-thousand 600 in purchases of Canadian genetics. Kindopp says travelling abroad has been a focus in recent years to build those relationships. Overall attendance was 151,037 and Kindopp notes increases in attendance for other events happening at the show, including Maple Leaf Circuit Finals Rodeo which saw a total of 24,000 come through the doors. "Our Indigenous Agriculture Summit attendance was up, our rodeo attendance was up, our attendance through the gate was up, so everything measurable that had an attendance tied to it was up this year." he said, add

Interim Participation Agreement signed between CCA, ABP

Alberta Beef Producers (ABP) are staying on as a member of the Canadian Cattle Association (CCA) for now. It was announced Wednesday an Interim Participation Agreement was reached. Under the agreement, ABP will provide gap funding for the national organization from July 1st to August 31st as well as stay involved in meetings and discussions, but as a non-member under the current governance structure. President of CCA Tyler Fulton says the agreement shows talks with ABP are moving in the right direction, but there are things that still need to be addressed prior the CCA's Semi-Annual meeting in August. Fulton noted eight or nine resolutions were passed at their AGM in March to start this process. The resolutions address the structure of governance, acknowledge the need for a finance chair and committee to address the funding related issues, and better communication at all levels. He says details on the new governance structure are being worked on with assistance from provincial cat

© 2026   Created by Darren Marsland.   Powered by

Badges  |  Report an Issue  |  Terms of Service