Seven weeks before calving, Ian Smith still watched his cows graze green grass near Argyle, Manitoba, in his yard, around his house. He summed it up: life is good. On a single quarter section, Smith runs a mixed operation that includes cattle, hogs, laying hens, and grain. He farms the same 160 acres his
Rising food prices continue to weigh heavily on consumers, and that pressure now shapes how people think about food, farming, and affordability. Dorothy Long, Managing Director of Canadian Food Focus, says food costs remain the issue consumers feel most directly.“High food prices hit people every day,” Long said.Canadian Food Focus tracks consumer behaviour through
Canadian agriculture closed 2025 under pressure from global uncertainty, shifting trade policies, and political risk that reached far beyond the farm gate. Many producers hoped those pressures would ease. They did not.A year ago, Manitoba Pork General Manager Cam Dahl warned that global instability would disrupt markets. He hoped events would prove him wrong.
Most swine producers know that pig ear necrosis can be a concern in their herds.But the condition which has existed in herds around the world for years, has not been well-understood in terms of its cause, nor in how best to deal with it.So new research from the University of Saskatchewan (USask) which has
African Swine Fever continues to reshape global pork markets, not through sudden windfalls, but through gradual shifts in supply, trade routes, and competitive positioning. Paul Marchand, Senior Risk Management Analyst with h@ms Marketing Services, says ASF’s spread in Europe—especially its entrenched presence in wild boar—forces producers and exporters to rethink expectations rather than chase
Committees updating Canada’s Code of Practice for the Care and Handling of Pigs have identified five priority welfare issues that will guide the next phase of work on the Pig Code. The National Farm Animal Care Council (NFACC) confirmed those priorities in its December 2025 Information Update, outlining progress on the review and the
Mark Fynn
The Canadian Pork Council will add ten new training modules to its PigLEARN training platform at the start of 2026, expanding the national system built to support barn-level training across Canada’s pork sector.The PigLEARN platform launched in March 2025 as an online learning management system designed specifically for swine barn workers. It delivers
Research discussion panel: From left Tricia Schmalenberg, Canada Packers, Christine Bone, University of Guelph, Nuria Prieto, Agriculture Canada Lacombe and Alison Lee, Swine Innovation Porc
SIP Research Panel
If the Canadian pork industry is going to stay competitive in the world market, research is key to economic growth and development, said a panel discussing the impact of
Gerry Friesen has been out of the hog business for more than 15 years, but listening to speakers at the Banff Pork Seminar, he said it is clear the stressors haven’t disappeared and warned farmers not to ignore any mental health worries.“Don’t ignore issues. They don’t go away,” said Friesen, who suffered for years
Dr. John Harding and Ben Willing
George Foxcroft winnerThe George Foxcroft Lectureship award to recognize outstanding excellence in swine production research was given to Dr. John Harding, during the Banff Pork Seminar.Harding’s research “is directly applicable to our industry and holds the potential to improve production efficiency,” said Ben Willing, a University of Alberta agriculture
