federal advice fat is ‘should THINK FAST. not have certification been WIN BIG. back in ® introduced’ ENTER THE HEAT LQ SPEED EXPERIENCE exPected » Pg 5 true north plant can kill 1,000 per week » Pg 3 favour TURN TO PAGE 11 110201514_Heat LQ_Earlug_AFE_v4.indd 1 2015-01-12 9:17 AM Client: BASF Publication: Alberta Farmer Express . Desiree File Name: HeatLQ_Earlug_AFE_v4 Page Position: Project Name: Heat LQ Earlug Live Area: NA CMYK PMS ART DIR CREATIVE CLIENT MAC ARTIST V4 Docket Number: 110201514 Trim size: 3.083” x 1.833” . 01/12/15 STUDIO AD#: kenna_Earlug_AFE_110201529_HeatLQ Bleed: NA PMS PMS COPYWRITERACCT MGR SPELLCHECK PROD MGR PROOF # February 19, 2015 SERVING MANITOBA FARMERS SINCe 1925 | Vol. 73, No. 8 | $1.75 manitobacooperator.ca sask. wheat says wide basis costing wheat growers billions Economist Richard Gray says elevator prices are down even though f.o.b. Vancouver prices have remained steady to higher since By Allan Dawson co-operator staff he Saskatchewan Wheat Development TC o m m i s s i o n ( S W D C ) s a y s e x p o r t wheat prices are simi- lar to or higher than last October, but farmers are receiving about $20 per tonne less. “Rail transportation and handling capacity have not improved and Norma Windle was one of 15 participants in the workshop led by microbiologist Gary Graumann. photo: lorraine stevenson this is being reflected in even lower returns for producers and a lower share of export values as the year progresses,” SWDC chair Bill Gehl said in a news release. the meat of the matter “We were forecasting this would cost farmers $2 billion (this crop year) but it’s likely to be closer to $3 billion now if this in making sausage keeps up,” Gehl said dur- ing an interview. Workshop at Food Development Centre helps both professionals see EXPORT WHEAT on page 7 » and amateurs learn the craft of sausage making By Lorraine Stevenson They came to hear MAFRD family and cultural recipes. After time in the classroom, co-operator staff/portage la prairie meat microbiologist and food But there are also many criti- workshop participants donned systems risk-mitigation spe- cally important considerations white lab coats, hair and beard t t o Vo n B i s m a r c k cialist Gary Graumann talk for safe handling of processed nets, and slipped fastidiously famously once said, about protein binders, smok- meat. clean hands into bright-blue O“Laws are like sausages; ing, piston stuffers, cooking They emphasize that point. rubber gloves and got right to it is better not to see them temperatures and other things Graumann noted that the word the meat of the matter, making being made.” sausage makers need to know, botulism is derived from the an uncooked coarse-ground But the Prussian statesman such as the kinds of cracks and Latin word botulus, mean- sausage (bratwurst), and a fully wasn’t in the sausage-making holes listeria likes to hide in ing “sausage.” That’s not a cooked, ready-to-eat frank- business. and why. coincidence. furter (hotdog) in the Food Those who are, or simply That underlines why these “I hope I’ve educated peo- Development Centre pilot experimenting at home with are serious subjects for sec- ple on the safety aspect of it, plant. new methods, ingredients or ondary meat processors who and the functionality of all the Some were there to update recipes, need to know — and need an in-depth understand- ingredients, from what you’re themselves, or train their staff. seeing is believing. ing of best practices for recipe adding and why, and provided Greg Woods, an experienced That’s what drew 15 partici- formulation, production mate- a rationale,” he said. meat processor from Cypress pants from across Manitoba rials, processing equipment River, said he’s confident about to a full-day workshop at the and techniques. Hands-on training their sausage-making recipes Food Development Centre Sausage making is an age- Graumann didn’t just stuff here earlier this month. old tradition with many prized heads with sausage theory. see SAUSAGE on page 6 » Manitoba farM incoMe seen down in 2015 » PaGe 21 Publication Mail Agreement 40069240 2 The Manitoba Co-operator | February 19, 2015 INSiDE DiD you know? LiVESToCk Small farms maintain New normal, but manageable crop diversity Swine seminar Rather than preserving ‘heirloom’ varieties, hears update on PEDv 12 they participate in an ongoing process of outcrossing Staff s much as 75 per cent of global seed CRoPS diversity in staple food crops is held A and actively used by a wide range of smallholder farms, many of which are close to urban areas, says a geographer A growing threat from Penn State University. Karl Zimmerer and his colleagues looked from ergot at new census data from 11 countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America. According Good agronomic to a Penn State release, the data shows practices can help 17 that small farmers, in many cases women, are the ones preserving landraces of food crops. A landrace is a locally adapted, tradi- tional variety. Depending on the crop, Landraces of Andean maize in one of this crop’s farmers may plant anywhere from one to 15 global agro-biodiversity hot spots in a peri-urban FEATuRE different landraces. area near Cochabamba. photo: Karl ZiMMeReR, Penn State “For maize, farmers plant one to three Farmers varieties because this crop readily out- crosses to form new varieties, produc- annual meeting Feb. 13. He said that “peri- and variety ing too many new hybrids for the farmers urban” farms — small farms close to cities to evaluate,” Zimmerer said in a release. — are important in maintaining this ongo- development “But the next farm over would probably ing outcrossing and diversity. They have plant different landraces, so for some more good access to urban markets where res- Just chip in, or own diversity is available.” taurants prefer local foodstuffs, like maize their own company? 33 He said that while these farmers are often and quinoa varieties in Peru. But in mar- portrayed as protecting vestiges of “heir- ginal locations with declining populations loom crops,” in fact they are participating in remote rural areas, there are not enough in “emergent agro-biodiversity systems.” growers and during drought or other disas- Zimmerer spoke to the American ters, there may not be sufficient seeds to CRoSSRoADS Association for Advancement of Science replenish the base of diversity. 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PRoduction diRectoR Shawna Gibson Glacier FarmMedia canadian Postmaster: Return undeliverable Canadian addresses TM 204-981-3730 [email protected] [email protected] (covers only) to: CANOLA INK 204-944-5763 204-944-5751 circulation Dept., 1666 Dublin Ave., Winnipeg, MB. R3H 0h1 The Manitoba Co-operator | February 19, 2015 3 briefs Ritz announces True North on the verge of $3.4 million for Ontario pasta plant official federal certification Agriculture Minister Gerry At full capacity the plant will be able to kill 1,000 cattle per week Ritz has announced $3.4 million for a Brampton, By Jennifer Paige Ont. company to purchase co-operator staff/Brandon “We are currently equipment to make maca- roni and cheese and other anitoba is within waiting on pasta products. weeks of having a completion of In a release, Agriculture M modern federally the paperwork. and Agri-Food Canada certified livestock slaugh- Achieving federal said the grant to Italpasta ter plant, says Calvin Vaags, Ltd.