Fusarium Key Downgrading Factor For Saskatchewan Crops

Oct 18, 2016

Fusarium is one of the key downgrading factors for Saskatchewan crops this year.

Producers who may be looking at using some poor quality grain as livestock feed will want to be careful.

Fusarium can produce mycotoxins, such as DON, that can result in a reduced immune response in the animal, as well as reduced feed consumption.

Trevor Lennox, a forage specialist with Saskatchewan Agriculture, suggests getting a feed test done so you know what you have to work within a blend:

"There is a screening test they can run to test and determine which toxins are there, and there are levels of tolerance for each toxin," he said.

Source : Discoverestevan

Video: Evolution of Beef Cattle Farming

The Clear Conversations podcast took to the road for a special episode recorded in Nashville during CattleCon, bringing listeners straight into the heart of the cattle industry. Host Tracy Sellers welcomed rancher Steve Wooten of Beatty Canyon Ranch in Colorado for a wide-ranging discussion that blended family history and sustainability, particularly as it relates to the future of beef production.

Sustainability emerged as a central theme of the conversation, a word that Wooten acknowledges can mean very different things depending on who you ask. For him, sustainability starts with the soil. Healthy soil produces healthy grass, which supports efficient cattle capable of producing year after year with minimal external inputs. It’s an approach that equally considers vegetation, animal efficiency, and long-term profitability.

That philosophy aligned naturally with Wooten’s involvement in the U.S. Roundtable for Sustainable Beef, where he served as a representative for the Colorado Cattlemen’s Association. The roundtable brings together the entire beef supply chain—from producers to retailers—along with universities, NGOs, and allied industries. Its goal is not regulation, Wooten emphasized, but collaboration, shared learning, and continuous improvement.