Driest Year Since 1984; Saskatchewan Expects Plenty Of Crop Insurance Claims

Aug 08, 2017

Agriculture minister Lyle Stewart expects crop insurance offices will be busy in Saskatchewan because of record dry weather.

That’s because parts of southern Saskatchewan are experiencing the driest year since 1894.

Stewart remains upbeat about crop production but he still expects plenty of crop insurance claims.

He has taken some steps to help producers, such as extending the farm and ranch water development deadline to the end of September:

“We’re prioritizing now,” Stewart said. “Digging dugouts, opening wells, piping water. It’s critical to get done in a timely fashion now.”

He says the farm stress line has been busy this year because of extremely dry weather.

Source : CKRM

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.