Manitoba premier says grain-drying would be exempt from a Manitoba carbon tax

Jan 22, 2020

BRANDON, Man. - Manitoba Premier Brian Pallister is pitching his plan for a carbon tax to agricultural producers as a much better alternative than the current federal one.

Pallister told an agricultural exposition that he would exempt grain-drying costs from a provincial carbon tax, unlike the federal tax.

Farmers in much of the West have faced steep bills as they use natural gas and propane to dry their grain after a soggy harvest.

Keystone Agricultural Producers, the province's largest farm group, says corn producers alone are paying about $1.7 million in carbon tax this year and they face competition from United States producers, who do not pay the tax.

The group's president, Bill Campbell, says Pallister's promise is a step in the right direction.

Pallister has rejected federal demands for a carbon tax, but is now raising the possibility of hammering out a deal with Ottawa.

Source : FCC

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.