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Snowstorm Offers Some Drought Relief

The first big snowstorm of the winter has brought drought relief to parts of Western Canada.

As can be seen on the map below, much of the eastern half of Manitoba did the best, with the more southern areas of the province picking up anywhere from 5 to 15 cm of the white stuff on Thursday and into today. Winnipeg received between 9 and 15 cms, while the Swan River area got dumped on by as much as 30 cm. Saskatchewan had its own band of significant precipitation as well, from the Prince Albert area to Yorkton.

However, there was no significant reprieve for the severely drought stricken areas of southwestern or west-central Saskatchewan or neighboring areas of Alberta.

The latest outlook from World Weather Inc. suggests more snow in parts of Manitoba Friday night and into Saturday, with the drier Prairie areas only seeing minor amounts.

The latest monthly update of the Canadian drought monitor showed virtually all of the main Prairie production area in abnormal dryness or drought as of the end of October.

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Alberta Honey: A Day at Molenkamp Honey Farms

Video: Alberta Honey: A Day at Molenkamp Honey Farms

When was the last time you read the label on your honey?

We spent a day at Molenkamp Honey Farms with Michael Molenkamp, who has been keeping bees for 17 seasons and runs three to four thousand hives. In mid-September, he was finishing treatments and getting his bees ready for winter, and he walked us through how Alberta honey gets made.

Alberta has just 150 commercial beekeepers running 300,000 colonies, and together they produce 40% of Canada’s honey. Long summer days and golden canola fields give Alberta honey a light flavour that’s hard to match anywhere else.

Molenkamp calls Alberta beekeepers some of the most resilient farmers he knows. There’s plenty of Alberta honey to go around, but a lot on our shelves isn’t from here, so his ask is simple. Give the label a second look and choose honey made by Alberta beekeepers, or buy straight from a beekeeper near you.