The Alberta Pulse Growers Commission is pleased to announce the sixth annual Alberta Pulse Industry Innovator Award. An industry innovator is a person or organization that has worked to help nurture and shape the pulse industry and has helped contribute to the success of the industry as it is today. Innovators may have contributed to the industry through various areas from production, marketing, research, extension, processing, management, promotion and innovation.

To nominate someone, please complete the Pulse Industry Innovator Nomination Form below.

Nominations may be forwarded to the APG office and will be accepted until December 6, 2019.

2020_APGPulseInnovator_Nomination_Form_final

Team Alberta is seeking farmer participation for a grain conditioning study that will assess on-farm energy consumption and efficiency of grain drying and conditioning systems.

The data obtained from the grain conditioning project will be a critical source of information for Alberta farmers regarding efficiencies, implementation or expansion of grain conditioning systems. Information gained will also be used for advocacy purposes such as improving programs and policies that seek to reduce the cost burden associated with on-farm grain conditioning in Alberta.

Interested farmers can expect a three-year commitment working closely with experts to install necessary measuring implements, perform data readings and manual logging throughout the drying periods. Participating farmers will have their energy-use monitored and gain valuable knowledge of their system’s efficiency rate, along with individualized recommendations to make operational decisions to reduce costs of their grain conditioning practices.

Team Alberta is seeking farmers who may be drying in the spring for a pilot project that will start in April 2019. For the study launch in July 2019, Team Alberta requires 40 systems and is seeking farmers who operate with one or more systems. All information collected in the study will remain confidential and only aggregated data will be used in final reports.

Team Alberta needs volunteers! Interested farmers are encouraged to complete the form in the link below. Upon completion, farmers will be contacted for an intake interview by our project partners at 3D Energy, an energy engineering, management and project development advisory company.

For further questions regarding the study please contact Shannon Sereda, government relations and policy manager with the Alberta Wheat and Barley Commissions at 403-219-6263 or ssereda@albertawheatbarley.com.

APPLY NOW TO PARTICIPATE 

The Alberta Pulse Growers Commission has confirmed that 31.4 per cent of eligible producers’ 2018 check-off payment is eligible for the Scientific Research & Experimental Development (SR&ED) tax credit for their investment in APG-funded research and development projects.

For example, for producers who paid $100 in check-off to APG in 2018, $31.40 is eligible to earn tax credits. Producers who have paid check-off this past year and have not asked for refunds are eligible claimants for this year’s credits.

For more detailed information about the SR&ED Tax Credit, APG advises you to contact an accountant or the Canada Revenue Agency.  For a history of SR&ED with Alberta Pulse Growers visit https://albertapulse.com/growing-pulses/sred-tax-credit/ . A summary of APG research investments in 2017-18 is available at https://albertapulse.com/research/.

The federal SR&ED tax program is administered by the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) and encourages businesses to invest in and perform research and development in Canada.

The SR&ED Tax Credit application form can be downloaded directly from the CRA website at https://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/txcrdt/sred-rsde/clmng/clmngsrd-eng.html. Individual producers need to apply using the form T2038 (IND) and Canadian controlled private corporations should utilize the form T2SCH31.

The Alberta Pulse Growers Commission represents 6,000 growers of field pea, dry bean, lentil, chickpea, faba bean and soybean in Alberta.  Our vision is to have Alberta pulses recognized by consumers as environmentally friendly, healthy, nutritious, and recognized by all producers as being an essential element in a sustainable cropping system. 

For more information, please contact:
Rachel Peterson, Communications Coordinator
Phone: 780-986-9398 ext. 108
rpeterson@albertapulse.com

Team Alberta is pleased that Transportation Minister Brian Mason has heard farmers’ concerns and will be allowing agricultural workers to apply for a one-year exemption from the Mandatory Entry Level Training (MELT) as part of the new Class 1 driver’s licence regulations. The new rules are set to come into effect on March 1, 2019.

Understanding that the March 1 timing of the new rules could have significantly impacted many farmers’ ability to hire properly trained and licensed drivers prior to seeding the 2019 crop, the Government of Alberta has proposed the extension to address these concerns in the short-term.

Team Alberta agrees that proper training is important to improve the safety of our roads. However, the unintended consequences of the March 1 timing for the MELT program are concerning to farmers who are dependent on seasonal labour for seeding this year’s crop. MELT requires over 100 hours of training, and the current capacity to administer the program will take time to ramp up to meet the surge in demand across the province.

“This is extremely good news for farmers,” says, Kevin Serfas, Alberta Canola Vice-Chair. “By accommodating the agriculture industry’s unique needs, we’ve avoided significant challenges that would have hurt our ability to seed this year’s crop. We appreciate the Ministry’s support on this issue.”

“Safety has always been the number one priority on my farm,” says Dave Bishop, Alberta Barley Chair. “We appreciate that Department of Transportation recognizes that we can have safer roads without compromising farmers’ ability to get our crop in.”

“In many instances, farmers were finding it impossible to access current services to obtain a Class 1 licence under the current rules,” says, Gary Stanford, Alberta Wheat Commission Chair. “This gives us some breathing room when the new regulations come into effect and time to discuss the implications of this policy on the agriculture industry.”

Following this news, Team Alberta and other members of the agricultural industry will be having a technical meeting with the Deputy Minister of Transportation to develop the industry’s path forward with the Class 1 Licence. Team Alberta looks forward to communicating additional details to farmers as they become available. Further information from the Government of Alberta can be found here.

“We appreciate the government working with us to ensure we can avoid skilled labour shortages while keeping our roads safe,” says Don Shepert, Alberta Pulse Growers Chair. “We will keep farmers updated as this file progresses.”

Team Alberta is a collaboration between four of Alberta’s crop commissions: Alberta Barley, Alberta Canola, Alberta Pulse Growers and the Alberta Wheat Commission, that advocates for the growth, competitiveness and sustainability of Alberta’s crop sector. Collectively, Team Alberta represents approximately 20,000 grower members.

Further to our press release on February 7, 2019, we are proactively working with other Alberta farmer organizations and the Government of Alberta to request an extension to the March 1, 2019 implementation date. These changes will require any resident of Alberta who wants to obtain a new Class 1 driver’s licence to take the Mandatory Entry Level Training (MELT) program.

Many farmers are dependent on seasonal labour and most are hired and trained immediately prior to spring seeding. The changes would require over 100 hours of training, which would be difficult to complete prior to seeding. Additionally, the need for privately-run licensing bodies, to re-train and re-test instructors and examiners in order to administer the MELT program, is currently making access to the training and testing facilities difficult. The changes that come into effect on March 1, 2019, could significantly impact many farmers’ ability to hire properly trained and licensed drivers prior to seeding the 2019 crop.

The Government of Alberta states there are over 25,000 Class 1 and Class 3 farm vehicles registered and only a small proportion of farmers have, or are required to have, a Class 1 licence. While the proportion may be small according to the government, the impact to farms that rely on Class 1 drivers is significant. The Ministry of Transportation has developed an FAQ to address concerns that were raised by the agriculture industry in a webinar this past Wednesday. They are attached here. Team Alberta continues to work Alberta Transportation to find a solution.

Team Alberta is a collaboration between four of Alberta’s crop commissions: Alberta Barley, Alberta Canola, Alberta Pulse Growers and the Alberta Wheat Commission, that advocates for the growth, competitiveness and sustainability of Alberta’s crop sector. Collectively, Team Alberta represents approximately 20,000 grower members.

The Alberta Pulse Growers (APG) selected Kirsty Ross (Piquette), who was instrumental in building the field pea industry in northeastern Alberta, as the winner of the fifth annual Alberta Pulse Industry Innovator Award.

“Each year, APG recognizes a person or organization whose progressive thinking and tireless efforts helped build Alberta’s pulse industry into the flourishing sector that it is today,” said APG Vice-Chair Don Shepert. “Kirsty became a visionary for the pulse industry in northeast Alberta. She introduced a new crop that had no history in the area. She persevered through the use of grower groups to advance the crop to a place of prominence in rotations in our area. Kirsty’s commitment to the farming community is not forgotten, and it is very well appreciated by all those affected by her work.”

As a provincial district agriculturist for the St. Paul area in the mid-1980s, Ross started to look for another option to add to the area’s crops and generate more cash flow for farmers. She began to organize field trials after becoming intrigued by the nitrogen cycle and nutrients that pulses provide to the soil. Add to this that the St. Paul area was also home to a high concentration of hogs, and the result was that an increasing number of producers started to grow field peas. The St. Paul Seed Cleaning Plant became involved as they saw a future for cleaning dry peas for human consumption. Ross noted that growing the field pea industry in what became Alberta Pulse Growers’ Zone 5 was a collaborative effort that was successful because of the efforts of producers, grower groups, agricultural service boards, plant breeders, and many more.

Ross said that she was honoured to learn that she was chosen as the recipient of the fifth annual Industry Innovator Award.

“I was very stunned and humbled – it was really quite special,” Ross said. “I had a lot of support from the St. Paul Agricultural Service Board who worked with me in organizing local trials on different pea varieties. By proving the crop could be grown and marketed successfully in the area, growers became interested. It was a team effort, but I guess I was the catalyst. I was able to bring everyone together. I always wondered what else we could grow up there (near St. Paul) and peas seemed to be a great fit.”

The Alberta Pulse Growers Commission represents 6,000 growers of field pea, dry bean, lentil, chickpea, faba bean and soybean in Alberta. Our vision is to have Alberta pulses recognized by consumers as environmentally friendly, healthy, nutritious, and recognized by all producers as being an essential element in a sustainable cropping system.

For more information, please contact:
Rachel Peterson, Communications Coordinator
Phone: 780-986-9398 ext. 108
rpeterson@albertapulse.com
www.albertapulse.com

The Alberta Pulse Growers Commission is pleased to announce the fifth annual Alberta Pulse Industry Innovator Award. An industry innovator is a person or organization that has worked to help nurture and shape the pulse industry and has helped contribute to the success of the industry as it is today. Innovators may have contributed to the industry through various areas from production, marketing, research, extension, processing, management, promotion and innovation.

To nominate someone please see the Pulse Industry Innovator Nomination Form below.

Nominations may be forwarded to the APG office and will be accepted until December 7, 2018.

2018_APGPulseInnovator_Nomination_Form_final

The Alberta Pulse Growers Commission (APG) invites pulse producers who want to grow the province’s pulse industry while developing their own leadership skills to run for election as an advisor in their zone.

“Advisors are essential to the success and continued growth of the commission and Alberta’s pulse industry,” said APG Chair D’Arcy Hilgartner. “I began as an advisor and learned so much about APG and the pulse industry that when the opportunity came to be elected as a director, I was confident that I had the experience to step into that role.”

Participating with the organization as an advisor is an opportunity for a producer to develop their leadership skills. Advisors help guide research and extension activities specific to their zone. Directors on APG’s provincial board often serve as advisors first.

Positions are available for election in all zones this fall. Producers must have sold pulses within the last two years to be eligible to serve as an advisor. Pulse growers who are interested in becoming an advisor in their zone must be nominated by an eligible pulse grower at their zone annual general meeting listed below.

Zone 1 – Dec. 3, Heritage Inn, Taber

Zone 2 – Nov. 14, Strathmore Civic Centre

Zone 3 – Nov. 21, Westlock & District Community Hall

Zone 4 – Nov. 19, Rycroft Ag Centre

Zone 5– Nov. 22, Willingdon Recreation Centre

Pulse producers who have questions about advisor elections are encouraged to contact the APG office (office@albertapulse.com).

The Alberta Pulse Growers Commission represents 6,000 growers of field pea, dry bean, lentil, chickpea, faba bean and soybean in Alberta. Our vision is to have Alberta pulses recognized by consumers as environmentally friendly, healthy, nutritious, and recognized by all producers as being an essential element in a sustainable cropping system.

For more information, please contact:
Rachel Peterson, Communications Coordinator
Phone: 780-986-9398 ext. 108
rpeterson@albertapulse.com
www.albertapulse.com

Oct 15 – 18 – NR – APG Seeks Advisors