Farmers are asked to identify percentage of feed production compared to last year
By Diego Flammini
Staff Writer
Farms.com
A Manitoba ag industry organization is looking to get a clearer picture of how the drought has affected beef producers.
Manitoba Beef Producers (MBP) launched a 17-question survey asking producers to identify their estimated percentage of feed/forage production, estimated water hauling costs, cull rate and other pieces of information.
The organization conducted a similar survey earlier in the year and wants to follow up with producers, said Carson Callum, general manager of Manitoba Beef Producers.
“We started this back in the summer when the drought was at its peak,” he told Farms.com. “We’re going to keep it open until the end of the year so we can continue to get information about what the impact of the drought has been, whether that was in the summer or in the fall.”
Early survey entries and contact with producers have uncovered two main concerns.
Feed and water are at top of mind for beef producers, Callum said.
“Feed and water availability were the main concerns during the summer,” he said. “Now, people are doing their best to source feed for the winter.”
All data and comments MBP receives will be aggregated into a full report. No individual farm data or comments will be shared.
The organization will use the complete dataset to engage with governments, Callum said.
“It helps us paint a better picture to the provincial and federal governments about what the impact of the drought is,” he said. “And now that some support has been announced, our plan is to continue to engage with people who have been impacted to see where we are heading into the next production year.”