cull their herds in significant numbers, despite the efforts of a programme which has been shipping hay to drought-affected farmers on the Prairies. According to the president of the Canadian Federation of Agriculture (CFA), Mary Robinson, a total of 5.6 million pounds of livestock feed have been shipped through the Hay West programme. They have managed to reach 75 farmers through their donations, saving 17,000 head of cattle. But the national farm organisation says even its best efforts would not be sufficient to mitigate all loses.
“The deficit of hay in the West is huge,” Robinson noted. “The shortage well exceeds our capacity. We’re never going to be able to move enough hay to save every animal in Western Canada.’”
Some farmers have already culled their herds in fear of being unable to feed the, through the winter, and Robinson noted that such measures will have long-term ramifications. “As herds take years to build up, this culling has the very likely potential to have long-term effects on Canada’s food production,’” she said.
Meanwhile, some of those involved in the industry also point out that there is no benefit in having feed if farmers don’t have water for their animals. This was following a report from the government of Saskatchewan which expressed concern about livestock water supplies, as slough, dugout and well levels remained low across the province. “It gets pretty emotional. It’s difficult for people to talk about,” Robinson said
